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All Tom Cruise Movies, Ranked By Tomatometer

Top Gun: Maverick is back in theaters for Rotten Tomatoes’ 25th anniversary screening series at AMC — get tickets now !

From his teen idol days in the early ’80s to his status as a marquee-lighting leading man today, Tom Cruise has consistently done it all for decades — he’s completed impossible missions, learned about Wapner time in Rain Man , driven the highway to the danger zone in Top Gun , and done wonders for Bob Seger’s royalty statements in Risky Business , to offer just a few examples. Mr. Cruise is one of the few honest-to-goodness film stars left in the Hollywood firmament, so whether you’re a hardcore fan or just interested in a refresher course on his filmography, we’re here to take a fond look back at a truly impressive career and rank all Tom Cruise movies.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018) 97%

Top Gun: Maverick (2022) 96%

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023) 96%

Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (2015) 94%

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) 93%

Risky Business (1983) 92%

Edge of Tomorrow (2014) 91%

Minority Report (2002) 89%

Rain Man (1988) 88%

The Color of Money (1986) 88%

Collateral (2004) 86%

Born on the Fourth of July (1989) 84%

American Made (2017) 85%

A Few Good Men (1992) 84%

Jerry Maguire (1996) 84%

Magnolia (1999) 82%

Tropic Thunder (2008) 82%

Eyes Wide Shut (1999) 75%

The Firm (1993) 76%

War of the Worlds (2005) 76%

Mission: Impossible III (2006) 71%

The Outsiders (1983) 70%

Taps (1981) 68%

Mission: Impossible (1996) 66%

The Last Samurai (2003) 66%

Interview With the Vampire (1994) 63%

Jack Reacher (2012) 64%

All the Right Moves (1983) 61%

Valkyrie (2008) 62%

Top Gun (1986) 57%

Mission: Impossible II (2000) 56%

Oblivion (2013) 54%

Knight and Day (2010) 52%

Far and Away (1992) 50%

Rock of Ages (2012) 42%

Vanilla Sky (2001) 43%

Legend (1985) 41%

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016) 38%

Days of Thunder (1990) 38%

Lions for Lambs (2007) 27%

Losin' It (1982) 18%

The Mummy (2017) 15%

Cocktail (1988) 9%

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The top 20 Tom Cruise movies – ranked!

As the actor returns with Mission: Impossible – Fallout, we rank his 20 best films, from 1983’s The Outsiders to 2008’s Tropic Thunder

20. Far and Away (1992)

It was a toss-up between this and Vanilla Sky for the 20th spot, and Far and Away just nudged it because it is – admittedly not intentionally – hilarious, while the latter is a mega downer. No movie accent will ever give me as much joy as Cruise’s Irish accent.

19. War of the Worlds (2005)

Not a disaster, but nowhere near as good as a Spielberg-Cruise adaptation of HG Wells’ tale should have been. Cruise, deep into his publicly eccentric years, plays a divorced dad just trying to do right by his kids while fighting alien invaders, but comes across more alien than the invaders.

18. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

This film was supposed to be exciting because we kinda, sorta, maybe got to see Cruise and his then wife, Nicole Kidman, have sex, but a major flaw in that sales pitch is no one wanted to. Including, it turned out, them. Their marriage fell apart soon after the making of this film and some of us are still unconvinced it was worth the marriage.

17. Days of Thunder (1990)

It’s Top Gun – in a car. And nowhere near as good. This film is best known as the one in which Cruise and Kidman met. But it should be celebrated for giving Cruise’s character the name of Cole Trickle. For not laughing hysterically every time they say his name, everyone in this film deserves an Oscar.

16. All the Right Moves (1983)

No one watches this movie now. But they should. Babyfaced and clearly vertically challenged, Cruise plays the most unlikely American football player ever committed to film, but even in the early days of his career, his charisma was undeniable. Unexpectedly gritty and with lovely support from Craig T Nelson.

15. The Firm (1993)

Gosh, who should we get to play the young lawyer, full of morals and ambition, who suddenly finds himself in a bad world filled with bad men? John Grisham may not have written the part with Cruise in mind, but whichever Thetan Cruise worships made him for thismovie.

14. Interview With the Vampire (1994)

Eat me, haterz: people who criticise this film have no sense of fun. Cruise is enjoyably weird as Lestat de Lioncourt, the ultimate vampire. The real problem with this movie is Brad Pitt, who takes it all way too seriously. Cruise understands this is not a drama – it’s a camp delight.

13. Cocktail (1988)

Frankly, if you don’t enjoy the sight of Cruise slinging rum cocktails on a beach to a Beach Boys soundtrack, then please march yourself to a doctor immediately because you have lost your soul.

12. The Colour of Money (1986)

Grizzled Paul Newman, rehashing his role from The Hustler, hands the matinee idol baton here to a young and twinkly-eyed Cruise. It is hard not to die a little inside when you look at Cruise’s pretty face and think of the weird life choices he would go on to make; a babe heading off into the dark woods.

11. Tropic Thunder (2008)

A bit of a cheat this, yes, as Cruise is barely in the movie. But, his performance as the deranged studio executive Les Grossman was so good it saved his career after all the sofa jumping and Scientology bullshittery. Some of us have never really recovered from the sight of a bald Cruise grooving to Flo Rida.

10. Collateral (2004)

Probably not a movie that Cruise kicks back and watches in his spare time, given that his ex-wife, Katie Holmes, is now dating his co-star, Jamie Foxx. Still, that shouldn’t distract the rest of us from enjoying Cruise playing memorably against type as a killer and Foxx as the cabby he hires for the evening. It does distract a little, mind.

9. Rain Man (1988)

Hear me out: Cruise should have got the Oscar for this instead of Dustin Hoffman. Hoffman’s performance is all tricks and tics, but Cruise, as the obnoxious jerk who learns he has a brother, is subtle and true. Setting the pattern for his career, Cruise was underrated because he made it look effortless.

8. Minority Report (2002)

Cruise and Spielberg should, by rights, be as natural a combination as bread and butter, and yet Minority Report is the only truly satisfying movie they have made together.

7. The Outsiders (1983)

Playing a working-class teenager in Oklahoma alongside then fellow near-unknowns Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Ralph Macchio, Emilio Estevez, Diane Lane and Matt Dillon (someone give that casting director a medal), Cruise his a small but pleasing role in this, the most beautiful of all 80s teen movies.

6. Jerry Maguire (1996)

Cameron Crowe wrote this role of the beaten-down sports agent for the other Tom – Hanks – and the movie probably would have made more sense with him: Cruise is just too good-looking to be a credible underdog. But, he seizes the part with irresistible intensity, making even the naffest of Crowe’s lines sound heartfelt.

5. Mission: Impossible (1996)

The film that, for better or worse, confirmed Cruise as the action star of his generation, and while that means he has churned out a lot of action landfill for the past decade, the original Mission: Impossible , directed by Brian De Palma, is a stone-cold classic. Somewhere, in all of our hearts, Cruise will be forever suspended on that zip wire.

4. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

It is Cruise’s misfortune that his one real shot at an Oscar – before the Scientology weirdness ruled him out for ever – coincided with the year of Daniel Day-Lewis’s unbeatable performance in My Left Foot. His performance as a Vietnam vet is the definitive retort to any fool who insists he is a movie star, not an actor.

3. A Few Good Men (1992)

Pure cinematic pleasure. Cruise is known as a screen-chewer, but it is too rarely acknowledged how good he is at playing second fiddle to a true ham: Hoffman in Rain Man and Jack Nicholson here. “I want the truth!” is Cruise at his Cruisiest, and there ain’t nothing wrong with that.

2. Magnolia (1999)

One of three performances for which Cruise should have won an Oscar. Heretofore seen as almost asexual, Cruise is astonishing as TJ Mackie, the men’s rights activist guru with the catchphrase “Respect the cock!” No one could have imagined him in this role before. It’s now impossible to imagine anyone else playing it.

1. Top Gun (1986)

Risky Business made Cruise famous, but it’s a terrible movie. Top Gun, on the other hand, made him a legend, and it remains one of the greatest movies of all time. Cruise, playing “a flyboy”, took to the film’s endearingly overt homoeroticism like a natural. The volleyball scene put a generation through puberty.

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• Mission: Impossible

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Best Tom Cruise movies: 20 Cruise classics revealed

The ultimate A-lister and his 40 years of box office dominance.

Tom Cruise has to sit near the top of any list of modern movie icons. Arguably the biggest box office star of the blockbuster era, at this best Tom Cruise movies list proves, Thomas Cruise Mapother IV is now in his fifth decade lighting up the big screen with his shiny hair, toothy grin and wondrous dimples.

Literally bringing a larger than life presence to every role, the diminutive star has provided some of the most memorable performances in screen history. Whether it’s the hotshot fighter pilot ‘Maverick’ in Top Gun, the reformed sports agent in Jerry Maguire, the fearless agent Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible, or the callous contract killer in Collateral, his roles have become more interesting and diverse down the years.

• The best Mission: Impossible stunts , revealed

Cruise does tend to polarise opinion, though. He doesn’t have the love of the public like Tom Hanks, nor the Oscar collection and method acting chops of a Daniel Day Lewis. Neither does he possess that eternal cool factor of a Harrison Ford, However, in our opinion, he’s a massively underrated actor and his record remains up there with the best of 'em.

Narrowing down his best films was tricky (and we kind of cheat when it comes to M:I!) but these are the best Tom Cruise movies of all time. Vote away…

As NOW is the top place to find Cruise movies to stream, check out the other best NOW movies .

UPDATED: Tom Cruise is back with Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One and the movie is another super instalment of the spy franchise. This one has been a long time coming, due to Covid-related delays but it's out now and well worth checking out on the biggest screen possible.

Best Tom Cruise movies

1 . Top Gun (1986)

In this unashamedly macho/homoerotic 80s classic (that volleyball scene will take your breath away), Cruise plays Maverick, an elite navy fighter pilot battling other super jocks to be top of his class. Top Gun was not a critical hit when it was made, but it flew at the box office and for good reason: it's a fantastic, very 80s action flick.

2 . A Few Good Men (1992)

Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee wants the truth, but, purportedly, he can’t handle the truth. In this courtroom drama he plays a military lawyer, defending two marines accused of murdering a fellow solider. Suspicion points at commanding officer (Jack Nicholson). As the immense tagline teases: “One man will stop at nothing to keep his honor, and one will stop at nothing to find the truth.”

3 . Rain Man (1988)

Charlie Babbitt’s transformation from self-serving swindler to loving long-lost-brother is what we like to call a character arc. Dustin Hoffman’s Oscar-winning portrayal of autism may have shone light on the condition but also perpetrated a number of unhealthy stereotypes. He stole Tom Cruise’s statue. This is the movie hill we’re willing to die on.

4 . Edge of Tomorrow aka Live. Die. Repeat (2014)

Groundhog Day, only with aliens taking over the earth? What’s not to love? With humanity on the brink, Cruise plays Major William Cage, a combat-shy officer who, stuck in a time loop, dies brutally (and often hilariously) every single day. Ably assisted by the badass Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt), he slowly and painfully learns how he can overcome the enemy.

5 . Minority Report (2002)

From the magnificent mind of Blade Runner author Philip K. Dick, Minority Report remains one of the 21st century’s standout sci-fi thrillers. Under Steven Spielberg’s direction, Cruise’s John Anderton is an officer in a “pre-crime” police unit able to predict future murders and apprehend would-be killers. When the soothsaying ‘Precogs’ pin a future murder on him, Anderton faces a race against time to prove his pre-innocence.

6 . Mission: Impossible (1997-?)

Cruise’s unending star power has turned this 1960s TV spin-off into a franchise juggernaut that looks set to continue into the actor's 60s. Given he still performs most of the death-defying stunts, often with very real consequences, the MI films deserve a place among his best. The most recent installment, Dead Reckoning is another surefore hit, so don’t expect this series to go away any time soon. That Limp Bizkit version of the theme for MI:2 still rules. Don’t @ us, bro.

7 . Jerry Maguire (1997)

If there’s a better sports-film-meets-rom-com, we’re yet to see it. Cruise, in the title role, plays the only sports agent in history with a conscience. It costs him his high-flying agency job, his girl and all of his clients… except for one – a paycheck player who wants to be shown the money. A proper tearjerker, it had us at “hello.”

8 . Collateral (2004)

Another performance that completely reset our expectations for a Tom Cruise role. He plays Vincent, a cold contract killer, who has ensnared an unwilling accomplice in Max (Jamie Foxx). A tense and clever thriller, as you’d expect under Michael Mann’s direction, but what truly shines through is the intense character work you see from Cruise and Jamie Foxx.

9 . Risky Business (1983)

How could we not include this film, given it contains one of the most iconic, most spoofed scenes in movie history? The world’s introduction to Cruise sees him play a Chicago teenager looking for a rapid way to earn some cash after taking his dad’s Porsche out for an ill-fated spin.

10 . Tropic Thunder (2008)

Amid all the Scientology stuff, Cruise’s management probably decided it was time to soften those edges a little bit. Enter merciless Hollywood mogul Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder. It’s a mere cameo, but undoubtedly Cruise’s funniest (at least intentionally funny) performance to date.

11 . Interview With The Vampire (1994)

The adaptation of Anne Rice’s beloved novel pairs Cruise with Brad Pitt for the first and only time (I mean, who can afford both?). Despite misgivings about his initial casting, his frilly and flamboyant take on the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt remains an absolute joy. A true 90s camp classic.

12 . Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

If Tom missing out on an Oscar for Rain Man was a travesty, his snub for BOT4J bordered on criminal. Legendary US critic Roger Ebert wrote: “Nothing Cruise has done will prepare you for what he does in Born on the Fourth of July….…his performance is so good that the movie lives through it. Oliver Stone is able to make his statement with Cruise's face and voice and doesn't need to put everything into the dialogue.” If it hadn’t been for that pesky Oscar-hog Daniel Day Lewis…

13 . Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

With Top Gun: Maverick delayed because of the pandemic, we weren't the only ones thinking that maybe the sequel wasn't quite up to scratch but, boy, we were wrong. Top Gun: Maverick is one of the best sequels ever made and right up there when it comes to the best Tom Cruise movies. For the first two acts it's a beat for beat rendition of the first movie but then things change and it absolutely soars. We're getting goosbumps just writing about it. Brilliant stuff.

14 . Magnolia (1999)

Cruise’s performative pick-up artist T.J. Mackay in Paul Thomas Anderson’s ensemble masterpiece was monstrous, and uncharted territory for the diminutive heartthrob. His stomach-churning turn is only softened by the façade falling away late in the film. In a flick filled with incredible performances, his is perhaps the most memorable.

