Line #69 Creator/TomCruise


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/4cb558a22d1c8efad254565c52a833e4.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:[[OlderThanTheyLook Nobody looks like that past 60.]]]]
3
4	->''"Tom Cruise is an amazing actor and generous co-worker whose personal life we, as a society, know far too much about."''
5	-->-- '''[[Creator/MichaelNyqvist Mikael Nyqvist]]''' [[note]][[OvershadowedByControversy To pretty much every Swedish news-outlet the months around]] ''Film/MissionImpossibleGhostProtocol''[[/note]]
6
7	Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), better known by his screen name of Tom Cruise, is an American actor and film producer.
8
9	''Forbes'' magazine ranked him as the world's most powerful celebrity in 2006. During his career, he has been nominated for three UsefulNotes/{{Academy Award}}s and won three UsefulNotes/GoldenGlobe Awards. His first leading role was in ''Film/RiskyBusiness'', and since then he has become known for playing cocky, charismatic heroes, although he has sometimes [[PlayingAgainstType stepped outside his comfort zone]]. He's famous for [[DoingItForTheArt his dedication to the job]]; every starring action role of his has him either [[BadassDriver driving]], [[BadassBiker motorcycling]], [[ImprobablePilotingSkills flying]], [[ClimbingTheCliffsOfInsanity climbing]], [[AirAidedAcrobatics acrobatics]] or [[BigHeroicRun running]], and [[TheCastShowoff he does the majority of these stunts himself]], not relying [[NoStuntDouble on stunt doubles]] for them. He's also ''especially'' known for [[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNjnCSy9QXRJsiWWFg7QnhNZUZbWZ_k89 his running]], which happens in nearly every movie.
10
11	Every few years, Cruise attracts some attention through some ''unusual'' antics that put him into the tabloids, such as his outspoken adherence to the Church of Scientology or his high-profile marriages (to Creator/MimiRogers[[note]]who was the one to introduce him to Scientology[[/note]], Creator/NicoleKidman, Creator/PenelopeCruz, and Creator/KatieHolmes, all of which eventually ended). He is generally very friendly, but his intensity has led to some {{memetic\|Mutation}} moments in interviews, including jumping on [[Creator/OprahWinfrey Oprah]]'s couch on [[Series/TheOprahWinfreyShow her show]] telling her how much he loves Katie Holmes.
12
13	Despite all the crazy, Cruise is considered [[SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct a genuinely good - sometimes even great - actor]] with great films and powerful performances under his belt. He has remained an A-list actor since TheEighties, something very few can claim, starting around the time of ''Film/TopGun''. So far, Cruise has exclusively appeared in theatrical films, and has yet to ever act for TV or streaming, prompting the ''[[https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/20/business/media/tom-cruise-top-gun-maverick.html New York Times]]'' to refer to him as "Hollywood’s Last Real Movie Star". He also opened the 2002 [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] -- just months after 9/11 -- and gave a memorably powerful and heartwarming opening speech called "A Little Bit of Magic". Finally, [[OlderThanTheyLook even in his 60s]], he remains Hollywood's preeminent PrettyBoy.
14
15	He is the first cousin of actor Creator/WilliamMapother. They have [[RealLifeRelative played together]] in some films.
16	----
17	!! Notable for:
18	* ''Literature/EndlessLove'' (1981) as Billy
19	* ''Film/{{Taps}}'' (1981) as Cadet Capt. David Shawn
20	* ''Literature/TheOutsiders'' (1983) as Steve Randle
21	* ''Film/RiskyBusiness'' (1983) as Joel Goodson
22	* ''Film/LosinIt'' (1983) as Woody
23	* ''Film/AllTheRightMoves'' (1983) as Stefen Djordjevic
24	* ''Film/{{Legend\|1985}}'' (1985) as Jack (O' The Green)
25	* ''Film/TopGun'' as Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell (1986)
26	** ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' (2022)
27	* ''Film/TheColorOfMoney'' (1986) as Vincent Lauria
28	* ''Film/{{Cocktail}}'' (1988) as Brian Flanagan
29	* ''Film/RainMan'' (1988) as Charlie Babbitt
30	* ''Literature/BornOnTheFourthOfJuly'' (1989) as Ron Kovic (Ironically, Cruise was actually Born on the Third of July.)
