Tom Cruise is undeniably one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, renowned for his role as Ethan Hunt in the blockbuster Mission: Impossible franchise. There are a lot of people who got the chance to work with him and that includes Alan Cummings. In fact, Cumming’s snarky attitude with Stanley Kubrick paved the way for him to work with Cruise.

Tom Cruise is known for his eccentric personality and sense of humour on top of being an upstanding human being. However, he isn’t necessarily perfect due to his subscribing to Scientology, but even then – some things have just been accepted by his fans now.

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Alan Cumming is known as one of the better-skilled actors in Hollywood, who is known for his role as Nightcrawler in the original X-Men movies. While speaking during an interview in the past, Cumming revealed how he met Stanley Kubrick on the sets of Eyes Wide Shut.

”You know, Stanley Kubrick and Tom Cruise and me and I was like, ‘Hi. Hey Stanley how are you doing?’ And he went, ‘You’re not American.’ And I was like ‘I know.’ And PS. this was also like at 6 o’clock in the morning or something.”

Alan Cumming revealed that due to the snarky way he responded to Stanley Kubrick’s questions, he ended up impressing Stanley Kubrick – which helped him bag a role in Eyes Wide Shut alongside Tom Cruise.

‘”I know I’m Scottish.’ He was like ‘You were American on tape.’ Inside my head I was like ‘F*** you. I auditioned four times to be in your film. How dare you?’ Instead I said, ‘I know. That’s because I’m an actor, Stanley.’ And he was like, ”Oooh.” So yeah I think that’s what got me because I stood up to him, rightfully so.”

All’s well that ends well and for Alan Cumming – things worked out better than expected just because he stood his ground. It goes to show that one must never back down when challenged no matter what the outcome is.

Also read: Alan Ritchson Bows Down to Tom Cruise Even After Fans Brand Him as The Better Jack Reacher

Tom Cruise’s Hollywood career reflects a seasoned celebrity who has sustained his superstardom through intelligent movie choices and a keen understanding of roles that suit him. Notably, Cruise’s ability to reject roles that didn’t align with his strengths has been a key factor in his success. Despite turning down several iconic roles, Cruise has made some pretty good career choices that helped him stay relevant over the years.

Also read: “We don’t have a lot of men that can do that”: Alan Ritchson Reveals His Personal Idol He Wishes to Imitate on Reacher (and it’s not Tom Cruise)

Roles like the one made popular by Patrick Swayze in Ghost were offered to Cruise, and he was also considered for lead roles in Edward Scissorhands and Donny Brasco which ended up going to Johnny Depp. The critically acclaimed film A Beautiful Mind starring Russell Crowe was another project that Cruise could have been a part of. Even in the realm of superhero franchises, Marvel was said to have approached Cruise for the role of Iron Man, but he acknowledged that Robert Downey Jr. was the perfect choice.

Despite passing on these significant films, Tom Cruise’s career has not suffered, and he has managed to ensure that these decisions did not prove costly for his long-standing success. In the end, that’s all that matters to him.

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