15 . The Color Of Money (1986)

The list of director Tom Cruise has worked with is just unreal. Few actors can say they have acted in a Spielberg, Kubrick and Scorsese flick. Cruise can and Color of Money sees top-notch direction from Scorsese, an acting masterclass by Paul Newman - the movie is a sequel to The Hustler and he reprises his role - and sparks of what Tom Cruise will become.

16 . Vanilla Sky (2001)

It may have has so-so reviews on its release but there is a lot to like in Vanilla Sky, the future shock movie by Cameron Crowe. Tom Cruise is superb as a rich man who is disfigured in a car accident. It's packed with interesting concepts, superb visuals and a cracking soundtrack. If you like it, then you should check out the superior Open Your Eyes, the Spanish film on which this is based and which also stars Penelope Cruz.

17 . War of the Worlds (2005)

Filled with 9/11-inspired imagery and a sense of foreboding throughout, Steven Spielberg's remake of War of the Worlds is sci-fi gem. The tripods are genuinely terrifying and this was the start of Tom Cruise not playing a superhero but a real person, an estranged father, who is trying to save his two children.

18 . Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman are perfect as the cold couple on the verge of splitting up (which mirrored real life), who are torn apart because of an apparent affair. This sparks a downfall spiral from Cruise's doctor who find himself embroiled in a long night of sex, cults and potential murder. Stanley Kubrick's last movie is an uncompromising psycho-sexual thriller that demands a rewatch.

19 . Days of Thunder (1990)

Haven’t seen this widely-derided (haters, gotta hate) gem? Think "Talledega Nights made with a straight face". For a brief time in the early 1990, Cruise’s daredevil driver Cole Trickle made the redneck trash-fest that is NASCAR the coolest motorsport on Earth. Trickle’s steamy on-screen tryst with neurosurgeon Dr. Claire Lewicki would soon crossover into real life with Cruise and Nicole Kidman married later that year.

20 . Far And Away (1992)

Cruise and Kidman, still kinda liking each other at this point, team up once again in this beautifully-shot 19th century settlers’ story. A young Irish couple (with pretty decent accents, to be fair) emigrate to Oklahoma chasing promises of free land, but things don’t go to plan and they end up slumming it in Boston. The film falls a little short of epic, but offers a preview of the beautiful melodramatic classics we’d come to expect from director Ron Howard.

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Tom Cruise’s 20 Best Performances, from ‘Top Gun’ to ‘Mission: Impossible’ to ‘Magnolia’

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Cruise has been leveraging looks and charm, and flexing his blockbuster muscles, for decades. Going all the way back to the early 1980s, his appeal never seems to age, even at 61 years old. He’s skillfully shepherded original movies as a star and producer, never falling into the trap of IP except, of course, with the franchises that are entirely his: “Top Gun,” “Mission: Impossible,” and “Jack Reacher.” Related Stories Lewis Hamilton Regretted Turning Down a Role in ‘Top Gun: Maverick’: ‘It Could’ve Been Me!’ Jerry Bruckheimer Offers ‘Top Gun 3’ Update: Joseph Kosinski Is Developing a ‘Wonderful’ Story Idea for Tom Cruise

While some may say that Cruise’s sculpted movie star image lacks a certain vulnerability, many of the films below showcase his gifts for dramatic acting, proving him more than just a deft maneuverer of box office and death-defying stunts — though he is, of course, all those things.

Cruise may in fact be the Last Movie Star in a time where such a nomenclature doesn’t really mean much anymore. He’s worked with smart directors — from Martin Scorsese to Steven Spielberg, Paul Thomas Anderson and Stanley Kubrick — often chasing them down himself with a wicked idea or hopes for a collaboration. He’s thrived and held his own alongside iconic movie stars in classics, from Jack Nicholson in “A Few Good Men” to Paul Newman in “The Color of Money,” and even in duds alongside the likes of Meryl Streep and Robert Redford (“Lions for Lambs,” anyone?).

As we saw from the way he stood up against COVID rule-breakers on the set of “Mission: Impossible 7,” he cares about his collaborators and the work. And with “Dead Reckoning Part One” heading to theaters this week, Cruise has a brand new chance to showcase his charisma and talent for pulling off death-defying stunts onscreen.

Samantha Bergeson, Christian Blauvelt, and Kate Erbland also contributed to this story.

“Risky Business” (1983)

Few actors embodied the ‘80s as a time of simultaneous repression and entitlement like Tom Cruise in “Risky Business.” Paul Brickman’s capitalist satire, with its silky Tangerine Dream score and night cinematography by Bruce Surtees and Reynaldo Villalobos worthy of a Wong Kar-Wai movie, finds Cruise’s high school senior Joel having sex with a call girl (Rebecca De Mornay) on a dare and getting entangled in her orbit until he’s running a brothel from his house. He certainly expresses both an attraction and terror about losing his virginity, but morality or prudishness about profiting from sex workers? Hardly, despite the white-collar suburban setting. That is, after all, a world of materialism, of transactions, and running a brothel out of one’s home isn’t transgressive — it’s entrepreneurship. Or “human fulfillment,” the corporate buzzword label Joel gives it.

“Top Gun” and “Top Gun: Maverick” (1986, 2022)

Tom Cruise is both a great actor and a great movie star, two jobs that often overlap but don’t necessarily have to. The first “Top Gun” is a quintessential movie star performance from Cruise, relying more on excellent vibes than challenging character work. Pete Mitchell, aka Maverick, is a brilliant but cocky pilot, and we’re occasionally reminded that he’s tortured by the death of his father. But really, the movie is an excuse for Tom Cruise to wear cool sunglasses and leather jackets while he operates cool planes and motorcycles. No shame in that game, and Cruise can do it as well as anyone. But “Top Gun: Maverick” takes those good vibes and builds on them, and an aging Cruise turns the character into something much more three-dimensional as Maverick confronts the possibility of losing the life he has grown to love. Each movie is great in its own way, but the combination of the two serves as a perfect illustration of Tom Cruise’s unique set of skills. — CZ

“The Color of Money” (1986)

All you need to know about Cruise’s performance as Vincent — beyond the fact that he’s the kind of character who, totally unironically, wears a T-shirt printed up with just his name in massive letters across the chest —  is contained in the iconic “Werewolves of London” sequence . Vince faces off against a fierce competitor just for kicks, displaying wild cockiness, total resilience, and a major panache for pool-playing that shouldn’t surprise anyone up to snuff on his dedication to practical stunts. The actor practiced for months on end and ultimately completed nearly every one of Vince’s trick shots on his own, but that’s not even the marquee attraction here: instead, it’s Cruise’s full-force charm. “Top Gun” made the initial case, but “The Color of Money” sealed it. — KE

“Rain Man” (1988)

“Born on the Fourth of July” (1989)

Based on Vietnam War veteran Ron Kovic’s autobiography, “Born on the Fourth of July” starred Tom Cruise as an anti-war activist grappling with PTSD after being paralyzed in military service. Kovic’s life is depicted over the course of two decades onscreen; fellow Vietnam vet Oliver Stone co-wrote the screenplay with Kovic and directed the Oscar-winning film. Despite Al Pacino originally being attached to the lead role, Cruise carved out his iconic performance and received his first Academy Award nomination. Stone went on to win for Best Director, with the film also taking home Best Editing.

“Days of Thunder” (1990)

A sweat-soaked hotshot with a devil-may-care attitude and a taste for speed, danger, and zero gets handed a plum assignment that feeds all those desires and more. His love interest is smarter than him (and knows it). He rubs everyone the wrong way (including the similarly hotshot-y dudes also jockeying for a spot). He begrudgingly accepts a stately mentor. His unlikely best pal is grievously injured while on the clock. The soundtrack is a banger. Tony Scott directs.

No, this isn’t “Top Gun” — it’s the racecar drama “Days of Thunder,” which vroomed into theaters four years after the high-flying aviation hit, packed to the goddamn gills with the same elements that made the previous entry such a heart-pounder. As Cole Trickle, Cruise captures the same bravado and ballsy attitude as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, but in a decidedly earth-bound conveyance.

“A Few Good Men” (1992)

“The Firm” meets “Top Gun” is probably the simplest way to explain Aaron Sorkin’s complicated legal drama starring Tom Cruise and directed for the screen by Rob Reiner.

Cruise plays Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee, a military attorney who is assigned a murder case involving three Marines. Demi Moore is Kaffee’s fellow lawyer Lieutenant Commander JoAnne Galloway who questions Kaffee’s motives and approach to the case.

The duo question officers at Guantanamo Bay as they uncover a conspiracy involving corrupt witness accounts and bogus testimony.

Jack Nicholson stars as Colonel Nathan Jessup, who defends the practices of his Marine unit, and Kevin Bacon, Kiefer Sutherland, Noah Wyle, and Cuba Gooding Jr. round out the ensemble cast.

The film was applauded by critics upon release in 1992, with its acclaim marking the Cruise star vehicle as the “anti-‘Top Gun.’” “A Few Good Men” was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. — SB

“The Firm” (1993)

Gene Hackman plays Mitch’s boss Avery, while Ed Harris is an FBI agent using Cruise to expose the Firm’s corrupt offshore dealings and Chicago mob ties. Mitch’s legal prowess leads him to a private investigator (Gary Busey) and an ingenious secretary (Holly Hunter, who landed an Oscar nomination for the role) but leaves countless bodies in his wake. The cat and mouse thriller is anchored by Cruise’s signature smile and innate ability to build tension through his typically fierce determination to prove the truth. Call it Cruise’s good guy version of “American Psycho,” if you will, because you’ll never look at a lawyer the same way again. — SB

“Interview With the Vampire” (1994)

“Mission: Impossible” (1996 and onward)

Tom Cruise seamlessly shifted into the action star status era of his career with 1996’s “Mission: Impossible.” Based on the action spy series of the same name, the film franchise has endured over 25 years of billion-dollar profits to date. Cruise transformed into charismatic CIA agent Ethan Hunt who leads the Impossible Missions Force. Brian De Palma directed the first film, originally with Cruise set to reteam with “The Firm” filmmaker Sydney Pollack before De Palma took over.

“Jerry Maguire” (1996)

For years, conceiving a great Tom Cruise role was as simple as coming up with a cool job that lots of men wanted. Fighter pilot? Check. Pool hustler? Cruise played one. Hot bartender? Ditto. So it was almost inevitable that he would play a sports agent at some point, and Cameron Crowe gave him a beautiful vehicle to do just that in “Jerry Maguire.” While the idea of a rom-com set in the world of sports may be the greatest marketing ploy of all time, the endlessly quotable film is elevated by a thoughtful script and great performances from Cuba Gooding Jr. and Renee Zellweger. But it’s Cruise’s singular charm that ties the movie together, seamlessly alternating between alpha-male swagger and sentimental romance without ever missing a beat. It’s the kind of performance that reminds cinephiles what a real movie star is. — CZ

“Eyes Wide Shut” (1999)

Kubrick stops short of stripping him down to that degree, but the filmmaker disarms Cruise into giving one of his most exposed turns. (Recall an earlier scene in the film, when a marauding pack of frat boys flings gay slurs at Dr. Bill, a moment that calls the character’s, and by extension the actor’s, masculinity into question.) When the masquerade is over, and he finally heads back to a sleeping Alice, only to see the Venetian mask he wore to the orgy displayed on the pillow next to her, he breaks down. “I’ll tell you everything,” he weeps. Kubrick doesn’t show what happens then, instead cutting to an emptied-out Alice smoking blankly, having now absorbed his confession. No matter, as Cruise’s sometimes arch but inevitably denuded performance up to here tells us what we need to know about this offscreen moment. And then, of course, there’s that one thing Bill and Alice need to do as soon as possible. — RL

“Magnolia” (1999)

Cruise had jitters over taking on the role of Frank T.J. Mackey in Anderson’s sprawling San Fernando Valley love letter “Magnolia,” and that’s unsurprising given the leaps he takes. (And singing Aimee Mann’s “Wise Up” in-camera? How’s that for vulnerability.) The character, a motivational speaker peddling misogynistic pickup tips with wildly slung onstage maxims like “respect the cock” and “tame the cunt,” is all sorts of unpleasant. He’s viciously guarded toward a broadcast journalist interrogating his toxic male persona, preening and jumping around in his underwear in a moment that might anticipate the real actor’s eventual “Oprah” onstage meltdown. Frank dodges questions about his estranged, ailing father (Jason Robards), obviously hiding volcanic levels of trauma. But in a movie where “we may be through with the past, but the past ain’t through with us,” Frank ultimately has to pay his tab. Cruise scored a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nomination most certainly for a cathartic deathbed breakdown in the movie’s operatic climax, clinging to his cancer-riddled father’s last rattle of life and watching redemption slip away. It’s the most moving single-scene performance of Cruise’s career. — RL

“Vanilla Sky” (2001)

Despite the movie’s constantly shifting timeline, Cruise conveys a compelling and coherent emotional arc, whether withdrawing into depression or huffing the fumes of his megalomania. With “Magnolia” and “Eyes Wide Shut” before it, “Vanilla Sky” capped a period of Cruise opening himself up emotionally to audiences. No other actor could better sell the wincingly cheesy line, with David tipping over a Manhattan high-rise ledge at the end (or beginning?) of his life, “I’ll see you in another life when we are both cats.” — RL

“Minority Report” (2002)

“Collateral” (2004)

When Tom Cruise gives that unblinking, intense eye contact — come on, you know you’ve seen it in interviews as well as in movies — you can either think this is the most committed, fully realized performer (or, maybe, human?) in existence, or that he’s an “American Psycho” type come to life. So of course he had to play a serial killer at least once. Not just any serial killer, though. One who is a professional and demonstrates the level of professionalism Cruise brings to everything he does himself. His Vincent in Michael Mann’s “Collateral” is meticulous, and he comes up with a unique plan. He’ll hire an ordinary Los Angeles cabbie, Max (Jamie Foxx), to drive him around the City of Angels to carry out his hits in the course of one night. Cruise has been able to do something the past couple of decades that few others have managed: to make action thrillers that are also character studies, and “Collateral” is the ne plus ultra of that combination. His character’s shock of silver hair notwithstanding, this unexpectedly haunting movie is pure gold. — CB

“War of the Worlds” (2005)

“Tropic Thunder” (2008)

Tom Cruise may have spent much of the 21st century cementing his status as the world’s greatest action star, but his surprise cameo in “Tropic Thunder” proved he can do comedy with the best of them. Cruise donned a fat suit and prosthetics to play studio executive Les Grossman, delivering a masterclass in the creative use of profanity (in addition to some legendary dancing to Flo Rida). Considering how carefully Cruise guards his image, seeing the movie star randomly pop up in a comedy and cut loose with an unhinged performance is a singular cinematic treat. — CZ

“Oblivion” (2013)

“Edge of Tomorrow” (2014)

Part of what makes Cruise such a good movie star is that he helps the cast around him shine. As larger-than-life as he can be, he’s also a generous scene partner who builds wonderful dynamics with his co-stars (see how good he and Rebecca Ferguson are playing off each other in the “Mission: Impossible” movies for proof). One of the clearest cases of this is “Edge of Tomorrow,” the highly underrated action film he headlined in 2014. Playing a public relations officer in a future where humanity is at war with alien “mimics,” Cruise is a blast. He’s cast slightly against type as a clueless wimp in over his head; especially after he gets stuck in a time loop where he repeats the same 24 hours after being killed in combat. But the best performance in the film is from Emily Blunt as the seasoned veteran he allies with, and Cruise is more than happy to give her the spotlight she deserves, while still delivering sparky chemistry. –WC

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An impossible mission: Ranking Tom Cruise's 25 best movies

An impossible mission: ranking tom cruise's 25 best movies, from risky business to mission: impossible—dead reckoning part one , we're counting down the finest work by hollywood's most enduring star.