31	* ''Film/DaysOfThunder'' (1990) as Cole Trickle
32	* ''Film/FarAndAway'' (1992) as Joseph Donnelly
33	* ''Film/AFewGoodMen'' (1992) as Lt. Daniel Kaffee
34	* ''Film/TheFirm'' (1993) as Mitch [=McDeere=]
35	* ''Film/InterviewWithTheVampire'' (1994) as Lestat de Lioncourt
36	* ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries Mission: Impossible]]'' film series as Ethan Matthew Hunt
37	** ''[[Film/MissionImpossible1996 Mission: Impossible]]'' (1996)
38	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleII'' (2000)
39	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleIII'' (2006)
40	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleGhostProtocol'' (2011)
41	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleRogueNation'' (2015)
42	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleFallout'' (2018)
43	** ''Film/MissionImpossibleDeadReckoning'' (2023)
44	** ''Mission Impossible 8'' (2025)
45	* ''Film/JerryMaguire'' (1996) as Jerry Maguire
46	* ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'' (1999) as Frank T.J. Mackey
47	* ''Film/EyesWideShut'' (1999) as Dr. William "Bill" Harford
48	* ''Film/VanillaSky'' (2001) as David Aames
49	* ''Film/MinorityReport'' (2002) as John Anderton
50	* ''Film/TheLastSamurai'' (2003) as Nathan Algren
51	* ''Film/{{Collateral}}'' (2004) as Vincent
52	* ''Film/{{War of the Worlds\|2005}}'' (2005) as Ray Ferrier
53	* ''Film/LionsForLambs'' (2007) as Senator Jasper Irving
54	* ''Film/TropicThunder'' (2008) as Les Grossman
55	* ''Film/{{Valkyrie}}'' (2008) as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg
56	* ''Film/KnightAndDay'' (2010) as Roy Miller
57	* ''Theatre/RockOfAges'' (2012) as Stacee Jaxx
58	* ''Film/JackReacher'' (2012) as Jack Reacher
59	** ''Film/JackReacherNeverGoBack'' (2016)
60	* ''Film/{{Oblivion\|2013}}'' (2013) as Jack Harper
61	* ''Film/EdgeOfTomorrow'' (2014) as William Cage
62	* ''Film/{{The Mummy\|2017}}'' (2017) as Nick Morton
63	* ''Film/AmericanMade'' (2017) as Barry Seal
64	----
65	!! Tropes associated with him:
66	* ActionHero: Especially in the ''Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries'', which made his character a standard of a modern super spy. ''Film/JackReacher'' practically cements it. His image as an action star is so ingrained in the public consciousness that it's easy to forget that he didn't start out that way, as much of his roles in the '80s and especially the '90s were of the dramatic kind, with a few action movies here and there. It wasn't until the 2000s and 2010s that he began to star in more and more action movies, to the point where they dominate nearly the entirety of his filmography of those decades (case in point: the ''only'' movie of his since the 2000s that isn't an action movie in some way is ''Film/LionsForLambs'').
67	* AdamWesting: Most of his roles are handsome and playboys, which gets into this trope, so it's very difficult to get rid of the idea that such characters are an ActorAllusion.
68	** For a more specific example, his role in ''Film/KnightAndDay'' is an AffectionateParody of his most famous character, [[Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries Ethan Hunt]]: like Ethan, Roy Miller is a suave, badass secret agent and all-around NiceGuy, but also a completely batshit insane CloudCuckooLander with a [[BlueAndOrangeMorality very strange sense of right and wrong]].
69	* AndStarring: A quirk of his more recent filmography is that he comes last in the VideoCredits at the end of his films despite being the top-billed star and main draw.
