is tom cruise the greatest actor of all time

Tom Cruise’s 16 Best Performances: From ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ to ‘Magnolia’

By Clayton Davis

Clayton Davis

Senior Awards Editor

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With six decades around the sun, Tom Cruise still feels the need for speed and has crafted himself into one of the most successful and undeniably talented movie stars of his generation.

Variety is ranking his 15 best film performances to celebrate the actor’s 60th birthday.

With a breakthrough that started in the coming-of-age film “Risky Business” (1983), the Syracuse, N.Y.-born actor became a darling of Hollywood and consumer audiences around the world. As Joseph Kosinski’s “Top Gun: Maverick” still goes strong, making more than half a billion dollars domestically, Cruise has continued to etch himself into the cultural zeitgeist, crossing multiple generations.

Also a producer, Cruise has continued to elevate the entertainment medium with the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, which began in 1995. With five very successful sequels and two more on the way, he continues to push the boundaries for himself as a fearless stuntman and an advocate for the silver screen.

A career that only the most daring actors and creatives can dream of, Cruise has worked alongside two best actor winners — Paul Newman (“The Color of Money”) and Dustin Hoffman (“Rain Man”) — and has earned himself three Oscar nominations in “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989), “Jerry Maguire” (1996) and “Magnolia” (1999). But it hasn’t been about the accolades for Cruise. In May 2021, he returned his three Golden Globe Awards after the expose on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s lack of diversity, specifically no Black members.

Cruise’s films have grossed over $10 billion dollars worldwide and there are no signs of slowing down. Will he ever win a coveted Oscar? That remains to be seen, but the narrative is there if the Academy rewards an upcoming project.

Read Variety’s list of Tom Cruise’s best performances below:

Honorable mentions : “Far and Away” (1992); “The Last Samurai” (2003); “Rock of Ages” (2012)

Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

Role: Major William Cage

Director: Doug Liman Writers: Christopher McQuarrie, Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth Distributor: Warner Bros.

The scene that proves it: Getting the device from Brigham

Kicking ass, taking names, then rinse and repeat. A military major goes through a “Groundhog Day” loop but it’s Cruise that ensures it’s not a gimmick, slithering into each scene with charm, raw magnetism and wonderful chemistry with an awards-worthy Emily Blunt. The science-fiction drama has been all too undervalued. Doug Liman’s thriller shows more than special effects and explosions. It also presents capable and talented stars at the helm, which makes all the difference.

Risky Business (1983)

Role: Joel Goodson

Director: Paul Brickman Writer: Paul Brickman Distributor: Warner Bros.

The scene that proves it: Dancing to “Old Time Rock & Roll”

All it took was a button-down shirt, briefs and a Bob Seger track to make Tom Cruise one of the defining movie stars of his generation. In Paul Brickman’s directorial debut, Cruise’s turn in the teen comedy was as culturally massive as it was monetarily successful. With lots of praise also going to his co-star Rebecca DeMornay, this is just as enjoyable as any film that ranks in the listing.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Role : Lieutenant Pete “Maverick” Mitchell

Director : Joseph Kosinski

Writers : Peter Craig, Justin Marks, Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, Christopher McQuarrie (based on characters created by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr.)

Distributor : Paramount Pictures

The scene that proves it : “Maverick’s Test Run”

Cruise’s 80s high-flying sequel feels like it saved the movies. His return to “Maverick,” his beloved character has showmanship, charisma and the ability to shoot down planes with the enemy’s plane. Having great chemistry with his co-stars, particularly Miles Teller and Jennifer Connelly, Cruise is only getting better as he gets older.

Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994)

Role: Lestat de Lioncourt

Director: Neil Jordan Writer: Anne Rice (based on “Interview with the Vampire” by Anne Rice) Distributor: Warner Bros.

The scene that proves it: “Claudia, you’ve been a very, naughty little girl.”

As the sinister and entrancing Lestat, Cruise hypnotized the audience with his soft-spoken flirtations with the living while persuading them to join the undead. Alongside memorable turns from Brad Pitt and a young Kirsten Dunst, Neil Jordan’s horror adaptation of the Anne Rice novel is still a popular selection.

The Firm (1993)

Role: Mitch McDeere

Director: Sydney Pollack Writers: David Rabe, Robert Towne, David Rayfiel (based on “The Firm” by John Grisham) Distributor: Paramount Pictures

The scene that proves it: “Did you ever think I would make a six-figure salary?”

Sydney Pollack’s invigorating legal thriller boasts an all-star cast and a dynamic Cruise as lawyer Mitch McDeere. While also featuring my personal favorite Tom Cruise signature run as he chases down his movie wife Jeanne Tripplehorn, the adaptation of the John Grisham novel was a box office success and even pulled in an acting nom for his co-star Holly Hunter.

Mission: Impossible (1995)

Role: Ethan Hunt

Director: Brian De Palma Writers: David Koepp, Robert Towne, Steven Zaillian (based on “Mission: Impossible” by Bruce Geller) Distributor: Paramount Pictures

The scene that proves it: “You’ve never seen me upset.”

