Hollywood veteran Tom Cruise, known for his daring stunts, has been making his fans go crazy with his action-packed movies for a long time. But there was something that Cruise had never experienced before BBC Radio 1 reporter Ali Plumb showed him in an interview. That was memes dedicated to his “clinging” moments.  

During the BBC Radio 1 interview in 2017, Tom Cruise had his first-ever glimpse of memes featuring himself. What particularly caught his attention was the ‘Tom Cruise Clinging‘ meme, originating from a scene in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation. Interestingly, even after two years of the release of Rogue Nation, no one had thought to share these memes with the actor until then. Cruise not only discovered them for the first time but also expressed genuine delight and amusement. 

Tom Cruise Couldn’t Stop Laughing Out Loud Seeing Some Memes

Before going to talk about other things, reporter Ali Plumb reflected on some of Tom Cruise‘s iconic film moments and how it had given some great meme material during the interview on BBC Radio 1. “Are you aware of the #TomCruiseClinging off things meme?” Plumb asked. And when Cruise said he was not, Plumb showed him some of his favorite shots on his phone. 

There were some images, including him clinging to Free Willy and, of course, to Nicolas Cage. The actor couldn’t control his laughter. He literally slapped his knee when he first saw the memes. 

“That’s fantastic,” he exclaimed. “Oh my god, why didn’t anyone show me that before? That is hilarious!”

He was laughing so much that he had to ask for a glass of water to calm himself down.

“Please give me some water,” Cruise exclaimed.

The fun fact is that the iconic image of Tom Cruise clinging to a plane wasn’t cinematic trickery – it was the real deal. He performed the stunt himself, without the aid of green screens or any special effects. Talk about dedication to the craft! The way he goes the extra mile to bring authenticity is what makes his action sequences so thrilling. 

Nicolas Cage Isn’t a Fan of Nicolas Cage Memes

Addressing viral Internet memes about him, Nicolas Cage once shared his frustration with all those memes. Sharing his views on memes that are made about him, he told The Guardian: 

“I might have been the first actor who went through a kind of meme-ification. One person had cherrypicked from all these different movies where I was having meltdowns but without any regard for how the character got to that place.” 

The actor was heartbroken to see that people were only picking up the memes from his movies, not realizing how much effort he put into them.

“I was frustrated because I didn’t know what people were taking from the movies other than that.”

“I got into acting because I was moved by film performance more than any other art form,” Cage added. “I didn’t get into movies to become a meme. That was new. I made friends with it, but it was an adjustment.”

Cage has shown his talent in various genres, from action-packed blockbusters like Con Air (1997) to more artistic endeavors in movies like Adaptation (2002). His distinctive acting style and dedication to his craft have made him one of Hollywood’s most talented actors.