No one has made a better case to be Hollywood’s most enduring movie star over the past four decades than Tom Cruise. With this year’s Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One and last year’s Top Gun: Maverick , the 61-year-old continues to prove he’s ageless in real life and bulletproof on-screen. His career, much like his Top Gun and Mission: Impossible characters, simply cannot be killed.

In the 40 years since Cruise slid across a hardwood floor in his socks, button-down shirt, and tighty-whities in 1983’s Risky Business , he has remained at the forefront of the cultural conversation, thanks to a virtually unrivaled string of hits. More than just about anybody from his generation of actors, Cruise has created a body of work that’s notable for its consistent quality, versatility, and his fierce commitment to pushing his own limits.

To commemorate the penultimate film in the Mission: Impossible series , Dead Reckoning Part One , The A.V. Club is ranking Cruise’s 25 best movies, a considerable challenge for a performer with at least 56 credits under his belt since 1981.

25. Oblivion (2013)

One of only a few Cruise forays into pure sci-fi, Oblivion coasts on its coolly sophisticated dystopian visuals, its central mystery, and the fact there are only about a dozen people in the entire movie and one of them is an A-list actor we can’t take our eyes off of. Cruise plays a technician who repairs drones on a planet Earth that’s been nearly destroyed and rendered uninhabitable by an invading alien civilization. He gives the movie more than its thin story deserves, by not only demonstrating his physicality but also imbuing his character—mostly alone save for his lover, played by Andrea Riseborough, and someone whose identity is best not spoiled, played by Morgan Freeman—with some dimension. Directed by Tron: Legacy ’s Joseph Kosinski, the twist-filled Oblivion is a victory of style over substance that’s absorbing enough and deserves a second look, even as a minor entry in the Tom Cruise canon. [Mark Keizer]

24. Taps (1981)

Cruise’s first major movie role was in director Harold Becker’s 1981 drama Taps , where he plays one of the rebellious students fighting to save his military academy from being torn down and replaced with condominiums. The film also stars the great George C. Scott as the school’s top muckety-muck and—in his film debut—Sean Penn. Even at the tender age of 19, Cruise showed an intensity and seriousness of purpose that would serve him well as he began his career as a leading man and climber of tall mountains and buildings in the Mission: Impossible franchise. Cruise was originally only going to be a background player in Taps , but when Becker saw Cruise during boot camp training with his fellow actors “out-marching the other cadets on the parade field,” he was upped to the crucial role of the academy’s gun-happy, gung-ho rebel. [Mark Keizer]

23. The Firm (1993)

By 1993, Cruise was firmly established (no pun intended) as an A-list star, and his adaptation of The Firm kicked off a series of high-profile films based on John Grisham’s page-turners. The Firm accelerated Cruise’s transition from an enforcer of institutions (as he was in Top Gun ) to someone who begins to question them (as wunderkind law firm hire Mitch McDeere). Cruise had already worked with Oliver Stone, Barry Levinson, Ron Howard, and Rob Reiner by this point, so teaming up with Sydney Pollack was a no-brainer, especially on a film that leveraged Pollack’s political-thriller pedigree to such brilliant effect. Holly Hunter, then on her own hot streak, ended up being the only cast member to receive an acting nomination, but as the anchor of an ensemble that also included Jeanne Trippelhorn, Ed Harris, Hal Holbrook, David Strathairn, and the great Gene Hackman as Mitch’s benevolent, feckless mentor, Cruise sprinted his way to box office glory and acting acclaim. [Todd Gilchrist]

22. Valkyrie (2008)

Cruise released four movies between Mission: Impossible 3 and Ghost Protocol and they show his career listing a bit while he attempts escape velocity on the rocket ship of M:I sequels. The worst of the four was 2007’s boring PoliSci lecture Lions For Lambs and if you remove the failed franchise starter Knight And Day , and his glorified cameo in the hilarious Tropic Thunder , you’re really left with 2008’s Valkyrie as the best of the bunch. Cruise plays real-life German Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, who led an assassination attempt on Adolph Hitler in 1944. Cruise, attempting a measured twist on his all-American persona by playing a Nazi who nevertheless wants to kill Hitler, doesn’t always look comfortable in his eyepatch and questionable German accent. However, the film is a meticulously plotted retelling of a fascinating chapter in the history of World War II. Whatever its merits (or demerits) the film did one thing right: it introduced Cruise to writer Christopher McQuarrie who would go on to direct Cruise in 2012’s Jack Reacher and then shepherd the M:I series starting with 2015’s Rogue Nation . [Mark Keizer]

21. War Of The Worlds (2005)

War Of The Worlds , Cruise’s second collaboration with Steven Spielberg, put him at the mercy of the filmmaker’s post-9/11 introspection as they teamed up to adapt H.G. Wells’ iconic science-fiction novel into a meditation on the terror, physically and psychologically, of existential and largely unknowable threats. Cruise bravely takes on one of his least flattering roles as a deadbeat dad who has to take care of his estranged son (Justin Chatwin) and anxiously dependent daughter (Dakota Fanning) as they make the trek to reunite with his ex-wife. Under Spielberg’s confident guidance, Cruise gives the character the right amount of unlikeable elements, even as he and his children face escalating challenges to find safety in the face of an alien invasion. The director’s muscular set pieces create some unforgettable moments, although the film’s emotional throughline doesn’t measure up to Minority Report , the previous Cruise-Spielberg collaboration. [Todd Gilchrist]

20. Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol (2011)

Nowadays, the Mission: Impossible series is best known as the franchise in which Tom Cruise risks his life trying some crazy stunt for the sake of an Imax screen. In the beginning, however, it was an extension of Cruise’s desire to work with visionary directors, from Brian De Palma to John Woo, and allow them to put their own distinctive spins (or doves) on the material. Ghost Protocol was the installment in which the transition occurred, and remains the best fusion of both approaches. The feature live-action directorial debut of beloved animation auteur Brad Bird, Ghost Protocol was the first in the M:I series to really feel like a “team saving the world” movie rather than a mostly personal revenge narrative—with Bond-level nuclear war stakes. When the inevitable big stunt comes—Cruise scaling the Burj Khalifa, on the outside —it’s telling that, as enthusiastic as Cruise himself may have been to do the stunt, Ethan Hunt’s in-character reluctance (and frustration that the circumstances keep getting worse) is palpable. For maybe the last time, Hunt felt like a genuine underdog. [Luke Y. Thompson]

19. Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)

The Mission: Impossible series has one thing in common with the James Bond franchise pre-Daniel Craig: despite spending decades watching the character’s exploits, the amount of things we know about them personally can probably be counted on the fingers of one hand. There’s only a handful of actors we’re willing to spend that much time with while knowing next to nothing about who they’re playing, their history, their desires, and their personal wants and needs. Cruise is, of course, one of them. All we really need to see is Cruise running, jumping, and fighting and we’re happy. Seven films in, he continues to be a real-life action figure and his performance in Dead Reckoning Part One is less one of character-crafting than physical endurance and a willingness to possibly die on camera. To that end, Cruise continues to kill it, so to speak, and his advancing age only makes Ethan Hunt seem more mortal ... even if we’ve been paying good money for 27 years to disavow ourselves of that knowledge. [Mark Keizer]

18. Rain Man (1988)

Dustin Hoffman won a Best Actor Academy Award for his role as an autistic savant in Barry Levinson’s 1988 Rain Man . But despite the verbal and physical tics that suggest Hoffman was the Oscar-worthy thespian, Cruise also had a tough assignment: hold the entire film together. He plays Charlie Babbitt, a fast-talking car salesman who discovers that his late father’s fortune has been placed in a trust meant to support Raymond (Hoffman), the autistic brother he never knew existed. So Charlie takes Raymond on a cross-country road trip with the ultimate goal of fleecing him out of his money. Because Raymond cannot change as a character it’s up to Cruise to take the emotional journey. And he’s more than up to the task. He shows great range and subtlety as he goes from an egocentric huckster trying to take advantage of his brother to a much less egocentric huckster who chooses family over money. According to Hoffman, Tom even wrote his dialogue over and over in his own handwriting to better internalize the words. Rain Man , which was almost directed by Steven Spielberg before he jumped off to helm the third Indiana Jones movie, went on to become Cruise’s first and, so far, only Best Picture Oscar winner. [Mark Keizer]

17. Risky Business (1983)

Francis Ford Coppola was so impressed by Cruise’s performance in his 1983 drama The Outsiders that he offered him a role in his next film, Rumble Fish . Shockingly, Tom turned down the genius behind Apocalypse Now and The Godfather to star in a comedy by a novice director about a high school teen who transforms his home into a brothel while his parents are on vacation. Talk about a risk! But the film, Paul Brickman’s teen lark and capitalist satire, Risky Business , afforded Cruise his first leading role. He auditioned for the part of clean-cut, smooth-talking entrepreneur Joel Goodsen while still sporting his chipped tooth and greasy hair from The Outsiders . But Brickman trusted Cruise, who proved he’ll do whatever it takes for a role by shedding 14 pounds of muscle in five weeks and then adding a layer of baby fat to convey Joel’s youthful insecurity and vulnerability. Otherwise, Tom’s unshakable confidence, sly intelligence and megawatt smile are all deployed in full for the first time. When Cruise slid across the living room floor to Bob Seger’s “Old Time Rock & Roll” wearing only socks, underwear, and a dress shirt, he also slipped into the hearts and minds of movie lovers—where he remains to this day. [Mark Keizer]

16. A Few Good Men (1992)

One of the most overlooked qualities that Cruise frequently brings to the screen, especially in his earlier roles, is the resonant sense of being in over his head. That ability serves him exceedingly well in A Few Good Men , where he plays a plea-bargaining Naval JAG officer known for taking the easy way out of legal showdowns. When faced with the ugly institutional truths he discovers while tasked with a murder case, Cruise must engage in the ultimate courtroom confrontation against a decidedly hostile witness in the form of Jack Nicholson, as formidable and intimidating a cinematic scene partner as they come. Armed with smart, elevated dialogue by Aaron Sorkin and snappy, actor-friendly direction from Rob Reiner, Cruise uses his skill for out-of-his-depth-but-resolute conviction to effectively face down the screen-devouring Nicholson. Cruise’s brief moments of scenery-chewing serve his rattled character’s cause well as he baits and turns the tide against the fearsome Marine colonel. A suitably knotty plot, core themes of morality and accountability and an excellent supporting cast—Demi Moore, Kevin Pollack, Kevin Bacon, Kiefer Sutherland and the late, great J.T. Walsh—help distinguish the film as a crackerjack courtroom potboiler, and one that stands the test of time. [Scott Huver]

15. Mission: Impossible (1996)

In combining the derring-do of a Bond film with the real-world spy craft of a Tom Clancy novel, Mission: Impossible didn’t just require Cruise to take a big leap in the physical sense. Comfortably into his thirties, it was also Cruise’s first producing effort and, by all accounts, he took it seriously, slam dunking this big-budget reboot of a faded TV series, which is mostly remembered for Lalo Schifrin’s theme music. Considering Cruise has performed increasingly perilous stunts with each M:I sequel, it’s rather quaint that in the franchise’s 1996 debut, America’s success on the geopolitical stage rests on a single bead of sweat dangling from his glasses as he hangs from wires in a temperature controlled vault. But dammit, it’s still a heart-stopping scene and arguably the most iconic moment of the entire series. Like most Mission: Impossible films, the mission of understanding the plot is impossible to accept. But as long as Cruise, as superspy Ethan Hunt, knows what’s going on, we’ll just sit back and enjoy the ride. It would take a sequel or three before the series really took off, but let’s give Tom some credit for foresight: before the IP era completely swallowed Hollywood, Cruise had already established his own movie franchise. [Mark Keizer]

14. Tropic Thunder (2008)

Cruise has carefully crafted his onscreen persona over the decades, and a large part of that has come down to him being instantly recognizable as Tom Cruise and all that encompasses. Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder gave Cruise a chance to cut loose, get low, and escape his movie star looks with the help of prosthetics in order to become the crude, hot-tempered producer Les Grossman. What originally began as a smaller role, one eventually filled by Matthew McConaughey, became a newly created supporting one after Cruise suggested adding a studio head to the satire. From his hairy, over-sized hands, his dancing to Flo Rida’s “Low,” and his foul mouth—something audiences weren’t used to seeing from Cruise on screen—Grossman became one of the breakout characters from the summer of 2008. The role is even more refreshing in context, landing right between Cruise’s roles in the more self-serious Lions for Lambs and Valkyrie . Cruise reprised the role at the MTV Movie Awards in 2010, leading Paramount to announce a spin-off centered on the character, which has yet to materialize. Even if we never see Grossman again, the role set the stage for Cruise’s career over the next decade, reminding audiences that even a star as well-known as Cruise was still full of surprises. [Richard Newby]

13. American Made (2017)

Director Doug Liman’s American Made is not based on existing IP which made some audiences believe that Cruise—by now entrenched in his many impossible missions—had signed up by mistake. But it’s the film’s relative lack of blockbuster pretense that made it so refreshing. In what can only be described as the moral flip side to Top Gun , Cruise plays real-life TWA pilot Barry Seal, who was recruited to fly reconnaissance missions and take surveillance photos for the CIA but winds up transporting drugs for a South American cartel. None of this sounds very “Tom Cruise” which is why American Made unfairly flew under the radar. It’s more fun than you think with Cruise getting about as topical as he’s been since 1989’s decidedly less fun Born On The Fourth Of July . But this time, he does it with a charm and bravado bordering on that distinctly American brand of devil-may-care foolishness. [Mark Keizer]

12. Top Gun (1986)

If Cruise had never made another film after this one, he would likely still have attained a cinematic immortality akin to that of James Dean. He was, quite simply, the perfect star for the perfect movie at the perfect moment, embodying every iota of the rah-rah, buffed-up, live-fast American machismo, however occasionally overconfident, that epitomized the 1980s. His performance was further enhanced by director Tony Scott’s decidedly groundbreaking, nail-biting visual style—inspired by the hyper-speed edits of MTV music videos—and dynamically decorated by sleek aerial hardware supplied by the U.S. Navy. If Risky Business had strongly hinted at Cruise’s movie star promise, Top Gun took it supersonic.