The spy thriller from Brian De Palma still holds up almost 30 years later. Likewise, the action franchise that’s still going (with two more films on the way) keeps on delivering, thanks to Tom Cruise.

The cinematic remake of the classic television series has spawned multiple territories, generating massive revenue and showing Cruise’s defining action star beats, jaw-dropping stunts and magical smiles that have a way with the ladies as Ethan Hunt.

Keep dropping from those ceilings, Tom.

Rain Man (1988)

Role: Charlie Babbitt

Director: Barry Levinson Writers: Barry Morrow, Ronald Bass Distributor: MGM/UA

The scene that proves it: “You’re the Rain Man?”

The best picture winner of his arsenal, alongside an Oscar-winning turn from Dustin Hoffman, the film stands as one that hindsight has allowed us to rediscover as one of the bright spots of his filmography. If only Oscar were willing to recognize two leading actors as they did earlier that decade with “Amadeus.” Cruise would have made a fine addition.

Collateral (2004)

Role: Vincent

Director: Michael Mann Writer: Stuart Beattie Distributor: DreamWorks Pictures

The scene that proves it: Searching in the club.

At best a co-lead to Jamie Foxx (who was nominated for best supporting actor in one of the most recent cases of category fraud), Cruise’s silver fox Vincent in Michael Mann’s thriller is an underrated delivery. He sends chills down the spine, moving like a shark through a club and listening to his prey with a mischievous grin. He keeps us at the edge of our seats, before finally allowing us to exhale by the end of the credits.

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Role: Bill Harford

Director: Stanley Kubrick Writers: Stanley Kubrick, Frederic Raphael (based on “Traumnovelle” by Arthur Schnitzler) Distributor: Warner Bros.

The scene that proves it: Listening to the story about Cape Cod.

Under the thumb of Stanley Kubrick and his final outing with his then-wife, Nicole Kidman, Cruise dives into the erotic drama that feels among the actor’s bravest character outings. Marking the last directorial outing of Kubrick, you can feel the ripple of his legacy hanging on the words of each of Cruise and Kidman’s interactions or in the defined stare as one pours their heart out to another.

Top Gun (1986)

Director : Tony Scott

Writers : Jim Cash, Jack Epps Jr. (based on “Top Guns” by Ehud Yonay

The scene that proves it : Tossing Goose’s dog tags.

Cruise feels the need… the need for speed in Tony Scott’s pulse-pounding action flick — a cemented classic in the 1980s. His undeniable charisma led to the following post-release and now has the global cinematic world taking in its sequel “Maverick” to more than half a billion dollars. There’s always been something about Maverick tossing Goose’s (Anthony Edwards) dog tags overboard following his death that always struck a chord.

Tropic Thunder (2008)

Role: Les Grossman

Director: Ben Stiller Writers: Justin Theroux, Ben Stiller, Etan Cohen Distributor: Paramount Pictures / DreamWorks Pictures

The scene that proves it: “G5”

It’s a transformation of epic proportions in Ben Stiller’s classic comedy. While Robert Downey Jr. received the lion’s share of praise, earning an Oscar nom for supporting actor, Cruise could only muster a Golden Globe nom for his turn as Hollywood producer Les Grossman. Screaming one-liners and a dance finale that still makes the world chuckle, it stands as his single best comedic outing.

Jerry Maguire (1996)

Role: Jerry Maguire

Director: Cameron Crowe Writer: Cameron Crowe Distributor: Sony Pictures

The scene that proves it: “You complete me.”

Writer and director Cameron Crowe pulled a movie star performance out of Tom Cruise for his sports agent dramedy. As the titular character, he lights up the screen with his Oscar-winning co-star Cuba Gooding Jr. and the Oscar-snubbed Renée Zellweger in a finale that had people quoting it for decades. And let’s not forget “Show me the money” and its stapled place in movie history.

A Few Good Men (1992)

Role: Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee

Director: Rob Reiner Writer: Aaron Sorkin (based on “A Few Good Men” by Aaron Sorkin) Distributor: Columbia Pictures

The scene that proves it: “I want the truth…”

Cruise is entitled to answers in Rob Reiner’s courtroom drama, maneuvering prominent personalities and moments alongside Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore and Kevin Pollack. Although nominated for best picture, Cruise’s work was passed over in lead actor. His defender of marines standing trial, under the words of Aaron Sorkin and one of his finest writing efforts, Cruise soars to new heights.

Minority Report (2002)

Role: John Anderton

Director: Steven Spielberg Writers: Scott Frank, Jon Cohen (based on “The Minority Report” by Philip K. Dick) Distributor: 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios)

The scene that proves it: Listening to Abigail about Sean’s life.

It’s a quiet and commanding standout in Cruise’s filmography when looking back on Cruise’s work in Steven Spielberg’s futuristic drama. However, as John Anderton, a police officer trying to clear his name for a murder he has yet to commit, it’s Cruise’s precise choice of listening to Abigail (played by a magnificent Samantha Morton) that breaks the heart in two.

Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

Role: Ron Kovic

Director: Oliver Stone Writers: Oliver Stone, Ron Kovic (based on “Born on the Fourth of July” by Kovic) Distributor: Universal Pictures

The scene that proves it: “I love America.”

Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone introduced what Cruise could achieve beyond sliding floors and jet planes. His Vietnam veteran spans years, with each chapter feeling authentic and layered. The film was nominated for best picture and earned Cruise his first Oscar nom for best actor.

Magnolia (1999)

Role: Frank T.J. Mackey

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson Writer: Paul Thomas Anderson Distributor: New Line Cinema

The scene that proves it: “I hate you.”

Pouring in every ounce of himself, Cruise’s Oscar-nominated performance is (currently) the last time he’s been recognized by the Academy, and it stands as his finest hour in Paul Thomas Anderson’s mosaic drama. Full of life, energy and heartache, he invites the viewer on the journey, fearless in his interpretation and perfect in his execution.

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The 21 Best Tom Cruise Performances, Ranked

From American Made to Vanilla Sky , we salute Tom Cruise's best roles of all time.

BuzzFeed Contributor

For 40 years, Tom Cruise has commanded the screen in a variety of unforgettable roles.

Yet, with the highly anticipated release of Top Gun: Maverick , Cruise returns to one of the roles that put him on the map nearly 35 years ago. With this in mind, I've ranked 21 of Tom Cruise's best and most memorable performances to remind us all of why he's considered the quintessential movie star.

21. Minority Report

Although Tom Cruise didn't necessarily have his emotional range challenged by the material of Minority Report , Cruise was nonetheless riveting in his Empire and Saturn Award-nominated performance as John Anderton in this esteemed sci-fi action epic.

20. The Outsiders

Tom Cruise wasn't exactly front-and-center in The Outsiders , but he certainly exuded a level of intensity and charm to capture the appropriate balance of blue-collar charm and teenage angst necessary to bring Steve.

19. Jack Reacher

Tom Cruise had an uphill battle to climb after fans of Lee Childs' action hero rallied against his casting, but he defied the odds to perfectly capture Reacher's piercing ferocity and explosive dedication to justice.

18. American Made

Reteaming with Edge of Tomorrow director, Doug Liman, Tom Cruise shows off confidence and desperation in equal measure in a flashier, sleazier, and ultimately underrated, performance as a drug runner in American Made .

17. Mission: Impossible - Fallout

Though Tom Cruise has had plenty of opportunities to refine the role of Ethan Hunt from the cool-as-ice spy from the first Mission: Impossible , his performance in Fallout is by far his most impressive in the role, bringing a vulnerability and emotional volatility as things "get personal" for Hunt.

16. The Color of Money

Early in his career , Tom Cruise had to test his mettle against one of the finest actors of his generation, Paul Newman, in this sly sequel to The Hustler. While Newman may have gone home with the Oscar, Cruise proved to his critics that he was undeniably more than his leading man looks.

15. Risky Business

The breakout role for a young Tom Cruise as a Hollywood heartthrob. The actor showed off the solid comedic chops and slick self-assurance that would help to define his public and professional career for many years.

14. The Last Samurai

Despite the oft-mocked title and central "white savior" conceit, The Last Samurai exhibits one of Cruise's more emotionally raw and haunting performances as he navigates empathy, regret, and rage in both the quiet moments and the spectacle.

13. The Firm

On the heels of A Few Good Men , Tom Cruise displayed vulnerability and range against an incredible ensemble of dramatic vets with his morally-conflicted role in Sydney Pollack's gripping paranoid thriller.

12. Top Gun

In one of the definitive performances of his early career, Tom Cruise's cocky and brash turn as Pete "Maverick" Mitchell launched him into becoming a bona fide big-screen action hero and sex symbol, the kind where all the guys in the audience wanted to be him and all the ladies in the audience wanted to be with him.

11. Vanilla Sky

Tom Cruise reteamed with Cameron Crowe for this mind-bending and seductive thriller in which he jumps headfirst into an impressive, against-type performance as a vain and pompous executive whose life is torn asunder by a shocking accident.

10. Edge of Tomorrow

Cruise is an absolute delight from start to finish as a cowardly public affairs officer who becomes mankind's only hope to defeating an invading enemy menace in Edge of Tomorrow , further showcasing his ability to perfectly mix his comedic talents and his action staging expertise.

9. Eyes Wide Shut

Tom Cruise's performance as a mild-mannered doctor who descends down a sexually-charged rabbit hole after learning of his wife's contemplation of an affair is one of his most understated and underappreciated and has notably aged like fine wine considering the usual bombastic nature of his roles at the time.

8. Tropic Thunder

Tom Cruise dropped jaws across the country as the hysterical and foul-mouthed Les Grossman, a volatile studio executive, loosely based on the likes of Scott Rudin and Harvey Weinstein, who stole scenes throughout this beloved satire to the point where he nearly got his own feature film spin-off.

