Tom Cruise: 40 glorious years in Hollywood

Will Tom Cruise ever expire?

Tom Cruise has had 40 years of transforming into all kinds of characters on screen

Tom Cruise embarked on the professional acting path when he was quite young. At the age of 19, he had his first role in the movie Endless love, just a small supporting role. Compared to his colleagues, Tom Cruise has a petite physique and a much more modest height, but in return, he has a natural charm that attracts both men and women. Charisma and energy are what made Tom Cruise conquer filmmakers right from the first years of his career.

After his leading role in Losin’ it , Tom Cruise has continued to act in films. However, the movie that brought him to the rank of A-list star was Top Gun (released in 1986). Pilot Maverick, played by Tom Cruise, is considered an iconic character, the perfect model of a brave, upright, and dedicated American man serving his country. Thanks to Tom Cruise’s charisma, this movie also earned a profit of 350 million USD.

It’s not like he became a star in one go. Tom Cruise spent many years playing supporting and supporting roles to gradually make his mark in the eyes of filmmakers.

Pilot Pete “Maverick” is the role that brought Tom Cruise to A-list stardom

Throughout the 1990s, Tom Cruise was always on the list of the highest paid actors in the world, with at least $15 million per movie. He also had the opportunity to collaborate with many famous directors such as Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott or Paul Thomas Anderson. With Interview with the Vampire (1994), Mission: Impossible (1996), Jerry Maguire (1996), Eyes wide shut (1999), Tom Cruise became a globally influential superstar.

Mission: Impossible alone has become an action movie franchise associated with the name of Tom Cruise. This franchise has been developed to its 7th part. Tom Cruise, in addition to being an actor, is also directly involved in the film creation process as a producer. 27 years have passed, this action movie series is still “hot” and earns “huge” profits as long as Tom Cruise is still participating.

In Hollywood, few stars have maintained their A-list status as consistently as Tom Cruise. Of course, in the works the actor has appeared in, there are also films in which he was criticized for his monotonous acting, with content that he watched once and then forgot. However, whenever they see Tom Cruise’s name on the poster, audiences are always willing to spend money to buy tickets to go to the theater.

Tom Cruise has always been one of the highest paid movie stars in the world

At the age of 60, when many actors begin to think about retirement or are labeled “out of date”, Tom Cruise is still a leader in the movie game. Tom Cruise constantly creates new achievements and peaks. Last year, when the world box office was still reeling due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, he returned with the blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick. The work grossed 1.49 billion USD worldwide and won an Oscar. The film was also selected to premiere at the opening ceremony of the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in France.

Tom Cruise personally piloted a helicopter to the premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in 2022

The success of Top Gun: Maverick helped Tom Cruise become the world’s highest-earning actor last year, with an income of more than 100 million USD. This year, Tom Cruise continues to stir up the movie market with  Mission: Impossible – Dead reckoning part one .  Released a while ago, the 7th part of the Mission: Impossible series scored 98% fresh tomatoes on Rotten Tomatoes. Journalists and critics commented that Tom Cruise continues to raise his game, setting new standards for action movies. After 40 years of career, Tom Cruise is not out of time but continues to meet times.

‘As exhilarating as the first time and as fierce as the last time’

The lasting aura for Tom Cruise is of course partly due to good luck. However, it is also the result of the actor’s tireless efforts throughout his 40 years of working. Every time he enters a new project, Tom Cruise always works with 100% energy and enthusiasm. The 61-year-old actor is always looking for ways to raise standards, breaking the limits of himself or the works he participates in. The spirit of persistent work and creativity has created Tom Cruise’s unique class in Hollywood.

Tom Cruise is still very stylish and charming when he turns 60

Director Steven Spielberg, when interviewed for the biographical book Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography by author Andrew Morton, commented that Tom Cruise is “a person who always radiates a source of persistent energy”. Meanwhile, Top Gun: Maverick director –  Joseph Kokinski also expressed special respect and admiration when talking about Tom Cruise:

“He approached every day on set with enthusiasm as if it were his first film. But at the same time he worked as if it were his last. It’s an attitude Not every actor can have it. Never take everything you have today for granted, give 110 percent every day. Constantly push your team and yourself to achieve excellence. That’s it. is what Tom Cruise does and thinks. I always feel overwhelmed by this energy, by this fact, that he’s been in this industry for 40 years but never allows himself to slow down. Tom ever It’s also accelerating, which is great.”

An eye-catching action scene of Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible 7

The scene where Tom Cruise drives a motorbike off a cliff makes a strong impression

Indeed, Tom Cruise has always been a pioneer in breaking the limits of action movies, bringing unique footage that makes viewers “eyes A-shaped, mouth O-shaped”. It’s hard to believe that at the age of 61, Tom Cruise still performs his own duel scenes on the roof of a train, zigzagging between narrow streets on a large motorbike, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. and stunned when he personally flew his car out of the abyss.

Throughout his career as an action star, Tom Cruise has rarely had to use stuntmen. Despite being seriously injured many times, the actor threw himself into work as soon as he recovered and never gave up on challenges. “Once Tom Cruise makes up his mind, no one can stop him,” said Mission: Impossible 7 director Christopher McQuarrie.

Tom Cruise performed his own stunts without a stuntman

Tom Cruise’s tenacity, decisive spirit and abundant energy are considered “rare and hard to find” in Hollywood.

Tom Cruise said it took him 15 months to come up with the idea and perfect the “nail” scene in Mission: Impossible 7 , with 536 practice jumps. He participated in a series of parachute jumping and control training courses, learning how to deal with dangerous situations in the air. The director built a model of a slope, 135 m long and 10 m high, for Tom Cruise to ride a motorbike to show the scene of jumping off the cliff. He only has 6 seconds to open his parachute, otherwise he will crash into the cliff. Every operation must be performed with proficiency and precision down to the smallest detail.

Tom Cruise has a brilliant career

With Mission: Impossible – Dead reckoning part one , Tom Cruise shows that his class has not diminished over the years. The actor even enthusiastically told the press that he wanted to continue acting in action movies until he was 80 years old and had many cherished plans for Mission: Impossible.