Every star-turn talent that Cruise possesses, he expresses in its purest form here as Maverick, and it all plays like gangbusters: striking romantic sparks by butting heads with an initially antagonistic love interest (Kelly McGillis); giddily bro-ing out with his devoted sidekick (Anthony Edwards); cockily squaring off with his rival (Val Kilmer); defying the authority of his superiors (Tom Skerritt); self-flagellating when he crashes and burns; and emerging triumphant against tall odds. All of these would be key elements of Cruise’s pumped-up flight plan for the next three-plus decades, and—even wilder—the film, which was also a boon to military enlistment, still sends audiences into the stratosphere today. [Scott Huver]

11. Collateral (2004)

Still in the thick of his quest to work with film’s leading auteurs, Cruise found his way to Michael Mann, the foremost maker of starry, moody crime dramas that were both atmospheric and action-packed. Their collaboration on Collateral was, perhaps unexpectedly, potent indeed, with Cruise taking on a rare—and quite effective—turn as the film’s principal bad guy, a contract killer whose cool, efficient exterior belies a deeply sadistic streak underneath when he casually terrorizes his hapless taxi driver (Jamie Foxx, in winning Everyman mode). Cruise leans into elements of his superstar persona; he’s a relentless, well-oiled machine in his action sequences, hinting at the increasingly impressive commitment to stunts ahead in his career. Though still in remarkable condition, he’s less immortal-looking when aged up with salt-and-pepper hair that complements his slate-gray business suit. The story is territory that Mann always navigates entertainingly, and the director’s penchant for two-handers featuring top talent pays off with the Cruise-Foxx pairing throughout the majority of the film, with both stars playing against type and striking combative sparks along the way. [Scott Huver]

10. Minority Report (2002)

After a decade of looking for a project to embark on together, two of the screen’s towering titans—Cruise and director Steven Spielberg—landed on Minority Report , a gem of a sci-fi thriller built out of ideas from visionary author Philip K. Dick: a dark, dystopian future landscape with thorny, still highly resonant moral questions at its heart. Cruise is a cop tasked with neutralizing crimes before they’re committed—“precrimes”—with the aid of precognitive predictive system that proves faulty. We get prime versions of two of the most enjoyable Cruise screen personas: first, the confident, capable action hero; and then, when the cop himself is accused of a future crime, Cruise turns to out-of-his-depth, struggling-to-survive mode. It’s a film noir scenario given fresh, vivid life by the lavishly detailed and startlingly plausible future environs that Spielberg crafts; beyond world-building the director further amps up the excitement by putting the very able Cruise through the paces of a classic Hitchcockian hero in a cyberpunk setting. The actor’s star-wattage perfectly complements Spielberg’s cinematic razzle-dazzle, and the result is a top-notch film that often goes underestimated in both Cruise and Spielberg’s body of work. [Scott Huver]

9. Mission: Impossible—Fallout (2018)

While two of the Mission: Impossible movies didn’t make this list— M:I—2 and Mission: Impossible 3 —the ones that did stand out. Mission: Impossible—Fallout , like Rogue Nation , was written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie. But where Rogue Nation branched off from what had come before, Fallout felt like a cohesive thought that wasn’t inheriting its ideas. Here McQuarrie adds to the series’ foundation without being derivative in a film that   also features mind-blowing set pieces that leverage Tom Cruise’s willingness to risk life and limb for the audience’s entertainment. In this installment, Cruise’s Ethan Hunt finds himself caught in the crossfire of an inter-organizational squabble as the IMF and the CIA both seek to regain nuclear weapons that Hunt sadly lost while saving his own team. The resulting pursuit, which not only involves parachuting over Paris, racing down the Champs-Elysses, and a helicopter chase over the Himalayas, creates extraordinary visuals and breathtaking action. The film is thrilling and genuinely affecting at the same time. [Todd Gilchrist]

8. Edge Of Tomorrow (2014)

Time travel, mech suits, aliens, Emily Blunt’s iconic push-up, and Tom Cruise playing a coward. Edge of Tomorrow really does have it all, along with plenty of heart, which is why it’s one of the best science-fiction movies of the past decade. Given its subject matter it isn’t surprising that Doug Liman’s adaptation of Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s sci-fi light novel gets better every time you revisit it. The film offered Cruise a chance to do something we’d never seen from him before—portray an action hero who’s really bad at the action stuff, at least at first. Despite his lengthy history in action movies, Cruise is completely believable as Cage, who gets caught in a time loop that forces him to relive the same day over and over each time he dies. There’s a subtlety to the gallows humor in Cruise’s performance, which is finely tuned to make him charismatic and sympathetic without being a Maverick-esque alpha. And there’s real chemistry between Cage and Blunt’s Rita, which is the driving force of the story. Watching Cruise fight aliens is always cool, but watching him struggle, learn, and face a never-ending tide of death and heartbreak makes it one of his best performances. [Richard Newby]

7. Born On The 4th Of July (1989)

History has given a thumbs down on the theory that Tom was destined to star in 1989’s Born On The Fourth Of July because he was born on the third of July. He took on his first great acting challenge because he was ready to stretch himself, work with a tough director in Oliver Stone and tell a politically charged story that was destined to be controversial. Cruise plays real-life Vietnam War vet Ron Kovic, who would serve his country in one way during the war and serve it in an entirely different way after the war. The film required Cruise to go from gung-ho solider to bitter, wheelchair-bound veteran to long-haired anti-war activist. And it was Tom’s clean cut, American hero image that made Kovic’s descent into anguish and alcohol so devastating to watch. Although the real Kovic was initially hesitant (Al Pacino was originally cast in the role), Cruise proved himself by attending boot camp (twice), meeting with dozens of Vietnam vets and visiting VA hospitals. The result is a riveting and heartbreaking performance that earned Cruise his first Oscar nomination and put Hollywood on notice that there was no role he couldn’t play. [Mark Keizer]

6. Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation (2015)

Tom Cruise’s onscreen partnership with writer/director Christopher McQuarrie, which began with 2008’s Valkyrie and continued through Jack Reacher and Edge of Tomorrow , hit the next level when the two teamed up for the fifth installment of the Mission: Impossible series. The entry finds Cruise’s Ethan Hunt on the run following the disbanding of the Impossible Missions Force and fully introduces the adversaries from the ’60s series, Syndicate. The stunts are some of the best in the series, including a high-speed motorcycle chase that puts all others to shame, and an underwater cooling system sequence that begs viewers to hold their breath right along with Cruise. Returning faces and the introduction of new characters like Rebecca Ferguson’s Ilsa Faust and Sean Harris’ Solomon Lane broadened the scope of the franchise in ways that are still paying off. Even though Cruise had played the role for 19 years by the release of Rogue Nation , a longer tenure than any actor to play Bond, he still managed to bring new layers to Hunt and retain an enthusiasm that feels like the series is just getting started, rather than moving towards its endgame. [Richard Newby]

5. The Color Of Money (1986)

Released just five months after the cinematic sonic boom that was Top Gun , director Martin Scorsese’s gritty yet operatic pool hustler drama The Color of Money demonstrated that Cruise was more than just a freshly minted movie star: he was a top-notch actor as well. Cruise twists his glimmering charisma and all-American cockiness, turning low-level billiards savant Vincent into a brilliant protegee/foil/adversary for Paul Newman’s “Fast Eddie” Felson, a character reprised, in a then-unique move, from the 25-years-earlier film The Hustler . Cruise clearly learned a slew of lessons about navigating Hollywood from Newman, whom he befriended and revered, that he cannily employed as his own career flowered; the actor also began following a very canny path of working with genuine auteurs like Scorsese, who was near the height of his visual prowess here. The filmmaker’s kinetic sense of cinema is ideally paired with Cruise’s hyperactive take on Vincent, and he allows Cruise a convincing foray into darkness without sacrificing his appeal. Superficially seeming to riff on his early brand of cocksure hotheads, Cruise is in fact showing early stages of the emerging character actor lurking beneath his movie star surface. [Scott Huver]

4. Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

This film’s reputation will likely grow over time, but out of the gate Top Gun: Maverick stands as perhaps the ne plus ultra of Cruise’s screen career, tapping into all of the various aspects that have defined him. Returning to his most popular screen role 36 years after the fact, in a matured form of his trademark masculine/vulnerable alpha male, Cruise checks every box—ultra-magnetic star power; deft execution of dramatic moments; daddy issue resonance; a charmingly self-aware cockiness; that remarkably preserved physique; unrepentant behind-the-scenes stunt daredevilry; a shrewd script assist from frequent muse Christopher McQuarrie; and that still powerfully potent root-ability. It’s through astonishingly executed star turns like these that Cruise transcends any passing missteps in his public life and the occasional box office dud to remain, all these decades later, one of the big screen’s truest and most constant superstars. Beyond that, the film is a crowd-pleasing, adrenaline-packed blast in and of itself, dropping Cruise into a cutting-edge take on dynamic aerial dogfights and surrounding him with sparring partners like Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm and Glen Powell, who are all up to the task of holding their own opposite him. [Scott Huver]

3. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

The year is 1999 and Tom Cruise is firing on all cylinders. He’s an action star but also putting in more humanistic performances with films like Rain Man, Far and Away and Jerry Maguire. He’s worked with Scorsese ( The Color of Money ) and Oliver Stone ( Born on the 4 th of July) and is a few years out from his kick-ass Spielberg films ( Minority Report , War of the Worlds ). So it was beyond huge news when Cruise and then-wife Nicole Kidman signed on to star in Stanley Kubrick’s mysterious Eyes Wide Shut . Little did Cruise (or likely, anyone) know that this film would take nearly a year-and-a-half to film, be Kubrick’s last and (many believe) help lead to the dissolution of his marriage to Kidman. But look at how much Eyes Wide Shut has grown in respect since it came out: Cruise’s portrayal of Dr. William Hartford is weird yet giving, anchored by his sheer star power. The stoic nature of the role also allows Kidman to dive into a sexy, esoteric performance, unmooring her onscreen and IRL husband with confessions of desire that shake him irreversibly out of his marital complacency. Without Cruise’s steady yet curious onscreen presence Kidman cannot be allowed to be the presence she is onscreen. Could anyone else but Tom Cruise have added the star power and acting chops shown in Eyes Wide Shut ? Not likely. [Don Lewis]

2. Jerry Maguire (1996)

In 1996 Tom Cruise was an actor capable of doing anything onscreen. This was long before his final Cruise incarnation of strictly an “action star.” While he indeed had quite a career going by this point, it wasn’t terribly rich in terms of romantic-comedy and, for good reason. Cruise’s chiseled good looks and rather straightforward demeanor make for a tough sell when it comes to rom-coms. Enter Cameron Crowe’s stellar Jerry Maguire . This outstanding film still holds up 25 years later; it remains funny, touching and, at times, thrilling. And while Cuba Gooding Jr. got the lion’s share of the publicity and an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor (followed closely by adorable newcomer Renée Zellweger), none of this works without Cruise’s all-out performance as the film’s titular character. It takes a very particular kind of actor, precisely the type that Cruise is, to introduce an intense character like Maguire yet also allow him to be fragile and empathetic. He’s at once a sports-bro but with a morality that flies in the face of that tough guy persona. He’s very handsome but that works so well that Zellweger’s heartfelt Dorothy Boyd can’t believe a dude this hot and passionate would be into her. Without Cruise, Jerry Maguire wouldn’t have had audiences at hello. [Don Lewis]

1. Magnolia (1999)

Oscar fans have a long history of holding a grudge when it comes to snubs and Tom Cruise not winning the Best Supporting Actor in 2000 from his incredible performance as Frank “T.J.” Mackey in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia is a biggie. How does one even describe this role without going as over the top as Mackey himself does in this film? It’s a masterful performance that has everything to do with Cruise’s ability to capture an audience with his looks and physicality as the severely traumatized and misogynistic Mackey. Yet the gut-wrenching trauma that drives this character doesn’t even come to the fore until about halfway through the film, when Cruise’s sad past is brought forth by a reporter who pokes all sorts of holes in Mackey’s arrogant ladies man persona. At this point the audience is laughing at, cringing at, and fairly shocked by, such a bombastic turn by Cruise. But then he kicks it up a notch with an all-time great onscreen meltdown as he confronts the father who inflicted so much pain upon him, which forged the bullshit façade of a human he now inhabits. Shortly after this film Cruise stopped doing dramatic roles. While there are probably myriad reasons why, one of them is that he wasn’t getting the respect he deserved. Case in point, his magnificent role in Magnolia. [Don Lewis]

The 20 Best Tom Cruise Movie Performances

Tom Cruise needs no introduction. Seriously, one of the most popular and greatest movie stars of all time. The man had been in countless box-office hits with critical acclaim, directed by auteurs or well-recognized directors for nearly five decades now. Kubrick, Spielberg, Tony & Ridley Scott, Coppola, De Palma, Mann, PTA – you name it, he has worked with them all.

Early on, some doubted his talent because the media attention around him were little too much through the late 80s and 90s but Cruise kept proving them wrong all the time. He got criticisms for some of his public interviews (especially in 2005) and his association with the Church of Scientology but when you ask any co-star of his, most of them have only nice things to say about his dedicated professionalism and work ethic as well as his kindness. Some found his friendly and kind attitude rather phony in real life but that might just be because he’s a born-entertainer. His whole career is about pleasing others and bringing high-quality entertainment to audiences. You can just google nice stories about him, they’re pretty much endless.

Since “Top Gun Maverick” came out, there had been a lot of articles calling him the “last movie star”. The man who still brings audiences to theatre for his name recognition alone everywhere in the world, a star whose films still feel like an “event”, someone who creates his own franchises based on his name, an actor who refuses to do anything for streaming or television, someone who still has the mystique of movie stars of the previous times. There’s so much to talk about Cruise, but instead of talking about it here, it’s better to explore his incredible filmography which will help to understand what made him special as a movie star as well as his versatility as an actor.

20. Rock of Ages (2012)

Cruise is a serious man, he’s serious about his craft but he’s not afraid of poking fun at himself from time to time, or his industry (in a film that we’ll discuss later on). His comedic chops were well-known at the very beginning where he handled the satiric tone of “Risky Business” perfectly and his singing in things like “Top Gun” is serviceable for a non-singer.

