Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning director Chris McQuarrie has recalled asking Tom Cruise what the “weirdest story” he’d ever heard about himself was.

Cruise has been the subject of numerous conspiracy theories over the years thanks, in part, to his ties with the mysterious and controversial Church of Scientology.

In an interview about the 61-year-old action star for The Times, McQuarrie, 54, said Cruise told him the strangest myth he’d heard was that people on set “were not allowed to look me in the eye”.

Cruise’s M:I costar Simon Pegg added to the publication: “I’ve been able to hack my way through all the bizarre mythology that surrounds him.

“On one side he’s Tom Cruise – this enigmatic film star everyone wants to know about. And on the other, he’s just a guy. I like being normal with him.”

In a recent interview with The Independent, another of Cruise’s Dead Reckoning colleagues, Hayley Atwell, attested to Cruise’s normalcy.

She said: “I truly feel you could meet him and go: ‘He’s nice; he’s charming; he’s charismatic; he knows how to make people feel good about themselves. So that’s just a tactic for total manipulation, because he’s probably just an egocentric.’ Or whatever bulls*** people want to make up about people.

“But over time, you’re just watching him, going: he really works hard, he really cares, he’s really interested in people and wants to engage with them, and he believes in the power of cinema as much as he did when he was five years old.”

Cruise is Scientology’s most famous follower, having joined the organisation in 1980. The religion and its leader David Miscavige have been accused of bilking supporters for cash, separating members from their loved ones, and harassing and threatening journalists and critics.

At the Golden Globes in January, Cruise was roasted for his association with the Church, as host Jerrod Carmichael made reference to Shelly Miscavige, the wife of David who has not been seen in public since 2007.

Mission: Impossible is about to release its seventh outing, with the second part due to arrive in 2024.

Reviews for Dead Reckoning Part One have been glowing, with its score on review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes currently sitting at 98 per cent after 112 reviews.

Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One is released in UK cinemas on 10 July.

Find The Independent’s review of the film here.