7. Rain Man

While Dustin Hoffman's performance from the film has been permanently burned into the pop culture lexicon, Tom Cruise's turn as the selfish, desperate, and manipulative brother of Hoffman's Ray Babbitt proved the actor capable of deeper roles venturing outside of his squeaky clean persona.

6. Interview with the Vampire

Tom Cruise made an indelible impression on the horror landscape by bringing the iconic Anne Rice character of Lestat to the big screen with equal parts elegance, sorrow and ferocity, ensuring that Interview with the Vampire  has remained a gem of the genre to this day.

5. Jerry Maguire

In one of his most grounded, human performances, Cruise delivers big as a romantic lead in this genuinely sentimental story of an obsessive sports agent whose crisis of conscience enables him to bet on himself.

4. Collateral

Tom Cruise has never been more intense or scary as his sociopathic hitman in Michael Mann's Collateral , a role which could very likely rise to the top of this list as time goes on.

3. Born on the Fourth of July

Tom Cruise rightfully earned his first Academy Award nomination in his undeniably moving and captivating performance as anti-war activist, Ron Kovic, in Oliver Stone's acclaimed adaptation of Kovic's autobiography.

2. Magnolia

Speaking of Cruise's Academy Award nominations, the actor's most recent Oscar nominations came about from his absolutely astounding performance as a troubled and misogynistic motivational speaker who must reckon with his estranged father's impending death, seething unfiltered rage and heartbreak with every spellbinding line.

1. A Few Good Men

Wielding Aaron Sorkin's dialogue like a sword, Tom Cruise plays to all of his strengths in this masterful performance as a bold and reckless young lawyer living in the shadow of his legendary father as he faces a complicated uphill battle defending two soldiers from a murder charge. In fact, Cruise's face-to-face climactic exchange with Jack Nicholson is arguably the actor's finest hour, period.

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(Photo by David James/©Warner Bros. Pictures/courtesy Everett Collection)

All Tom Cruise Movies, Ranked By Tomatometer

Edge of Tomorrow   celebrates its 10th anniversary!

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%

Vanilla Sky (2001) 43%

Rock of Ages (2012) 42%

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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Den of Geek

Tom Cruise’s Best Movies Ranked

Tom Cruise is lauded as a movie star, but often overlooked as an actor. Here are 15 performances to change that perception.

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Tom Cruise may be the last person standing when it comes to old-fashioned Hollywood movie stardom. While others have fallen by the wayside, Cruise still has the ability to deliver crowd-pleasing, spectacular movies that appeal to the all-important “four-quadrant” demographic when it comes to paying customers at the box office—at least as long as the words “Top Gun” or “Mission: Impossible” appear somewhere in the title, anyway.

Whether Cruise can score with movies outside those two intellectual properties is a subject for a different article, but it’s clear that he’s done so plenty of times in the past. More importantly, what has often gotten overlooked in Cruise’s long string of successes is that not only is he a movie star, but he’s also a damn good and frequently underrated actor, with a range that has taken him beyond the “Tom Cruise” brand a number of times.

Below is our unscientific ranking of Tom Cruise’s best performances. This doesn’t mean every film was wall-to-wall great, but most of them are, and all benefit from a stellar Cruise appearance. You may have your own choices as well, but here are the ones we found not just iconic but also indicative of an actor working at the peak of his craft.

15. Magnolia (1999)

Magnolia may be one of Paul Thomas Anderson’s more divisive films. Coming after the relatively accessible and often fun Boogie Nights , it was a difficult piece for audiences to wrap their minds around, but it certainly pushed PTA’s trademark glittering ensemble cast into new frontiers as actors. Chief among those was Tom Cruise, who felt his portrayal of the disagreeable sex-seminar guru Frank Mackey was so outside his usual brand that he kept a low profile during the film’s advance promotional efforts.

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That made sense in a way, because Cruise’s star power would have overshadowed the shock value (we mean that in a good way) of seeing his performance for the first time. Cruise is so unpleasant, so shady, and yet so larger-than-life that it’s almost a palate cleanser after the frigid nature of his previous performance in Eyes Wide Shut from the same year. And his climactic scene in Magnolia , at the deathbed of his father (Jason Robards), packs a weighty emotional punch. It remains one of Cruise’s boldest strokes as an actor.

14. Risky Business

Tom Cruise’s fifth feature film role is considered his breakout performance, and it’s easy to see why. Still very young (he was just 20 when he made the film), Cruise nevertheless began to establish the “Tom Cruise” persona with this movie that would be the template for many of his roles: a flawed, smart, often cocksure young man who thinks he knows more than he does, gets his ass handed to him as a result, but comes out of it as a better person and (in his early films, anyway) a true adult.

In addition to his iconic dance in briefs and button-down shirt (an image which arguably helped and hindered his career), Cruise gives a well-rounded and fully-developed performance as Joel, the college-bound rich kid who learns a thing or two about business from a hooker and her pimp. Aside from being funny and cynical, the movie is hot; Cruise and a sizzling Rebecca De Mornay share a sexual chemistry that Cruise has rarely found since (one of his career blind spots).

13. Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

You’ll notice that the original Top Gun is nowhere on this list: that’s because a) it’s not a very good movie at all (nostalgia goggles be damned), and b) the young Cruise was still figuring out how to modulate his then charismatic but largely superficial performances. Last year’s sequel , however, was an entirely different story. While the movie was formulaic to a large degree, its infectious energy, dazzling air sequences, and high cinematic value almost hid the fact that Cruise was also acting at the top of his game.

His Pete “Maverick” Mitchell is aging, careworn, and seasoned by both the experiences and disappointments of his life while haunted by regret and also burdened with the decisions he took on for others. Yet he is still a leader in every way, and a courageous fighter on his own, making this version of Mitchell far more complex and empathetic than that cocky young pilot we met nearly 40 years ago. It’s Cruise acting his age, and the movie is all the better for it.

12. Rain Man (1988)

The amazing thing about watching Rain Man today is that while Dustin Hoffman won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of the autistic savant Raymond Babbitt, it’s actually Cruise who delivers the more complex, nuanced performance as Raymond’s younger brother Charlie, a fast-talking hustler of collectible items who initially sees Raymond as an impediment both financially and personally, but ultimately grows to love and protect the sibling he only has a vague childhood memory of.

Cruise’s initially callow Charlie has the real character arc of the movie, and Cruise’s beautifully modulated work anchors the film, even as the already confident young star concedes the spotlight to Hoffman’s more showy performance. The film itself is modest, formulaic to a degree, and yet warm and funny. This and the less effective The Color of Money from two years earlier represent a turning point for Cruise’s maturity as an actor.

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11. Jack Reacher (2012)

Yes, we know: Jack Reacher in Lee Child’s books is a monster of a man—six-foot-five!—while Tom Cruise is nearly a foot shorter (he’s five-seven). We realize that Alan Ritchson, who currently plays Reacher on the Prime Video series, is a much more physically accurate version of the character. But, admittedly never having read the books, we still find much to like in Cruise’s tough, no-nonsense, dark performance as the mysterious drifter who helps people solve their problems.

Cruise is front and center and does his part justice, and even if the script is fairly routine , the action is terrific. We mean, who doesn’t like a movie where Werner Herzog is cast as a terrifying Russian villain? We respect Reacher fans (and ultimately Child himself) not caring for Cruise’s work here, but we dig it. On the other hand, the sequel ( Jack Reacher: Never Go Back ) just plain sucks.

10. Minority Report (2002)

Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg only collaborated twice, but both projects were science fiction and both proved to be among the darkest films of each man’s career (the other is 2005’s War of the Worlds ). Minority Report is based on a Philip K. Dick short story and stars Cruise as John Anderton, the grief-stricken, drug-addicted head of a specialized police department known as Precrime. The experimental operation prevents crime by arresting the perpetrator before the crime ever happens thanks to three psychics who can foresee the future. Naturally, Anderton himself is soon fingered by the psychics, called Precogs, and goes on the run as he tries to prove he’s innocent of a murder he’s yet to commit.

This one is a winner all around , from Spielberg’s breathless direction to Cruise’s complex performance (and a striking supporting turn by then-newcomer Colin Farrell). Even the world-building of the film, which envisions a society where surveillance of all kinds (including advertising) is omniscient and ever-present, appeared to predict much of our modern world today. It’s an immersive, kinetic thriller, marred only by one of Spielberg’s famously tacked-on “happy” endings, making for the only flaw in an otherwise top-notch collaboration.

9. Interview with the Vampire (1994)

We’re old enough to remember when late author Anne Rice objected to the casting of Tom Cruise as her signature creation, the vampire Lestat, only to turn around and admit she was wrong after actually seeing Cruise perform the role in the film. And we remember how we felt seeing Cruise in his 18th century vampire garb as well: tickled and entranced by his larger-than-life, decadent, campy performance, almost utterly unlike anything else he had done up to that point. Eyes glittering, blonde wig flowing, and teeth stained with blood, Cruise is decadent and deliciously evil in the role.

Neil Jordan’s adaptation of Rice’s horror classic is atmospheric and seductive as well, finding the right atmospheric balance between romance, homoeroticism, and depraved Gothic chills to support Rice’s rather thin narrative. We’ve always been mixed on Brad Pitt’s mopey turn as Louis, Lestat’s long-suffering vampire companion, but Cruise is a delight when he’s onscreen and nearly matched by Kirsten Dunst’s debut as the child bloodsucker Claudia.

8. The Firm (1993)

Based on John Grisham’s 1991 pile of unreadable crap massively best-selling novel, The Firm is one of those big Hollywood movies that actually sort of transcends its source material and provides an entertaining good time on its own merits. A large part of that is the cast, a glittering ensemble confidently led by Cruise and including some of the most reliable character actors in the business, including Gene Hackman , Wilford Brimley, Hal Holbrook, Ed Harris, and Paul Sorvino (not to mention Holly Hunter in a movie-stealing, Oscar-nominated turn as a sexy-smart secretary).