In “Rock of Ages”, Cruise is here once again to steal the show with his singing and comedic chops. Admittedly, this is not a good film. It feels like a cheap Broadway show and it’d be a hit there with all the 80s songs and tributes but its silliness is not enough there to cover the bland tone and overlong runtime, as many critics complained.

The movie would also heavily benefit if it was R-rated, here it feels like they played it rather safe. Thankfully, Cruise is as committed as ever as fictional hair metal rocker Stacee Jax. He’s bit channeling Axl Rose while singing a Bon Jovi song. His singing is good, and his charisma is off the charts but also not afraid of going silly or showing some vulnerability. His scenes with Malin Akerman are particularly a highlight. As a film, it’s not one of Cruise’s best films but if we’re talking about performance, he’s got another chance to prove his versatility and he once again did it.

19. Minority Report (2002)

One of Spielberg’s best films, Minority Report expertly combines the elements of tech noir, whodunit, thriller, and science fiction elements and delivers high-quality entertainment. It’s also aging incredibly well. Looking into the future and its effects, the interplay of cause and effect between the time levels and the idea of ​​the time paradox have always been among the most fascinating subjects of the science fiction genre. It probably has to do with the narrative possibilities that the question of “what if” is so often asked in the cinema. In Spielberg’s film, it’s not people that travel but rather the information.

The film sets in the future where there’s “precrime” police program. Would-be killers are imprisoned in a benevolent virtual reality state. However, an officer from that unit is himself accused of a future murder. That officer is Tom Cruise. Most of it plays like a chase movie and Cruise’s screen charisma keeps you engaged all the time, not only that, he brings a lot of nuance to his character as well, largely via his character’s struggle to deal with the years-earlier kidnapping and death of his son. It’s a perfect kind of “star” performance.

18. War of the Worlds (2005)

As extraterrestrials invade the Earth and destroy cities with giant war machines, Cruise’s dockworker character tries to protect his children. Tom didn’t stop with “Minority Report”, and he made another film with Spielberg. This time based on a sci-fi novel by H. G. Wells. It was an interesting year for Cruise, he was on the news all the time. It was like he was having a mid-life crisis; his couch-jumping on Oprah Winfrey show was everywhere even if Oprah later defended his behavior as him expressing his love for his then love Katie Holmes. The infamous Matt Lauer interview and his feud with Brooke Shields (for which he later apologized) were other controversial moments in a career that usually avoided any of it. His off-screen persona was getting so much attention that it created an idea that his career is over and he was trying to get attention to stay “relevant”.

It’s funny think about it now but maybe it was funny then too because “War of the Worlds” was a major box office success, and critically acclaimed. Cruise’s performance was also praised. At the beginning of the film, he comes off like an unsympathetic jerk more interested in rebuilding car engines than spending quality time with his offspring. That alone shows even in the same genre, Cruise avoids getting typecast. His character also has an arc; he transforms into a reluctant hero and there are moments where he struggles to hold his emotion for the sake of his kids, and these are all amazing to watch. He’s convincing in every minute of it.

17. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

As we’re talking about his sci-fi/action films, it fits to continue with “Edge of Tomorrow”. Unlike the previous two, “Edge of Tomorrow” finds him as a less macho and more flawed type of action hero. He plays a captain who sells the war to the public but is privately a coward. He has no combat experience, it’s not an Ethan Hunt type of character. He finds himself in combat, he gets killed and then he realizes he’s brought back to life in an endless vicious cycle. “Groundhog Day” might be a rare Hollywood film that established its own genre. One might find a similar concept prior to that but this one made it popular. Luckily filmmakers managed to find to make this concept always feel fresh.

“Edge of Tomorrow” is doing that with impressive sets, amazing combat scenes, lots of black humor, and amazing chemistry between Cruise and Emily Blunt. All these, in fact, show what a great leading man Cruise actually is. Also shows that in the genre, Cruise is not afraid of taking roles that challenge his image. Edge of Tomorrow was listed on 23 critics’ top ten lists of movies of 2014 (out of 201 evaluated), another proof that Cruise might go after the blockbusters but he often chooses great ones.

16. “Top Gun” franchise (1986, 2022)

Tony Scott’s “Top Gun” was where everyone fell in love with Cruise. Always smiling, bike riding hotshot young pilot who pushes the limits with his cool glasses and jacket, singing “You Lost That Loving Feeling” – everything about it made Cruise iconic. Now that the film is often criticized for its jingoistic tone but if you take it less seriously, it has a lot to appreciate, especially how Tony Scott builds the atmosphere. Those uses of sun give a dream-like quality to the whole film and most of the film doesn’t have a linear plot, it feels more like a 70s hangout movie. Sure, with thin characters but since they’re all played by talented actors, you don’t mind it all. With great action sequences, a fine romance subplot, and an unforgettable soundtrack, “Top Gun” became an iconic film.

Cruise came back to the characters years later in “Top Gun Maverick”. Now Maverick is an old teacher. While you don’t have to watch the original to appreciate the sequel, it somehow makes it surprisingly richer because Cruise’s character reflects on another time, another era of life. It’s a bit of a moment where Cruise himself faces his age. Almost a moment for Maverick’s character arc to complete. Both films are good or great for several other reasons but one thing is for sure, they won’t be the same without Cruise and he took people’s breath away in both films.

15. The Color of Money (1986)

“Top Gun Maverick” gets a lot of praise and many people have commented that this is how legacy sequels should’ve been made. It’s indeed a brilliant piece of work but Cruise is also no stranger to great legacy sequels. Some critics were ready to dismiss it as if it was a work-for-hire film for Martin Scorsese, one of the many auteurs he has worked with. Instead, it’s a beautiful film and if you had seen “The Hustler”, it’s a great reflection on aging and many other things. Full of gorgeous, clever shots as you might expect from Michael Ballhaus.

One of the many impressive things about Cruise is that at a young age, he was not afraid of co-starring with some of the giants of their generation; Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall, Jack Nicholson, and in this case, Paul Newman. They make a great duo together, delivering subtle and nuanced performances with great arcs. Since they both can play the game, Scorsese uses this to get great frames from them both.

Unlike the original, this one is not full of tension but these two men are so great together, them playing, them talking, them doing everything – so it becomes a joy to watch. It’s not a film about sports clichés, it’s about characters. Cruise has some of the cockiness he displays in Top Gun but this time he’s not that bright and somewhat insecure. He loved working with Newman who raised his interest in racecars. Soon later, Cruise ended up even doing a race car movie in “Days of Thunder”. Cruise also did his own trick shots for the film, the man was all ready to perform his own stunts.

14. The Firm (1993)

While working for a law firm, a young Harvard graduate encounters inconsistencies and suspicions that catapult him into a career- and the life-threatening situation between the FBI and the mafia. There’s a better lawyer character in his filmography in a better film for sure but “The Firm” is somewhat underrated right now. Would be good to start with the fact that this film made $270.2 million against a budget of $42 million, making it the highest-grossing film adapted from a John Grisham novel (“A Time To Kill”, “The Client”) and the highest-grossing R-rated film of 1993.

It shows that the times have changed a bit, nowadays a legal drama/thriller over two hours would hardly made that much money but one of the factors that contributed to its success was Tom Cruise’s star power. People wanted to watch what Cruise does and what he does is extraordinary; playing a young, naive man full of fear and confusion who finds himself in extremely dangerous situations. Cruise carefully builds his character and rooting for him becomes very easy. “The Firm” is an intelligent thriller of its time and Cruise’s performance being at the center of it elevates it even further. The thing about Cruise is that he doesn’t play anyone extraordinary, he has a lot of puzzled moments but he finds in an himself in an extraordinary situation and tries to find a way out in rather realistic scenario.

13. Vanilla Sky (2001)

Inferior to its Spanish original “Close Your Eyes” for sure and even Penelope Cruz performance is not on the same level but it’s understandable that Cruise liked the concept and wanted to bring something fresh to Hollywood mainstream cinema. Maybe Cameron Crowe was not the right choice for the project but still, he pulls it off to a degree. Some critics dismissed Cruise’s performance as yet another star vehicle without depth but they’d be wrong, mostly because there was some judgment against this being a remake of a European film.

Cruise’s performance is pretty fascinating and he surprisingly takes on a very unlikable character in the leading role. He accomplishes to make us care about him or at least intrigued by him because we never get too sure about everything his character faces – the accident, the disfigurement, and his conviction and therapy – are all real or not. From handsome and arrogant to disfigured and self-loathing, Cruise is mesmerizing. The problem with the film was that it came out at the wrong time, it felt like, probably because of the character he plays as an attempt to gain sympathy for his own public persona but when you get rid of that on your mind, you’ll end up watching a complex, unusual work from a talented actor.

12. Interview with the Vampire (1994)

The author of the book Anne Rice wrote the script for the film version herself but totally opposed Tom Cruise’s casting in the leading role. She had more of a young Rutger Hauer type of someone to play Lestat. She didn’t see that in Tom Cruise. She offered Jeremy Irons or John Malkovich instead and even asked Brad Pitt and Tom to replace their roles but nobody listened. She was ready to disown the film because Cruise was not her Lestat.

When the film came out, Anne Rice saw it and her quote describes it the best: “From the moment he appeared Tom was Lestat for me. He has an immense physical and moral presence; he was defiant and yet never without conscience; he was beautiful beyond description yet compelled to do cruel things. The sheer beauty of Tom was dazzling, but the polish of his acting, his flawless plunge into the Lestat persona, his ability to speak rather boldly poetic lines, and speak them with seeming ease and conviction were exhilarating and uplifting. The guy is great. I’m no good at modesty. I like to believe Tom’s Lestat will be remembered the way Olivier’s Hamlet is remembered. Others may play the role some day but no one will ever forget Tom’s version of it.”

She also praised him for pulling off subtly humorous moments and also giving depth in all the subtle ways, creating a fully dimensional, interesting, and haunting character. And she was right. While the film could’ve benefited if he had better chemistry with Brad Pitt, still the performance works on the individual level. Critic Roger Ebert also agreed with the author, saying Tom is “never less than convincing, and his slight British accent, combined with makeup that is dramatic without being obtrusive, disguises the clean-cut star – makes him seem unwholesome in an odd, insinuating way.

11. Risky Business (1983)

Tom Cruise the movie star was in the making. He already got some attention to himself in “Taps”, he didn’t get the best role in Curtis Hanson’s “Lovin It” which he somewhat hated, but Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Outsiders” and underseen sports drama, Michael Chapman’s “All the Right Moves” showed that the guy has something special going on. In “The Outsiders”, you could see that he was willing to give himself to the part, both mentally and physically. Finally, it was time for a true breakout, in arguably the most stylishly directed (though some may call it “MTV aesthetics”) teen sex comedy “Risky Business”. Now the film is good, could’ve been even better with the alternative ending and better control of the satire. What is truly fantastic is Cruise’s performance. He’s young but very confident in himself.

The 80s were probably the golden decade of teen films but rarely any of them try to tackle the serious subjects of capitalism, materialism, and prostitution this well. This is also the closest Cruise came to playing a “loser”. He’s obviously too charming and charismatic to play one but he was 21 here, and while he has a lot of self-confidence and some amazing experiences, he’s still the same guy throughout the whole film. There’s no “Tom Cruise star film formula” for him yet. Even when he’s at his supposedly most powerful, he’s desperately trying to get money because he ruined his dad’s Porsche. It’s also the movie where he danced to “Old Time Rock and Roll” in his underwear when his parents leave him home alone. So iconic that even Sam Rockwell thanked him for influencing him in his SAG award speech.

5 Replies to “The 20 Best Tom Cruise Movie Performances”

I liked how he played 6’5″ Jack Reacher and people believed he was a bad-ass. That’s some good acting.

I like those shorts he does where he pretends to be a Scientologist. Haha, they’re great!

“The Last Samurai”….here we see Tom master the art of the Samurai over the course of a winter….he also learned to play the bagpipes during the Easter bank holiday week-end….as well as building a matchstick model of Middle Earth during his dinner hour.

Merry Cruisemas!

As a massive Cruise-ite, my ranking greatly differs. Fallout is Cruise’s most committed performance; he broke his ankle doing one stunt and resumed filming/doing wild stunts when he was healthy again. Risky Business is the quintessential Cruisemas performance and should be in the Top 3. Eyes Wide Shut is his greatest pure acting role (he filmed a Kubrick movie with his wife, c’mon….).

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20 years ago, Tom Cruise made the most incoherent sci-fi movie of the century

If you really think about it, this is all Christopher Nolan’s fault.

Penélope Cruz tells a wealthy ne'er-do-well played by Tom Cruise that “every passing minute is a chance to turn it all around.” At this moment, Cruise (David Aames) feels he’s reached that critical point where he can make a meaningful change in his otherwise shallow life — notably, by opening himself up to real love with Cruz (Sofia Serrano).

David is feeling positive about turning his life around. What he doesn’t know is that he’ll soon make another choice that will come with dire consequences. It’s one of the more positive moments in Vanilla Sky , which premiered 20 years ago on December 10, 2001, that drives home a simple message at the heart of this absurdly complex sci-fi movie:

It’s the little things we do that can have the most impact on our lives.

Vanilla Sky is a bizarre cinematic hybrid; equal parts science fiction, psychological thriller, and romance. The early 2000s were a popular time for the psychological thriller, a genre Christopher Nolan had mastered a year earlier with 2000’s Memento . Nolan’s mind-bending movie was a huge critical success, so naturally, everyone in Hollywood wanted to copy him.

In that context, Cameron Crowe’s Vanilla Sky makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately, it didn’t make sense to critics and moviegoers. The star-studded movie (Cameron Diaz, Kurt Russell, Tilda Swinton, and Jason Lee are also in the cast) went on to attain cult classic status as one of the most underrated sci-fi thrillers of the century (so far). But 20 years later, does Vanilla Sky actually hold up?

Tom Cruise as the wealthy publishing tycoon, David Aames, Jr.

Vanilla Sky stars Tom Cruise as David Aames, a publishing mogul at the age of 33 (due to a substantial inheritance) who lives the filthy rich Manhattanite playboy lifestyle. David goes to work when he feels like it. He plays daily racquetball with his novelist buddy, Brian, and spends his nights sleeping with his friend-with-benefits, singer/model Julie Gianni (Cameron Diaz) with no intention of commitment.

David and his friend-with-benefits, Julie Gianni.

Yes, David lives a charmed life. He only has two worries:

• His company’s board of directors
• A single, errant gray hair

David and Brian driving to play racquetball before work.

I’m not the biggest Tom Cruise fan, but he plays the part of David perfectly. Cruise excels in roles where he’s supposed to be a jerk. Whenever he plays a good guy hero, it just feels unnatural. Thankfully, David is the former.

