Tom Cruise filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit on Wednesday against magazines that claimed he had abandoned his daughter, Suri, following his divorce from actress Katie Holmes.

The "Mission: Impossible" star filed the lawsuit in U.S. court in Los Angeles against the publishers of celebrity magazines In Touch and Life & Style, Cruise's attorney Bert Fields said in a statement.

"Tom is a caring father who dearly loves Suri. She's a vital part of his life and always will be. To say he has 'abandoned' her is a vicious lie. To say it in lurid headlines with a tearful picture of Suri is reprehensible," Fields said in a statement.

The lawsuit refers to two cover stories published by the magazines in July and September with the headlines "Abandoned by Daddy" and "Abandoned by her dad." The September story from In Touch claimed that 6-year-old Suri, the only child of Cruise and Holmes, had gone more 44 days without seeing him.

The magazines, owned by privately held German publishing group Bauer Media, did not immediately return calls for comment.

Holmes filed for divorce in June after six years of marriage, seeking sole custody of Suri, in a move that took Cruise by surprise when he was filming in Iceland. They swiftly agreed to a custody arrangement and settled other matters but details have been kept private.

Fields said that despite repeated stories in celebrity media about Cruise and his personal life during his 30-year Hollywood career, the actor rarely resorted to litigation.

"He's not a litigious guy. But when these sleazy peddlers try to make money with disgusting lies about his relationship with his child, you bet he's going to sue," he added.

Fields said Cruise was seeking damages of $50 million and would "undoubtedly give the money to charity" if he wins the case.

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Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise

Katie Holmes and daughter Suri Cruise had a bumpy ride on Monday night after their car was hit by a garbage truck. 

According to People, the star mother and daughter were leaving the Chelsea Piers recreational center, when a garbage truck struck their Mercedes.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Stars who split in 2012

“Suri was crying in the car,” a source told the mag. Katie, 33, was not driving during the incident.

The New York Police Department also confirmed the incident with the mag. A police report was reportedly filed once Katie and her daughter were home.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: The adorable Suri Cruise!

This marks the second time their car has been hit in recent days. Last Friday, during a trip to FAO Schwartz, a car driven by the paparazzi hit their car.

VIEW THE PHOTOS: Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes: A look back

 Related content:

• Confident Katie Holmes not a 'little girl' anymore
• Cruise and Holmes reach divorce agreement

Suri Cruise turned 6 years old on Wednesday and had her picture taken for the umpteen-millionth time. And looking at this photo made me feel sad for a little girl who's lived her short life predominantly as a paparazzi prize.

Splash News

Suri Cruise and her mother Katie Holmes are besieged by photographers as they head to a Broadway show in New York for Suri's sixth birthday.

Whether she's wearing lipstick or little heeled shoes or fancy dresses or another sad expression, Suri draws more attention than her mother or father when she's trotted in front of the cameras. Some would blame Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise for subjecting their child to such attention -- mom and daughter helicoptered into New York on Monday, of course. Others blame the ever-present paparazzi for failing to give the poor girl any space -- "Suri! Over your shoulder! Suri!" Seriously, does the kid look that different than she did at 5? And don't forget to blame me. I'm putting the picture in front of your face and asking you to look at it. And, sure, go ahead and blame yourself for clicking on yet another Suri Cruise story. Vicious cycle much?

Who knows? Maybe Suri doesn't mind. Maybe she loves the people with cameras and the constant flashbulbs. We always fail when we try to pretend we know what goes through the minds of celebrities. Half the time we think it would be great to be rich and famous and half the time we smarten up and realize how lousy that would make things.

My own kid turned 5 last month and I've taken my fair share of photos of him. He hates it. I can't imagine if there were 30 of me watching his every move, shouting his name on the way from the preschool to the car. My guess is he would bury his head in his mom's shoulder. As a dad it would make me want to change something about the way I was raising him. And if I was the photographer angling for that picture, it would make me want to shoot something else.

What's your take on Suri and the spotlight? Do you blame her parents or the "press"? Tell us on Facebook.

Look, mom, more photos!

• Suri Cruise slideshow
• Tom Cruise slidehow
• Katie Holmes slideshow

Kurt Schlosser is a senior entertainment producer for msnbc.com and TODAY.com. When not editing the daily Celebrity Sightings slideshow he's looking at pictures of his 5-year-old son.