70	* BigHeroicRun: Famous for his on-camera sprinting ability; seems to work its way into [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=U8Q2MgdMskQ most of his movies]], regardless of the genre. As WebVideo/CinemaWins says, "Tom Cruise sprints like a champ." Cruise even nods to its memetic status in his official Twitter bio: "Running in movies since 1981."
71	* CareerResurrection: After an increasing amount of scandals and heavy tabloid coverage in the mid-2000s waned his star power a bit, he won back the crowd in 2011 with ''Film/MissionImpossibleGhostProtocol'', which was a critical and box office success and renewed interest in the ''Mission: Impossible'' franchise. Even though he's had a few misfires and is still very controversial, he's been a consistent box office draw ever since and is considered to be one of the last in a dying breed of movie stars. This has been further seen with the critical and commercial success of ''Film/TopGunMaverick'', which became his first film in his 41-year career to gross over a billion dollars.
72	* TheCastShowoff: The P-51 Mustang he [[RidingIntoTheSunset flies into the sunset]] with Creator/JenniferConnelly in ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' is actually Cruise's own personal plane, and he's really flying it. He's been a licensed pilot since 1994.
73	* TheCharmer: Heroic or villainous, all of his characters tend to radiate charisma. His famous megawatt smile tends to help.
74	* ChewingTheScenery: As much as his roles are understated, he knows how to shout and go nuts on occasion ([[Film/BornOnTheFourthOfJuly "PENIS! PENIS! Big fucking erect penis, Mom!"]], [[Film/JerryMaguire "SHOW ME THE MONEY!"]], [[Film/MinorityReport "DON'T EVER SAY HIS NAME!"]], [[Film/TropicThunder "First, take a big step back... and literally, FUCK YOUR OWN FACE!"]], etc.).
75	* ComicBookFantasyCasting: He was the physical inspiration for the title character in ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}''.
76	* CoolOldGuy: His trademark role these days, especially in ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' and ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries Mission: Impossible]]'' where his age hasn't come close to slowing him down compared to other actors of the same age.
77	* DawsonCasting: In 1983, he played teenagers in four separate movies, including his StarMakingRole in ''Film/RiskyBusiness'', when he was twenty-one years old. His roles in the film adaptation of ''Literature/EndlessLove'' and ''Film/{{Taps}}'' two years earlier only barely skirted the line, since he was nineteen at the time.
78	* DoingItForTheArt:
79	** He puts all his effort into every role, regardless if it is a romantic comedy or an action movie. It's almost MemeticMutation to say "[[TookTheBadFilmSeriously Cruise never phones it in]]." This extends both within his movies, where he often develops the big MoneyMakingShot himself, and in advertising the films, where he goes above and beyond with interviews and promotions.
80	** For most of his career, Tom Cruise has worked out percentage deals for his films rather than taking a salary, meaning he gets a portion of the gross when the movie comes out. This helps ensure his films stay under budget while ensuring the biggest pay-day for himself, but only if it succeeds. It also means he has to bust his ass to promote the movie and make it the best it can be before release. Most of this certainly motivated his infamous recorded rant on the set of ''Film/MissionImpossibleDeadReckoning'' when some crew members didn't respect the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic production guidelines (though he didn't forget to mention it's also about ensuring the livelihood of everyone involved).
81	* AFatherToHisMen:
82	** Ethan Hunt and Pete "Maverick" Mitchell (in ''Film/TopGunMaverick'') will ensure that their team will pull off their missions while personally caring about them coming back alive from them.
83	** Say what you want about his personal life but on a film set, Cruise has a reputation for being a tough but fair leader, with people like his ''Mission: Impossible'' co-star Creator/RebeccaFerguson gushing about how warm and kind he is to them on set. On ''Film/EdgeOfTomorrow'', he famously challenged the extras to reduce the time it took to put on their suits from 30 minutes to 3, which ended up saving hours of production time and millions in cost. The Covid-19 rant above was partly due to the fact that not only was the movie (which he is a producer of) providing jobs for the people working on it, but it was also shouldering the hopes of all the major movie studios for a major post-Covid blockbuster, which would have long-lasting ramifications for the rest of the industry.