David gets to know Sofia Serrano.

While David is seemingly the man who has everything, once he encounters Sofia Serrano (Penélope Cruz) at his birthday party, he feels he’s met the love of his life.

Cruz is very charming as Sofia, but we barely get to know her. David falls madly in love after only a few hours simply because she’s “guileless” and “ an artist.” While we are seeing her from David’s perspective, she seems to embody the traits of just another manic pixie dream girl.

Regardless, David is smitten. But unfortunately, he makes the fateful decision to get in a car with the unstable Julie, who’s decided that she’s sick of being a side-piece and wants a real relationship.

To drive her point home, Julie drives off a bridge.

Julie picks up David in her car and eventually drives off a bridge.

This accident shapes the rest of David’s life. Julie doesn’t survive, but David does — while sustaining extensive facial scarring. Plastic surgery helps, it’s still not enough to completely restore his face to its previous Tom Cruise glory.

David tries to get his face completely restored after the car accident.

For the rest of the film, David is desperate to get his life back to the way it was before the accident — his face, his company, and his budding relationship with Sofia that had been cut so short.

David questioning his reality.

After the accident, the rest of the movie is one mind trip after another. You don’t know what’s supposed to be reality and what’s a dream. Is David actually going crazy or is someone screwing with his head?

A trippy story can keep an audience’s attention (e.g. Memento ), but the twists and turns here are so relentless that watching it can feel like drowning. There’s nothing concrete for the audience to grasp.

It was all a dream.

It feels like Cameron Crowe was trying to recapture Memento ’s success with Vanilla Sky by having one long puzzle that keeps the audience guessing. Where Nolan succeeds and Crowe fails is in the ultimate execution of the puzzle and the piecing together of the mystery.

With Memento , once the mystery is revealed, it might be a surprise twist, but it’s easier for the audience to look back to the earlier parts of the movie, and think, Oh, that makes sense, now. But in Vanilla Sky , there are so many convoluted plot points and such a minimal payoff (spoilers: David has been having a lucid dream in cryogenic suspension for 150 years and his subconscious just glitched) that trying to make sense of earlier twists is practically futile.

The underlying message of Vanilla Sky — that the small moments in life that can have the greatest consequences — still works. But it’s so buried in unnecessary complexity that you might not even see it. Then again, at least you’ll still be watching a visually stunning movie full of beautiful people and a fun soundtrack.

This article was originally published on Dec. 10, 2021

• Science Fiction

Actor Tom Cruise is the star of several box-office hits, including Risky Business , A Few Good Men , The Firm , Jerry Maguire , and the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Who Is Tom Cruise?

Thomas Cruise Mapother IV, better known as Tom Cruise, was born on July 3, 1962, in Syracuse, New York, to Mary and Thomas Mapother. Cruise's mother was an amateur actress and schoolteacher, and his father was an electrical engineer. His family moved around a great deal when Cruise was a child to accommodate his father's career.

Cruise's parents divorced when he was 11, and the children moved with their mother to Louisville, Kentucky, and then to Glen Ridge, New Jersey, after she remarried. Like his mother and three sisters, Cruise suffered from dyslexia, which made academic success difficult for him. He excelled in athletics, however, and considered pursuing a career in professional wrestling until a knee injury sidelined him during high school.

At age 14, Cruise enrolled in a Franciscan seminary with thoughts of becoming a priest, but he left after a year. When he was 16, a teacher encouraged him to participate in the school's production of the musical Guys and Dolls . After Cruise won the lead of Nathan Detroit, he found himself surprisingly at home on the stage, and a career was born.

'Taps,' 'The Outsiders'

Cruise set a 10-year deadline for himself in which to build an acting career. He left school and moved to New York City, struggling through audition after audition before landing an appearance in 1981's Endless Love , starring Brooke Shields. Around this same time, he snagged a small role in the military school drama Taps (1981), co-starring Sean Penn .

His role in Taps was upgraded after director Harold Becker saw Cruise's potential, and his performance caught the attention of a number of critics and filmmakers. In 1983, Cruise appeared in Francis Ford Coppola 's The Outsiders , which also starred Emilio Estevez , Matt Dillon and Rob Lowe —all prominent members of a group of young actors the entertainment press dubbed the "Brat Pack." The film was not well received, but it allowed Cruise to work with an acclaimed director on a high-profile project.

'Risky Business'

His next film, Risky Business (1983), grossed $65 million. It also made Cruise a highly recognizable actor — thanks in no small part to a memorable scene of the young star dancing in his underwear.

In 1986, after a two-year hiatus, the budding actor released the big-budget fantasy film Legend , which did poorly at the box office. That same year, however, Cruise's A-list status was confirmed with the release of Top Gun , which co-starred Kelly McGillis, Anthony Edwards and Meg Ryan . The testosterone-fueled action-romance, set against the backdrop of an elite naval flight school, became the highest-grossing film of 1986.

'The Color of Money,' 'Rain Man' and 'Born on the Fourth of July'

Cruise followed the tremendous success of Top Gun with a string of both critically acclaimed and commercially successful films. He first starred in The Color of Money (1986) with co-star Paul Newman , and then went on to work with Dustin Hoffman on Rain Man (1988). Cruise's next role, as Vietnam veteran Ron Kovic in the biopic Born on the Fourth of July (1989), earned him an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe for Best Actor.

'A Few Good Men,' 'The Firm' and 'Interview with a Vampire'

In 1992, Cruise proved once more that he could hold his own opposite a screen legend when he co-starred with Jack Nicholson in the military courtroom drama A Few Good Men . The film grossed more than $15 million its first weekend and earned Cruise a Golden Globe nomination. He continued to demonstrate his success as a leading man with The Firm (1993) and Interview with a Vampire (1994), which co-starred Brad Pitt.

'Mission: Impossible,' 'Jerry McGuire'

Next, Cruise hit the big screen with two huge hits—the $64 million blockbuster Mission: Impossible (1996), which the star also produced, and the highly acclaimed Jerry McGuire (1996), directed by Cameron Crowe. For the latter, Cruise earned a second Academy Award nomination and Golden Globe for Best Actor.

'Eyes Wide Shut,' 'Magnolia'

Cruise and then-wife Kidman spent much of 1997 and 1998 in England shooting Eyes Wide Shut , an erotic thriller that would be director Stanley Kubrick 's final film. The movie came out in the summer of 1999 to mixed reviews, but that year Cruise enjoyed greater success with the release of Magnolia . His performance as a self-confident sex guru in the ensemble film earned him another Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

'Vanilla Sky,' 'The Last Samurai'

Cruise then starred in the long-awaited smash hit Mission: Impossible 2 in 2000, alongside Anthony Hopkins , Thandie Newton and Ving Rhames. In 2002, he starred in Vanilla Sky , his second collaboration with Crowe, as well as Steven Spielberg 's Minority Report . The following year, Cruise traveled to Australia to shoot the $100 million war epic The Last Samurai, which earned him another Golden Globe nomination.

'War of the Worlds'

Cruise proved he remained a top draw by starring in the Spielberg-directed remake of the science-fiction classic War of the Worlds (2005), which grossed more than $230 million at the box office.

His next effort, Mission: Impossible 3 (2006), also scored well with audiences. However, Cruise was faced with a professional setback in August when Paramount Pictures ended its 14-year relationship with the actor. The company's chairman cited Cruise's erratic behavior and controversial views as the reason for the split, though industry experts noted that Paramount more likely ended the partnership over Cruise's high earnings from the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Cruise quickly rebounded and on November 2, 2006, he announced his new partnership with film executive Paula Wagner and the United Artists film studio. Their first production as a team, the political drama Lions for Lambs (2007), proved a commercial disappointment despite a strong cast that included Meryl Streep and Robert Redford .

'Tropic Thunder'

Taking a break from weighty material, Cruise delighted audiences with his performance in the comedy Tropic Thunder (2008). Despite his relatively small role in a movie that featured Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller , Cruise stood out by obscuring his trademark good looks to play a balding, obese movie studio executive.

'Valkyrie,' 'Rock of Ages'

In December 2008, Cruise released his second project through United Artists. The film, Valkyrie , was a World War II drama about a plot to assassinate German leader Adolf Hitler . Cruise starred as a German army officer who became involved in the conspiracy.

Cruise returned to one of his most popular franchises in 2011 with Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol . Breaking into new territory, he then starred in the 2012 musical Rock of Ages . Although Cruise received some positive reviews for his performance as a rock star, the movie failed to attract much of an audience.

'Jack Reacher,' 'Edge of Tomorrow'

Returning to his mainstream action roots, Cruise starred in the 2012 crime drama Jack Reacher , based on a book by Lee Child. He then headlined a pair of science-fiction adventures, Oblivion (2013) and Edge of Tomorrow (2014). Showing no signs of slowing down, the veteran actor in 2015 delivered his usual high-energy performance for the fifth installment of his blockbuster franchise, Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation .

Latest Movies and Familiar Franchises

In 2016, Cruise reprised the role of Jack Reacher for Never Go Back . He then headlined a reboot of The Mummy (2017), which performed respectably at the box office but was savaged by critics, before earning better reviews later that year for the crime thriller American Made .

2018 brought a return to familiar territory for Cruise, who starred in Mission Impossible —Fallout that summer. Prior to its release, he tweeted a photo to mark day 1 of production on the long-awaited sequel Top Gun: Maverick , scheduled for a June 2020 release.

Scientology and Personal Life

Cruise married actress Mimi Rogers in 1987. It was through Rogers that the actor became a student of Scientology, the religion founded by writer L. Ron Hubbard. Cruise credited the church with curing his dyslexia, and he soon became one of its leading proponents. However, while his spiritual life flourished, his marriage to Rogers ended in 1990. That same year, Cruise made the racecar drama Days of Thunder alongside Kidman. Though the movie was unpopular among critics and fans alike, the two lead actors had real chemistry. On Christmas Eve 1990, after a brief courtship, Cruise and Kidman married in Telluride, Colorado.

Divorce from Kidman

For much of the 1990s, Cruise and Kidman found themselves fiercely defending the happiness and legitimacy of their marriage. They filed two different lawsuits against tabloid publications for stories they considered libelous. In each case, the couple received a published retraction and apology, along with a large monetary settlement which they donated to charity. The couple has two children, Isabella and Connor.

On February 5, 2001, Cruise and Kidman announced their separation after 11 years of marriage. The couple cited the difficulties involved with two acting careers and the amount of time spent apart while working. Following the divorce, Cruise briefly dated his Vanilla Sky co-star Penelope Cruz , followed by a much-publicized relationship with actress Katie Holmes. A month after his ties to Holmes became public, Cruise professed his love for the actress in a now-famous appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, during which he jumped on Winfrey's sofa, shouting "Yes!"

Marriage to Katie Holmes

In June 2005, after a two-month courtship, Cruise proposed to Holmes in a restaurant at the top of the Eiffel tower. In October, they announced that they were expecting their first child together. The hasty proposal and surprise pregnancy quickly became tabloid gossip. But Cruise made even bigger headlines that year as an outspoken advocate for Scientology. He openly criticized former co-star Brooke Shields for using anti-depressants during her recovery from postpartum depression. He also denounced psychiatry and modern medicine, claiming Scientology held the key to true healing. Cruise's statements led to a heated argument with news anchor Matt Lauer on The Today Show in June 2005, for which Cruise later apologized.

In 2006, Cruise and Holmes welcomed daughter Suri into the world. That year, they were married in an Italian castle, with celebrities Will Smith , Jada Pinkett Smith , Jennifer Lopez and Victoria and David Beckham among those in attendance. However, the storybook romance wouldn't last, and in June 2012, the couple announced their separation.

QUICK FACTS

• Birth Year: 1962
• Birth date: July 3, 1962
• Birth State: New York
• Birth City: Syracuse
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Actor Tom Cruise is the star of several box-office hits, including 'Risky Business,' 'A Few Good Men,' 'The Firm,' 'Jerry Maguire' and the 'Mission: Impossible' franchise.
• Astrological Sign: Cancer

We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

CITATION INFORMATION

• Article Title: Tom Cruise Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/actors/tom-cruise
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: March 26, 2021
• Original Published Date: April 3, 2014

The Biography.com staff is a team of people-obsessed and news-hungry editors with decades of collective experience. We have worked as daily newspaper reporters, major national magazine editors, and as editors-in-chief of regional media publications. Among our ranks are book authors and award-winning journalists. Our staff also works with freelance writers, researchers, and other contributors to produce the smart, compelling profiles and articles you see on our site. To meet the team, visit our About Us page: https://www.biography.com/about/a43602329/about-us

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TOM CRUISE is a global cultural icon who has made an immeasurable impact on cinema by creating some of the most memorable characters of all time. Having achieved extraordinary success as an actor, producer and philanthropist in a career spanning over three decades, Cruise is a three-time Oscar® nominee and three-time Golden Globe Award® winner whose films have earned over $10 billion in worldwide box office—an incomparable accomplishment. Eighteen of Cruise’s films have grossed over $100 million domestically, and a record 23 have made more than $200 million globally. His latest film, Mission: Impossible – Fallout has made over $775 million worldwide becoming Cruise’s most successful film to date.

Cruise has starred in numerous legendary films such as Top Gun, Jerry Maguire, Risky Business, Minority Report, Interview with the Vampire, A Few Good Men, The Firm, Rain Man, Collateral, The Last Samurai, Edge of Tomorrow, The Color of Money and the Mission: Impossible series, among many others. Combined, the Mission: Impossible franchise has brought in over $3.5 billion since Cruise conceived the idea for a film adaptation of the classic television series and produced the first in 1996. He is currently in production on the long-awaited sequel to Top Gun.

A consummate filmmaker involved in all aspects of production, Cruise has proven his versatility with the films and roles he chooses. He has made 43 films, contributing in a producing role on many of them, and collaborated with a remarkable list of celebrated film directors including Francis Ford Coppola, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Martin Scorsese, Barry Levinson, Oliver Stone, Ron Howard, Rob Reiner, Sydney Pollack, Neil Jordan, Brian De Palma, Cameron Crowe, Stanley Kubrick, Paul Thomas Anderson, Ed Zwick, Steven Spielberg, Michael Mann, J.J. Abrams, Robert Redford, Brad Bird, Doug Liman and Christopher McQuarrie.

Cruise received Academy Award® nominations for Best Actor for Born on the Fourth of July and Jerry Maguire. He was a Best Supporting Actor nominee for Magnolia and won Golden Globes (Best Actor) for Born on the Fourth of July and Jerry Maguire, in addition to a Best Supporting Actor prize for Magnolia. He also received Golden Globe nominations for his roles in Risky Business, A Few Good Men and The Last Samurai. Cruise has earned acting nominations and awards from BAFTA, the Screen Actors Guild, the Chicago Film Critics Association and the National Board of Review.