Directed by Sydney Pollack, The Firm is the epitome of a legal thriller, and Cruise effectively portrays Mitch McDeere’s transformation from wide-eyed, ambitious young lawyer to cynical yet principled dealmaker as he navigates both his crooked law firm and the crime family it represents. It’s a fine performance in a crowdpleaser of a movie.

7. Jerry Maguire (1996)

“Show me the money.” Audiences did indeed show Jerry Maguire the money, turning out in droves for Cameron Crowe’s effective, sharply written mix of romantic comedy and biting sports agency satire . Cruise is brilliant as the title character, a sports agent whose sudden crisis of conscience (a no-no in his business) results in him losing his job, his fiancée, and almost all his clients. His sole remaining one, Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.), needs to reappraise his life as well. Meanwhile Jerry also unexpectedly finds love with his new company’s sole staff member, Dorothy (Renee Zellweger).

Jerry Maguire finds both writer-director Crowe and star Cruise at the top of their powers, with Cruise giving Crowe’s incisive character study everything he’s got emotionally. The movie is a rare rom-com for the actor, an avenue he had potential to explore more if he didn’t pursue the sci-fi and action route so aggressively. Cruise received his second Best Actor nomination for the film; we’ll get to his first in a bit.

6. Tropic Thunder (2008)

It’s tempting to call Les Grossman—the vulgar, megalomaniacal, preening movie producer in Ben Stiller’s side-splitting skewering of Hollywood—Tom Cruise’s finest hour onscreen. To begin with, he’s unrecognizable . It’s only a few minutes in, once you get past the bald pate, the beard, the extra padding, and the glasses, that you realize whose voice and eyes those are. And then your mouth drops open as it washes over you that we’ve never, ever seen Cruise like this before.

“Take a big step back… and literally fuck your own face!” Grossman screams down the phone at someone, just one of the unending river of profanities that emerge shockingly (and hilariously) from Cruise’s mouth. We don’t know (and may not want to legally say) who Cruise based his performance on, but Grossman is the distillation of every monstrous, boorish, money-and-power-driven movie producer you’ve ever heard horror stories about, and he remains the most out-there thing Cruise has ever done.

5. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

It’s a strange fact of film history that Tom Cruise has starred in some of the best science fiction movies of the modern era, including Minority Report , War of the Worlds , the underrated Oblivion , and this, which also counts as one of his finest films in general of the past decade. Cruise appears this time as the rather timorous William Cage, a public relations officer for the military who is involuntarily thrust into the frontlines against an incredibly relentless, hostile alien force. When he is splattered with alien blood, however, Cage soon learns that he has acquired the beings’ ability to reset time. He then finds himself looping through the same day and frantically trying to find a way to change the outcome of the war so he’ll stop dying.

Cage is a classic Cruise character in a way, a smooth-talking hustler with little under the surface who’s then forced to grow into a better human being. It’s a great performance in a powerful story (with the usual gaps here and there in time-loop tales), aided by excellent work from Emily Blunt as a soldier who joins Cruise on his quest every time he loops around. Largely neglected by audiences upon release, it continues to grow into a well-deserved genre classic status.

4. A Few Good Men (1992)

Rob Reiner directs this adaptation of Aaron Sorkin’s hit play (adapted by Sorkin himself, with an assist from William Goldman), in which two Marines go on trial for the death of a fellow Marine and have only a shallow young Navy lawyer (Cruise) to defend them. But as Cruise’s Lt. Daniel Kaffee builds his case, with the help of the righteous Lt. Cdr. Joanne Galloway (Demi Moore), he begins to uncover a web of deceit and corruption under the command of the sadistic Col. Nathan Jessep (Jack Nicholson).

The courtroom drama may be conventional in structure, but the movie rockets along on the strength of its performances, especially those of Cruise, Moore, Kevin Bacon, and of course the explosive Nicholson. Kaffee’s evolution is slow and effective, and it’s arguably here, while going toe to toe with the formidable firepower of “Jack,” that Cruise firmly proved once and for all that he could hold his own alongside the screen’s biggest legends. He’s marvelous, as is the entire gripping movie.

3. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

If Rain Man marked the first stage of Tom Cruise’s growth as an actor, then this Oliver Stone epic the following year solidified the young star’s standing as a genuine screen talent capable of range and depth. Based on the real-life story of Vietnam-veteran-turned-antiwar-activist Ron Kovic, Born on the Fourth of July was also the second of Stone’s unofficial trilogy about that most pointless of wars, nestled between Platoon and Heaven and Earth . And it’s certainly as strong as the former.

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In a role originally conceived for Al Pacino back in the late 1970s, Cruise is simply electrifying, smoothly moving through the different phases of Kovic’s life, from the war through his drug-addled aftermath in a series of increasingly decrepit hospitals, and finally to his fawakening as a paralyzed but fired-up protester. The performance earned the actor his first Best Actor nomination at the Oscars, and he probably should have won: his Kovic is impassioned and mesmerizing, and still a high point of Cruise’s long career.