84	** His ''Top Gun: Maverick'' co-stars, most of whom are much younger than him, have praised Cruise's leadership during the press tour. Creator/JenniferConnelly, who played his love interest Penny Benjamin, even credits him with helping her overcome a fear of flying by taking her through some aerobatics in his own P-51 Mustang for the final scene of the film. She notes that his meticulous approach to piloting made her feel extremely safe despite the tiny plane (and the aerobatics).
85	** Creator/HannahWaddingham, who isn't exactly known for tolerating BS or ill-treatment on set, also got in on it after beginning filming for ''Mission: Impossible 8'', calling him "one of the loveliest... human beings [she has] ever met" after spending five days filming with him on an aircraft carrier.
86	* {{Hunk}}: He may be short but is still can play handsome, muscular, and manly leading roles with ease.
87	* LargeHam: Averted with his characters, to the surprise of many who have never seen him act before -- he is actually a truly gifted actor with a remarkable subtlety to his performances. Although he definitely corresponds to this trope in real life, most of his characters have a more restrained personality. [[PlayingAgainstType Then there's]] [[Film/TropicThunder Les Grossman]]. (That said, though, when he ''does'' decide to go for the Ham, he doesn't do it by halves.)
88	* MoneyDearBoy:
89	** He reportedly said that this was his main reason for doing the '80s sex comedy ''Film/LosinIt''.
90	** Also averted with his big franchises to some extent, as he has long refused to approve his likeness for merchandise, which is why you won't be finding an Ethan Hunt action figure any time soon. The last ''Mission: Impossible'' video game tied to his film series dates back to 2003, for this reason as well.
91	* MrFanservice: His films often take advantage of his boyish good looks and well-built physique, whether it be with tight shirts or going shirtless, most prominent in the ''Film/TopGun'' [[Film/TopGunMaverick films]] and the ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries Mission: Impossible]]'' series.
92	* NoStuntDouble: Probably the most famous example in modern cinema. He does the majority of his stunts personally and is proficient enough that he is trusted to do those high-risk stunts. On their own, each ''Mission: Impossible'' film tries to up itself with what he does. From rock climbing without a harness and having his co-worker actually try to stab him in the eye in ''MI:II''[[labelnote:*]]Dougray Scott was told to put his full force behind an actual knife, and the only thing keeping it from blinding Tom was a wire preventing its entry[[/labelnote]] to scaling the Burj Khalifa in ''Ghost Protocol'', hanging on the side of a real cargo plane in ''Rogue Nation'', performing over 100 HALO (High Altitude Low Opening) skydiving jumps for just a handful of usable takes, doing high-speed motorcycle chases through busy Paris streets ''sans'' helmet or any protection, and eventually breaking his ankle jumping between buildings in ''Fallout''. WebVideo/CinemaWins refers to this quite accurately as "Unnecessary Risks Taken by Tom Cruise Due to His Unimpeded Devotion to Realism." And he learned to pilot helicopters and jet fighters so that's really him in a cockpit that you see doing that onscreen in ''Film/MissionImpossibleFallout'' and ''Film/TopGunMaverick''.[[note]]No, he's not really flying an F-14 Tomcat or an F-18 Super Hornet -- those are multimillion-dollar military jets, and no one but a naval aviator would be allowed to fly one -- but he ''can'' fly a number of older models, including the WWII-era P-51 Mustang at the end (which is actually Cruise's own personal plane).[[/note]]
93	* OlderThanTheyLook: It's become widespread the joke that he stopped aging sometime around the 2000s (for reference: in ''Fallout'', Cruise was one year older than Creator/JonVoight during the first ''Mission: Impossible''!), specially compared to [[https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c1/10/e3/c110e3e170b2999b31ca591e032ece5b.jpg former]] [[https://scontent.fplu9-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.6435-9/79628133_2673863035982204_3327553284402577408_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_p526x296&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=9267fe&_nc_ohc=SD1QDajhsMMAX-DzcFO&_nc_ht=scontent.fplu9-1.fna&oh=00_AT-qmSMO71wqnAMRgOTM_Ztqz3wGBGnfc7cRRIL8TEDOfQ&oe=62AB6573 co-stars]].