Cruise’s previous few films include the critically acclaimed American Made, The Mummy, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Oblivion and the suspense thriller Jack Reacher, which earned $218 million worldwide. Prior to that, he made a memorable appearance in Ben Stiller’s comedy smash Tropic Thunder, as the foul-mouthed Hollywood movie mogul Les Grossman. This performance, based on a character Cruise created, earned him praise from critics and audiences as well as his seventh Golden Globe nomination.

Cruise has been honored with tributes ranging from Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Man of the Year Award to the John Huston Award from the Artists Rights Foundation and the American Cinematheque Award for Distinguished Achievement in Film. In addition to his artistic contributions, Cruise has used his professional success as a vehicle for positive change, becoming an international advocate, activist and philanthropist in the fields of health, education and human rights. He has been honored by the Mentor LA organization for his work on behalf of the children of Los Angeles and around the world. In 2011 Cruise received the Simon Wiesenthal Humanitarian Award and the following year he received the Entertainment Icon Award from the Friars Club for his outstanding accomplishments in the entertainment industry and in the humanities. He is the fourth person to receive this honor after Douglas Fairbanks, Cary Grant and Frank Sinatra. Empire magazine awarded Cruise its Legend of Our Lifetime Award in 2014. Most recently, Cruise was the first actor to receive The Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation’s Pioneer of the Year Award in 2018.

• Top Gun: Maverick (2021)
• Mission: Impossible Fallout (2018)
• American Made (2017)
• The Mummy (2017)
• Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016)
• Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (2015)
• Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
• Oblivion (2013)
• Jack Reacher (2012)
• Rock of Ages (2012)
• Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)
• Knight and Day (2010)
• Valkyrie (2008)
• Tropic Thunder (2008)
• Lions for Lambs (2007)
• Mission: Impossible 3 (2006)
• War of the Worlds (2005)
• Collateral (2004)
• The Last Samurai (2003)
• Minority Report (2002)
• Vanilla Sky (2002)
• Mission: Impossible 2 (2001)
• Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
• Magnolia (1999)
• Jerry Maguire (1996)
• Mission: Impossible (1996)
• Interview with the Vampire (1994)
• The Firm (1993)
• A Few Good Men (1992)
• Far and Away (1992)
• Days of Thunder (1990)
• Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
• Rain Man (1988)
• Cocktail (1988)
• The Color of Money (1986)
• Top Gun (1986)
• Legend (1985)
• Risky Business (1983)
• All the Right Moves (1983)
• The Outsiders (1983)
• Losin’ It (1983)
• Taps (1981)
• Endless Love (1981)

The Transformation Of Tom Cruise From 21 To 58 Years Old

There's a lot that can be said about Tom Cruise . The star is a Golden Globe-winning actor, producer, and dad of three . Cruise is known in Hollywood as one of the highest-paid stars, and he's held that status for decades.

Cruise is the only son of four children, who was raised by his mom, Mary Lee (née Pfeiffer), a special education teacher, and dad, Thomas Cruise Mapother III, an electrical engineer. His parents were both from Louisville, Kentucky, where he lived for 11 years, but Cruise moved to Glen Ridge, New Jersey, with his mother following his parents' divorce in 1973, per IMDb .

As a kid, Cruise struggled to fit in, and in school, he spent his years trying to hide his dyslexia, which he was diagnosed with at age 7. The actor once described his younger self as "functionally illiterate" (via Dyslexiahelp.umich.edu ), but fortunately, he excelled in sports. In fact, he once considered pursuing a career in professional wrestling, but he suffered a knee injury during high school that , per Biography . 

After a teacher encouraged Cruise to join the school's production of the musical "Guys and Dolls," he fell in love with acting, and well, the rest is history. Since then, Cruise has captivated audiences around the globe, and his transformation is nothing short of amazing.

Tom Cruise sets off to New York City with dreams of becoming a star

Tom Cruise had big plans to become a Hollywood star, and he set off to New York City with his dreams at the forefront. Though he struggled to get his career off the ground in the beginning, he persevered and kept auditioning before landing his debut gig in 1981's "Endless Love," starring icon Brooke Shields. That same year, he appeared alongside Sean Penn in "Taps."

By 1983, Cruise was establishing himself as an up-and-coming heavyweight, snagging roles in 1983's "Losin' It," "Risky Business," and "The Outsiders." He portrayed the character of Steve Randle, a member of the group of young actors dubbed the "Brat Pack," with Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, and Rob Lowe. Though "The Outsiders" didn't receive the praise it was hoping, the gig led to roles in 1985's "Legend," and ultimately, his iconic starring appearance in 1986's " Top Gun ."

"Top Gun," which became the highest-grossing film of that year (via Chicago Tribune ), confirmed Cruise's status as an A-list actor and catapulted the star into a life of fame and superstardom. According to Box Office Mojo , the action-romance flick, which follows the story of Cruise's character, Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, as he joins an elite naval flight school, has earned more than $176 million in the box office to this day.

Tom Cruise becomes one of Hollywood's highest-paid actors by the 1990s

With "Top Gun" on his résumé, Tom Cruise established himself as a Hollywood hotshot, and by that time, he was making the big bucks. In the late 1990s, Cruise snagged the title of one of showbiz's highest-paid actors in the world, according to Celebrity Net Worth .

The handsome heartthrob had already earned $9 million for 1990's "Days of Thunder" and another $15 million for his work on "Interview With the Vampire" in 1994, but his bank account skyrocketed when he landed the starring role in "Mission Impossible" in 1996. Entertainment Weekly reported he "pocketed $70 million" for the hit action film, and he also "negotiated a chunk of 'Mission's' overall $465 million gross."

Cruise's monetary gain is so impressive that a report from Casumo claims he pockets more than $7,000 per word. "When taking into account everything he's been in for almost 40 years, supposedly it's as much as $7,091 per word," CinemaBlend reported in April 2020.

But, while Cruise has more money than one could ever imagine, the producer knows he has earned every dollar in his $600 million fortune. "I get paid because I'm worth it and they should pay me that much. But I've never done work for money, ever," he shared with Vanity Fair in 2000 (via The Uncool ). "It is my life, it is what I do, it is what I love to do."

Tom Cruise falls in love with Nicole Kidman and starts a family

As he was cementing his place in the entertainment industry, Tom Cruise was also experiencing changes in his love life. The star walked down the aisle with his first wife, Mimi Rogers , in 1987, and they were together for three years. After they split in 1990, though, Cruise was not single for long, as he developed a deep bond with Nicole Kidman when they met on the set of "Days of Thunder."

Cruise wasn't the only one who was instantly smitten. "He swept me off my feet," Kidman recalled to Vanity Fair in December 2002. "I fell madly, passionately in love." Later that year, Cruise and Kidman said "I do," and by 1995, they were the parents of their adopted kids, daughter Isabella Jane Cruise and son Connor Cruise .

Over the next few years, Cruise and Kidman raised their kids while juggling their busy careers as Hollywood stars. In 1997 and 1998, they worked together on "Eyes Wide Shut," an erotic thriller directed by legend Stanley Kubrick. The actor landed other gigs, including 1999's "Magnolia" — which earned him a Golden Globe and Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor — followed by "Mission: Impossible II" in 2000 (via IMDb ).

Just one year later, though, Cruise experienced turmoil in his personal life as he and Kidman split in 2001. Per Entertainment Weekly , the "Vanilla Sky" lead filed for divorce , citing "irreconcilable differences" as the reason.

Tom Cruise marries wife No. 3 Katie Holmes

Following his split from Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise fixated his focus on his acting career, and throughout the early 2000s, he balanced several roles in "Minority Report," "Austin Powers in Goldmember," and "Collateral." By April 2005, Cruise's personal life started making headlines once again when he publicly debuted his relationship with Katie Holmes .

While many speculated their romance was a publicity stunt, as Cruise was starring in "War of the Worlds" while Holmes was cast as the lead in "Batman Begins," they proved how serious they were when they got engaged less than two months later in June, per The Hollywood Reporter . Before they got the chance to walk down the aisle, though, Cruise expanded his family when Holmes gave birth to their daughter, Suri Cruise , in April 2006.

The duo wed seven months later in November, marking Cruise's third trip down the aisle. Marrying the Hollywood hunk was an unbelievable moment for Holmes, who told Seventeen magazine she "used to think I was going to marry Tom Cruise" as a little girl (via The Hollywood Reporter). However, their romance eventually came to end in June 2012 when Holmes filed for divorce. At the time, Cruise's attorney called their split "a private matter," adding the actor's No. 1 priority was their "daughter's best interests" (via People ).  

Tom Cruise focuses on his career, Scientology, and love

Following his a string of unsuccessful marriages, Tom Cruise became much more guarded in terms of his personal life. By 2016, Cruise sold both his L.A. mansions and purchased a penthouse in Clearwater, Florida, to focus on his work as a Scientologist. According to People , the home happens to be just one block away from the Church of Scientology's international headquarters.

Cruise has been a committed member of the controversial church since 1990, per Insider , and his involvement has been debated for years, especially since a source told Us Weekly in July 2019 that he's "not allowed" to see Suri. Regardless of the claims, plus the fact that Cruise has not been seen in public with Suri since 2013 , the Church fought back, telling Us, "Everything about your inquiry misrepresents the Church of Scientology."

These days, Cruise is also heavily involved in Hollywood, as he's set to star in several upcoming films . Most impressively, he's cast in an untitled project that will be filmed in space, per The Space Shuttle Almanac (via The Independent ).

Cruise isn't just busy in his professional life, though. The actor is reportedly dating actress Hayley Atwell . The two met on the set of "Mission: Impossible 7" and "hit it off from day one," The Sun reported in December 2020. "They've become fairly inseparable. They get on brilliantly, and both seem very happy." It looks like Cruise's long and admirable journey has certainly paid off.

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Tom cruise sends new trailer, 20 minutes of ‘mission: impossible’ footage to cinemacon.

The studio moved the date of the film up two days to July 12.

By Aaron Couch

Aaron Couch

Film Editor

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Per his annual tradition, Tom Cruise was dead set on sending a message to impress theater owners at CinemaCon . The actor and producer delivered with a new trailer for Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One , as well as 20 minutes of footage from the upcoming film.

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Dead Reckoning: Part One hails from Cruise good luck charm Christopher McQuarrie, who has directed, written or produced a number of his projects over the past decade. It has a release date of July 12 (moved up two days), with Dead Reckoning: Part Two expected for June 28, 2024.

Other stars include Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Henry Czerny, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby, Angela Bassett, Cary Elwes, Indira Varma, Rob Delaney and Charles Parnell.

In years past, Cruise debuted stunts from previous movies, such as hanging from the side of a plane, skydiving or jumping a motorbike off a cliff in Norway.

Cruise is a favorite of theater owners. He resisted putting Top Gun: Maverick on streaming, and it ended up being the top-grossing domestic feature released in 2022 with $774.7 million domestic, for a total of $1.49 billion globally. (Cruise was also handsomely rewarded for his patience, earning around $100 million from Maverick thanks to its gross.)

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American Made

The story of Barry Seal, an American pilot who became a drug-runner for the CIA in the 1980s in a clandestine operation that would be exposed as the Iran-Contra Affair. The story of Barry Seal, an American pilot who became a drug-runner for the CIA in the 1980s in a clandestine operation that would be exposed as the Iran-Contra Affair. The story of Barry Seal, an American pilot who became a drug-runner for the CIA in the 1980s in a clandestine operation that would be exposed as the Iran-Contra Affair.

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• 389 User reviews
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• 65 Metascore
• 3 nominations

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• Trivia Tom Cruise is a qualified pilot. He did all of his own flying scenes during filming.
• Goofs Barry Seal did not quit his job at TWA. In July of 1972 he was fired for taking fraudulent medical leave in order to participate in an explosives smuggling operation.

Barry Seal : I'm the gringo who always delivers.

• Crazy credits At the very end of the credits, tucked among the copyright disclaimers is the sentence, "And yes, we know that's not El Salvador." This is a reference to a joke in the film about mistaking El Salvador for Nicaragua on the map. In fact, the country on the map was neither El Salvador nor Nicaragua, it was Honduras.
• Connections Featured in Half in the Bag: The Mummy (2017)
• Soundtracks A Fifth of Beethoven Written & Performed by Walter Murphy Courtesy of BMG Rights Management

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• September 29, 2017 (United States)
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• $50,000,000 (estimated)
• $51,342,000
• $16,776,390
• Oct 1, 2017
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From Tom Cruise breakdancing to Spice Girls reuniting, reports from Victoria Beckham's bash capture imagination

Tom Cruise breakdancing, a Spice Girls reunion and tons of A-list celebrities gathering in one location have social media and the general public in awe over Victoria Beckham's 50th birthday party.

Beckham, who celebrated half a century over the weekend, posted about the luxurious soiree Sunday on Instagram.

But some of the most buzzworthy moments went intentionally unrecorded.

"I don’t think I’ve ever felt as loved as I did last night," Beckham's post said. "Thank you all for coming from near and so far!! X"

In the post, Beckham shared pictures of her with actor Eva Longoria, celebrity Chef Gordon Ramsay, her husband, soccer star David Beckham and some of the couple's children.

In another Instagram post, Beckham shared a picture of her and the four other members of the English pop group, the Spice Girls.

"The best gift to be reunited!! Thank you to all my friends and family for celebrating with me. Kisses! xxx," Beckham's post about the Spice Girls said.

Guests 'absolutely dumbfounded' by Tom Cruise's dancing, reports say

Not included in either post were other famous attendees who came to celebrate with the Beckhams at Oswald’s, a private member’s club owned by Robin Birley in London's Mayfair district.

Oswald's is strict about taking photos and allowing social media within the venue , according to the club's member's privacy notice.

Actors Tom Cruise and Salma Hayek both made an appearance at Beckham's party and while one left an impression with their outfit, the other left it all on the dance floor, the Daily Mail reported.

Cruise, who turned 61 in July 2023, stunned guests when he began demonstrating "a series of breakdancing moves, culminating in splits," the outlet said.

"People were absolutely dumbfounded," one guest told the Daily Mail.

Social media reacts to Tom Cruise's 'split mania' and not receiving an invite to Victoria Beckham's party

While no photos or videos of Cruise dancing exist online, social media users continue to poke fun at the expense of the "Mission Impossible" movie star. An X user who goes by @Douggernaut_2 posted a clip of actor Mike Myers dancing in the film "Austin Powers" and said, "Tom Cruise arriving at Victoria Beckham's bday."

Several social media users hearkened back to when Cruise played the Les Grossman character in the 2008 comedy movie "Tropic Thunder." Cruise would hilariously reprise the character during the 2010 MTV Movie Awards and dance to rapper Ludacris' song "Get Back."