2. Collateral (2004)

Michael Mann’s hot streak as a director, which began in 1986 with Manhunter (and included efforts like Heat , Ali , and The Insider ), largely came to an end with this intense crime thriller, but at least he managed to do something that was very rare in Hollywood: get Tom Cruise to play an out-and-out villain. And man, did Cruise take to the assignment. His hair colored a premature gray, Cruise is malevolently magnetic as Vincent, an assassin on a hit spree who recruits a terrified cabbie (Jamie Foxx, also spectacular) as his unwilling driver.

Nihilistic and racking up perhaps the single biggest onscreen killing spree of Cruise’s career, Vincent is an empathy-free killing machine. Cruise once again subverts our expectations of his abilities with his portrayal of this monster, who never redeems himself as so many of the actor’s other characters have done. But then again, Cruise has never played, either before or since, someone as sociopathic as Vincent, making this one of his finest and most distinctive films.

1. Mission: Impossible (1996-2024)

As we say in our review of Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One , Tom Cruise has been constructing his magnum opus over the past 27 years with this always intelligent, thrilling, and keenly visceral action franchise. After a first movie that upended the conventions of the elderly TV show it was based on, and a couple of initial sequels that struggled to find the right tone, the film series became not just a true ensemble effort but a showcase for Cruise’s overall skill as an actor and his devotion to doing everything humanly possible to please his audience.

Cruise’s IMF leader, Ethan Hunt, has transformed from a young spy into a furiously independent leader and global protector, with the character evolving along with the actor himself. Ethan may not be Cruise’s greatest or most in-depth creation, but he’s been the most consistent, especially in a world where we regularly change Batmen and James Bonds decade or so. And the series itself has only gotten bigger and better over its seven installments to date, an impossible mission that only Tom Cruise could pull off. Perhaps we’re all the better then that he chose to accept it.

Don Kaye | @donkaye

Don Kaye is an entertainment journalist by trade and geek by natural design. Born in New York City, currently ensconced in Los Angeles, his earliest childhood memory is…

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The 27 Best Tom Cruise Movies of All-Time, Ranked

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Tom Cruise ’s official film debut was in 1981. It is now 2023. Over forty years later, and the man is still on top; He closed out 2022 with the second highest grossing movie of the year, and the new Mission Impossible flick is poised to be a hit. There’s been an on-going debate about the topic of star power when it comes to today’s current movie scene. Sure you have franchises (Marvel for example) that are sure to get people to come out to the theater, but it appears as though the days of movie stars being the sole reason for tickets being sold and butts being put in seats are long gone compared to the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s for example. Only a handful of stars still have that power, and Tom Cruise is one of them. And with one of the best Tom Cruise movies of all time released recently, it's clear the power he still holds.

You shouldn’t need any proof of what we’re saying, but for extra measure, the box office revenue for Top Gun: Maverick was $1.454 billion (yes billion), making it the highest-grossing film of Cruise’s career on June 17th, 2022 (his previous high was $800 million). This, ladies and gentlemen, is with the movie actually being the follow-up to the original film that came out in 1986. That means Tom Cruise was able to take the sequel to a movie that was made 36 years ago, and not only outperform that film, but every single film he has ever made up to this point… bruh.

RELATED: The 13 Best Morgan Freeman Movies, Ranked

Image credit: IMDB/Paramount Pictures

When it comes to the topic of which Tom Cruise movie is the best, well, what do you do? Do you include every single movie he has ever made? What about the Mission Impossible franchise? Should every Mission Impossible be included? That, our friends, has left us with an incredibly tough task, but we’re going to try. Below is a list of the best Tom Cruise movies according to ONE37pm.

Here. We. Go.

The Best Tom Cruise Movies, Ranked

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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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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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Every Tom Cruise Movie, Ranked From Worst to Best

He's more than a guy who looks good in Ray-Bans and runs a lot.

A movie so bad, it was the first and last entry in Universal’s planned monster movie cinematic universe.

Rock of Ages

Amazon Hulu

In this extremely unfortunate musical about ‘80s hair metal, Tom Cruise plays a karaoke version of a rock and roll god named Stacee Jaxx.

Amazon Tubi

Released the same year as Risky Business , Tom Cruise plays the hunk in this high school sex comedy that time forgot. Get it? They’re "losin’ it"—as in their virginity.

Endless Love

Amazon HBO Max

In his first on-screen appearance, Tom Cruise is some random shirtless kid in Daisy Dukes bragging about being a pyromaniac.

Lions for Lambs

Amazon iTunes

Nearly a decade before Trump coined the term “Fake News,” Tom Cruise plays a morally corrupt senator making a presidential bid by planting a story through a journalist played by Meryl Streep. In the end, this pretentious and convoluted plot says very little about its moving parts.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back

Though the tagline warns to never go back, Cruise unfortunately did go back to play the titular Jack Reacher, in a sequel that plays out like dumb, less tech-savvy Mission: Impossible.