94	* PerpetualSmiler: He's known for his famous million-dollar smile and displays it regularly. ''Film/MissionImpossibleII'' even has the villain say the hardest part about impersonating Ethan Hunt was "grinning like an idiot every fifteen minutes".
95	* PintsizedPowerhouse: Famously on the shorter side compared to many other stars, but frequently plays characters who are extremely skilled fighters and has very ripped physiques.
96	* PlayingAgainstType: The roles of the cynical AntiVillain Lestat in ''Film/InterviewWithTheVampire'', [[CuriosityIsACrapshoot too-curious-for-his-own-good]] Dr Bill Harford in ''Film/EyesWideShut'', villainous henchman Vincent in ''Film/{{Collateral}}'', divorced working-class father Ray Ferrier in ''Film/WarOfTheWorlds2005'', and {{Jerkass}} movie studio executive Les Grossman in ''Film/TropicThunder''.
97	* ProducedByCastMember: He has invested a lot in his biggest movies since the 2000s, he doesn't merely play in them.
98	* ProductionPosse: He's found himself a crack team for his major movies since about ''Film/{{Valkyrie}}'' in 2008 with writer/director Creator/ChristopherMcQuarrie and directors Creator/JosephKosinski and Creator/DougLiman (since ''Film/{{Oblivion\|2013}}'' for the former and ''Film/EdgeOfTomorrow'' for the latter).
99	* RomanceOnTheSet: Started dating Creator/NicoleKidman on the set of ''Days of Thunder'', Creator/PenelopeCruz on the set of ''Vanilla Sky'', and Creator/HayleyAtwell on the set of the seventh ''Mission: Impossible'' film.
100	* RunningGag: For some reason, there seems to always be someone or something (even an [[Film/Oblivion2013 Elvis bobblehead]]) named "Bob" in his films since at the very least ''Film/TheLastSamurai'' (at least those where he enjoys greater creative control as producer).
101	* ScullyBox: [[invoked]] He provides the trope image. Camera angles and other tricks are used to make him seem much taller than he is, and not be dwarfed by taller actors and actresses around him. Reportedly he was the only actor in ''Top Gun'' who actually met the height requirements for being a fighter pilot, with all the others feeling cramped.[[labelnote:*]]Max height for F-14 pilots was reported to be 6'4"/193cm[[/labelnote]]
102	* SignatureStyle: It's probably written somewhere in his contracts that modern action films starring him include the following:
103	** His peculiar, full body method way of running.
104	** Him driving a motorcycle.
105	** Him wearing a ballcap.
106	** Someone or something in the film will have to be named "Bob".
107	* SilverFox: Has dyed his hair gray for roles, including ''Film/{{Collateral}}''. Still doesn't detract from his overall good looks.
108	* ThoseTwoActors: He worked with his then-wife Creator/NicoleKidman in three movies: ''Film/DaysOfThunder'', ''Film/FarAndAway'', and ''Film/EyesWideShut'', with her playing his love interest in all three.
109	* TroubledButCute: His roles at the beginning of his career.
110	* {{Typecasting}}: In the early years of his career, he tended to play cocky but talented young hotshots. Around the mid-'90s, he became too old to play those roles, so he instead began to be typecast as suave, charismatic ActionHeroes, usually of the LoveableRogue variety.
111	* WagTheDirector: Generally exerts a ''lot'' of influence over the movies he's in, for better or worse. For ''Film/{{The Mummy\|2017}}'' in particular, it got to the point where it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to suggest that Cruise was effectively the movie's actual director (his closest collaborator Creator/ChristopherMcQuarrie even stepped in to do rewrites).

Context Creator / TomCruise