"Remember when Tom Cruise did this," X user @charletty_ said Monday in a post reacting to the video of Cruise's full dance routine at the awards show.

During the routine with singer and actress Jennifer Lopez, Cruise does a split on stage. X user @danilo_parks said Monday in a post, "It's real Tom Cruise does the splits mania out there today."

In addition to seeing Cruise do splits and the Spice Girls perform, guests also received goody bags full of Beckham's branded products, including a candle and a fragrance, the Telegraph reported.

All the fun has people wondering where their invite was to Beckham's birthday party, including X user @StaceyVaselaney who said, "I’m sitting here shaking my head wondering why wasn’t I invited to Victoria Beckham’s 50th birthday party."

Watch Tom Cruise Help a Photographer Who Falls Down While On Way to Victoria Beckham's Birthday Party

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Amid the glitz and glamour of Victoria Beckham 's extravagant 50th birthday bash, Tom Cruise showcased a moment of chivalry as he helped a photographer who had stumbled outside the venue.

The Top Gun actor, exuding his trademark suave demeanor in a sharp black suit and shades, diverted from entering the festivities to assist the paparazzo, who had taken a tumble. With effortless grace, the 61-year-old extended a helping hand, swiftly grasping the photographer's arm and aiding him back to his feet.

Victoria's milestone celebration unfolded in grandeur at Oswald's in Mayfair, London, where she spared no expense in orchestrating an unforgettable evening. Accompanied by her husband, David, and their brood of Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper, the fashion icon radiated jubilance as she marked the occasion in style.

Among the star-studded guests were Victoria's fellow Spice Girls  -- Melanie Chisholm , Geri Halliwell ,  Emma Bunton  and  Melanie Brown  -- all arriving to revel in the festivities. Cruise himself, alongside Victoria's close confidante Eva Longoria, crooner Marc Anthony, and a plethora of other renowned personalities, converged on the exclusive members' bar.

An eyewitness tells ET, "Tom was in amazing spirits while celebrating Victoria’s birthday. He had great energy and was dancing throughout the entire night. He had so much fun."

On Saturday, David, 48, treated his Instagram followers to a special performance from Victoria's 50th birthday celebration: a Spice Girls reunion. 

"I mean come on x @victoriabeckham @melaniecmusic @officialmelb @emmaleebunton @gerihalliwellhorner 💚💛🧡💜💙," David captioned the post. 

In the video, the camera pans to Victoria (Posh Spice), Geri (Ginger Spice), Emma (Baby Spice), Mel B (Scary Spice) and Mel C (Sporty Spice) all in a line doing their iconic dance moves while singing their hit, "Stop." 

While the Spice Girls are in action during the moment, David sings along with the rest of the room.

Victoria celebrated the moment on her respective Instagram. 

"Best night ever! Happy Birthday to me! I love you all so much! #SpiceUpYourLife," the fashion designer captioned the video. 

Mel B also shared the video on her Instagram alongside a cheeky caption.

"About last night #tourdatescomingsoon," she wrote on the video. 

Meanwhile, Emma posed with Mel C prior to the party.

"Off to celebrate our special girl @victoriabeckham #spicegirls #holdontoyournickersgirls," she captioned the post featuring her and Mel C posing in their gowns. 

The Spice Girls reunion comes one month after the group marked the 30th anniversary of their auditions. The last time the women officially reunited was for their tour in 2013, though Victoria notably skipped out on it. 

"Today marks the 30th anniversary of the very first Spice Girls auditions!" they wrote last month. "What started back in 1994 has turned into an amazing journey, way beyond anything we could have ever imagined. Thank you to our fans for your support from day one #FriendshipNeverEnds ."

In the video montage, set to their 1996 hit, "Wannabe," the women are shown dancing and goofing around with each other while wearing casual '90s outfits. 

In January, Mel B opened up about the bond the women share after three decades of friendship.

"I was a Spice Girl at the age of 17. I'm old," she told Jennifer Hudson at the time. "I'm feeling old right now. But it is amazing that we've managed to kind of still stay friends. It's been 30 years. What you go through as a group... you are just welded together for life because you've been through such a crazy experience."

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Tom Cruise Was Star Of Victoria Beckham's Birthday Party (After Ignoring Suri's Milestone 18th)

T om Cruise was front and center at Victoria Beckham's milestone 50th birthday notably just a few days after snubbing his own daughter's big day. On April 20, 2024, the former Spice Girl and fashion designer celebrated turning 50 in style with a blowout bash featuring a star-studded guest list. Amidst a sea of celebrities, Tom reportedly stole the show thanks to his attention-grabbing dance moves. The "Top Gun: Maverick" star arrived at Oswalds, a private club in London, to attend the glitzy affair dressed to the nines in a full tuxedo. Once the party really got going, Tom reportedly showed off his unexpected breakdancing skills. One source even informed  the Daily Mail  that "People were absolutely dumbfounded" by the committed performance. 

While he may seem like a particularly unexpected star to steal the spotlight at a party hosted by Victoria and David Beckham, these A-listers actually go way back. In fact, Tom has been pals with the Beckhams for over two decades. However, after enjoying a close friendship for years, there were rumors of a feud that apparently destroyed their relationship following a mysterious fight that occurred sometime in 2013. Although they didn't avoid each other in the ensuing years, the trio reportedly wasn't as close. Clearly, though, Tom's friendship with the couple is all patched up these days, and he was sure to make it known to the world by celebrating Victoria's birthday in a big way. This did, however, make fans wonder why he didn't do the same for Suri Cruise. 

Read more: Celebrity Couples With The Biggest Age Differences

It Was Undoubtedly A Strange Choice To Attend The Party And Skip Suri's

On April 18, 2024, a photo was snapped of Suri Cruise looking adorably grown up on her 18th birthday . The pic was taken in New York City, where she currently resides with her mom, Katie Holmes. Tom Cruise's relationship with Holmes has been rocky since long before their contentious 2012 divorce, especially given his ongoing ties to the Church of Scientology. And, for the past while, Tom seemed to be on the outs with Suri, too. The "Mission Impossible" star made his priorities clear when he didn't bother to travel across the pond from the U.K. to celebrate his daughter's milestone birthday. 

However, according to insider info passed on to the  Daily Mail , Tom's absence from Suri's celebration may have been what the birthday girl really wanted. "Suri will not have any contact with her father, despite being 18, and even if he called, she would not answer," the source revealed, adding, 'He does not exist to Katie or Suri, and his daughter does not want to rely on him for anything. She feels that she has one parent and that is her mother."

If this accurately represents their family dynamics, then perhaps the A-lister chose to spend the weekend partying with friends to distract himself from his increasingly tough relationship with his daughter . And, while things may remain frosty between Tom and Suri, he was at least able to spend the weekend celebrating the Beckhams and burying the rumored hatchet with them. Hopefully, there will be more mended relationships in the future. 

Read the original article on The List

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Why Tom Cruise ‘absolutely dumbfounded’ guests at Victoria Beckham’s star-studded 50th birthday party

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Tom Cruise brought down the house at Victoria Beckham’s star-studded 50th birthday party .

The “Top Gun: Maverick” star, 61, “absolutely dumbfounded” guests Saturday night by breakdancing and doing splits, a fellow partygoer told the Daily Mail Monday.

Cruise, who has known Victoria and her husband, David Beckham, for nearly two decades, has been living in the UK while filming “Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two,” which is expected to hit theaters next year.

The “Risky Business” star was dressed to the nines for the occasion in a classic black tuxedo with a bow tie and shiny black shoes.

Cruise was far from the only A-lister who attended Victoria’s grand fête in London.

All of the fashion designer’s fellow Spice Girls — Melanie “Mel C” Chisholm, Emma Bunton, Geri Halliwell and Melanie “Mel B” Brown — also showed up for the festivities.

The girl group even staged an impromptu reunion to perform their 1997 hit song “Stop” for the attendees.

Victoria had her party at the private members’ club Oswald’s and stunned in a celestial sheer mint gown featuring ruffled details along the hem.

The guest of honor arrived on crutches after breaking her foot during a workout earlier this year, but she did not let the injury stop her from going all out for her milestone birthday.

She was joined by her athlete husband, who was dressed in a tux, as well as their four children: sons Brooklyn, 25, Romeo, 21, and Cruz, 19, and daughter Harper, 12.

Other stars at the soirée included Gordon Ramsay and Eva Longoria.

Notably absent from the momentous occasion was Brooklyn’s wife, Nicola Peltz, who instead spent time with her grandmother .

The “Bates Motel” actress, 29, shared a photo with her grandma on her Instagram Story but also made sure to send her mother-in-law some birthday love.

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“Happy Birthday to my beautiful MIL @victoriabeckham,” she wrote in another Instagram Story. “I’m so sad I’m not there to celebrate you and hug you! Sending all my love from me and Naunni.”

Peltz and Victoria were rumored to have feuded during the former’s 2022 wedding to Brooklyn .

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They allegedly butted heads over wedding planning, and tensions were also high after the bride decided to wear a wedding gown not made by Victoria’s fashion house.

However, Peltz denied she had any beef with the former pop star and explained that she could not wear a dress by Victoria’s eponymous brand due to timing issues.

“I was going to and I really wanted to, and then a few months down the line, she realized that her atelier couldn’t do it, so then I had to pick another dress,” she  told Variety  at the time.

“She didn’t say ‘you can’t wear it;’ I didn’t say I didn’t want to wear it. That’s where it started, and then they ran with that.”

Brooklyn also  denied there was any bad blood between his wife and mom.

Victoria and Peltz appear to have mended their relationship, as they have posted sweet messages about each other on social media numerous times since.

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Brooke Shields says she's glad Tom Cruise publicly criticized her antidepressant use — he accidentally brought awareness to under-discussed mental health struggles

• In 2005, Tom Cruise criticized Brooke Shields' use of antidepressants for postpartum depression.
• At the 2024 PHM HealthFront, Brooke Shields said his comments "backfired."
• She said the controversy brought more mainstream awareness around postpartum and mental health.

In one of the most controversial moments of Tom Cruise's career , the actor criticized Brooke Shields for talking about her use of antidepressants to treat postpartum depression.

Almost 20 years later, Shields says Cruise accidentally raised awareness around the issue and drove people to fight for better treatment.

In 2005, Shields had just published her memoir "Down Came the Rain," in which she described taking Paxil, an SSRI, after the birth of her first daughter, Rowan . "I was deadened, and it terrified me because I wanted to have a baby so badly," Shields, 58, said on Wednesday at the 2024 PHM HealthFront, a two-day event for healthcare marketers and health media. "I went through IVF seven times, and so the journey was such a fraught one."

Cruise initially called Brooke Shields "irresponsible" for using antidepressants in a 2005 "Access Hollywood" interview . When he was asked to elaborate on these comments in a 2005 interview on "The Today Show," Cruise told Matt Lauer that "psychiatry is a pseudo-science" and that "drugs aren't the answer."

Promoting Scientology, Cruise opposed taking any "mind-altering antipsychotic drugs," as it goes against the religion .

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He slammed Shields for spreading "misinformation" and said "she doesn't understand the history of psychiatry" when it came to using medication.

Shields said Cruise's comments angered a lot of women

Looking back on the incident, Shields said that Cruise's comments ended up helping the cause.

"You gave women in particular — they were so angry — you gave them a reason to fight for something they didn't even know they wanted to fight for," Shields said at PHM, noting that women weren't just sticking up for her but also for themselves.

"So it actually, ironically, helped the platform because everybody was talking about it," Shields said. "It sort of backfired. Way to put it into pop culture."

Cruise later apologized to Shields

A year after his comments, Shields said, Cruise delivered a "heartfelt" apology to Shields at her house and even mailed her an annual Christmas cake for many years.

Nearly 20 years later, the conversations around postpartum and depression treatments have changed dramatically. Shields is far from the only celebrity to be open about her PPD , though she played a crucial role in advocating for more awareness around the condition.

In 2007, she testified in Congress for a bill that would require postpartum pre-screening for new mothers.

"I'm not an expert," Shields said at PHM. "I'm just a woman who's gone through that and wanted to help other women get the help that they deserve."

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Chris Pine Says He Grew Up Idolizing Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman (Exclusive)

The actor also named Lee Marvin and Walter Brennan among some of his early influences

Karwai Tang/WireImage; Monica Schipper/Getty; Daniele Venturelli/WireImage

As a burgeoning actor, Chris Pine had his sights set high.

Speaking with PEOPLE on Wednesday, April 24, at the premiere of his directorial debut Poolman in Los Angeles, the 43-year-old named several actors who got their start in Hollywood before him who he looked up to when he was growing up.

"I remember being 8 years old and dressing up in a fedora and a three-piece suit and pretending to be a character in Bugsy Malone . Or taking a pencil and pretending I was Tom Cruise in Top Gun ," Pine says. "So all of the business appealed to me and all the characters."

"But certainly ... I guess I simultaneously wanted to be Harrison Ford and also wanted to be like Gary Oldman or Lee Marvin , or Walter Brennan," he adds.

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Set in Los Angeles, Poolman follows pool attendee Darren Barrenman (Pine), "a native Los Angeleno who spends his days looking after the pool of the Tahitian Tiki apartment block and fighting to make his hometown a better place to live," according to a synopsis of the film, which Pine also co-wrote.

"When he is tasked by a femme fatale to uncover the truth behind a shady business deal, Darren enlists the help of his friends to take on a corrupt politician and a greedy land developer," the synopsis adds. "His investigation reveals a hidden truth about his beloved city and himself."  

Pine recalled to PEOPLE at Wednesday's premiere how he "grew up in a specific kind of L.A. that was kind of on the Boulevard of Dreams and kind of on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams."

"I saw the highs and lows of the industry. And I grew up around people that were living the dream and people that desperately wanted to be in the dream," he says. "So it's no accident that everybody in this film, even the bad guy, was a musical-theater major that came out here to do a pilot."

"My girlfriend [in the movie] was once on Melrose Place and is now a Pilates instructor, and my best friend Jack Dennisoff, [played by] Danny DeVito , is a B-movie horror director that never really made it," Pine continues. "So this is really my tribute to that part of Los Angeles."

That doesn't mean the city doesn't have its downsides for him — in fact, he tells PEOPLE that what "frustrates" him about L.A. is "everything."

"The fact that we don't have above-ground public transportation, that the red cars were ripped out, that we don't really have a deep appreciation for some of the fabulous architecture that we have here, that we're building buildings right now that I feel like are built for practicality more than they are in the spirit of beauty," the Wonder Woman actor explains.

"That disappoints me, but it is my home," Pine adds.

Poolman hits theaters May 10.

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