YouTube iTunes

Tom Cruise and Mia Sara try to protect the last of the unicorns from Tim Curry, who is some sort of awesome devil muppet. It’s also the only straight-up fantasy movie Cruise has ever done—and it’s pretty obvious why.

Far and Away

Seven years before they co-starred in Eyes Wide Shut (and two years after their wedding), Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman played star-crossed lovers and Irish immigrants trying to make it in America.

In this post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller, Cruise is a drone repairman who’s also into American sports. When he finds a group of survivors (led by Morgan Freeman), he begins to question the nature of his entire reality. As always, Cruise holds down what is otherwise a pretty clunky plot.

YouTube Pluto TV

Tom Cruise plays a German officer with an American accent who leads a group of German soldiers with British accents in a plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler during WWII. It’s based on an actual military plot that could have entered some intriguing territory, had it not settled for being average historical escapism.

Knight and Day

In this action comedy, Cruise is once again a secret agent who accidentally ropes Cameron Diaz into an international conspiracy. For all his macho spy stuff, Cruise proves in Knight and Day that he can take this hero stuff lightly too.

Mission: Impossible II

Paramount+ Netflix

The worst of Cruise’s six Mission: Impossible movies, this one sees Ethan Hunt trying to stop a deadly weaponized virus that’s going to be released by terrorists. Unfortunately, director John Woo’s style didn’t quite fit with the international espionage of this franchise.

Jack Reacher

In his first of two movies playing the titular former military police-officer-turned-vigilante-drifter, Cruise’s character tries to stop a military sniper on a killing spree. Of course, Cruise also did all his own driving stunts.

The Outsiders

Coming down from the golden phase of his career, Francis Ford Coppola assembled an incredible upcoming cast for The Outsiders that included Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Ralph Macchio, and Diane Lane.

In his second-ever onscreen role, Cruise plays David Shawn, one of the military cadets who attempt to protect their academy from being torn down for local condo developers. Pretty low stakes as far as military dramas go.

War of the Worlds

In this Steven Spielberg re-imagining of the H.G. Wells novel, Cruise plays a father attempting to keep his children safe throughout an alien invasion. Though it has all the highlights of a Spielbergian sci-fi, it wasn’t quite enough to cause riots like Orson Welles’s infamous radio broadcast.

The Last Samurai

Amazon Netflix

A white savior complex brings down what is otherwise a well-acted period period piece about an American Civil War veteran sent to train a 19th century Japanese army.

Mission: Impossible III

Before he was put in charge of both Star Wars and Star Trek , J.J. Abrams’s big Hollywood blockbuster movie directorial debut was at the helm of Mission: Impossible III , which saw a retired Ethan Hunt brought back in the game to stop an excellent Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Vanilla Sky

Cruise stars in this philosophical thriller as a man haunted by the specter of a former flame after becoming disfigured in a car crash. (Fun fact: Penelope Cruz plays the same character in this remake of her Spanish film, Abre los Ojos .)

Days of Thunder

NASCAR moved into the mainstream thanks to this movie in which Cruise plays a promising driver hoping to making it in the big leagues.

Matt Miller is a Brooklyn-based culture/lifestyle writer and music critic whose work has appeared in Esquire, Forbes, The Denver Post, and documentaries.

Tyler Coates is the Senior Culture Editor at Esquire.com. He lives in Los Angeles.

Lexi Carson is a writer from Orlando, Florida, with an interest in movies, music and culture. 

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All 44 Tom Cruise movies, ranked from worst to best

• Tom Cruise has done every type of movie you can think of over his nearly 40-year career.
• Here we rank every one from worst to best.
• See where his latest, "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One," ranks in his career filmography.

43. "Rock of Ages" (2012)

Somehow Cruise got roped into being part of this feature-film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. But leave it to him to lay it all out there.

Though the movie is unwatchable, Cruise provides its only memorable moments when his rock-star character belts out classic songs like "Pour Some Sugar on Me" and "Wanted Dead or Alive."

42. "Endless Love" (1981)

Cruise's first appearance in a movie is this 1980s teen romance drama starring Brooke Shields that's best known for giving us the Diana Ross/Lionel Richie title song.

Cruise gets a brief bit of screen time as one of the male lead's friends. It's quite forgettable, but it's still better than "Rock of Ages."

41. "Jack Reacher: Never Go Back" (2016)

Between "Mission: Impossible" movies, Cruise tried to kick off another action franchise by bringing the main character of the Lee Child novel series to the big screen.

Though the first movie just got over the $200 million mark at the worldwide box office, the performance (or lack thereof) by the sequel indicated no one wanted any more Mr. Reacher. It barely made $162 million worldwide.

40. "The Mummy" (2017)

Cruise was all set to be the Robert Downey Jr. of Universal's Dark Universe with the release of this movie and promises of more creature pictures to come. But playing a soldier of fortune who tries to stop an ancient Egyptian princess from taking over the world didn't grab audiences. It was another franchise not meant to be.

39. "Losin' It" (1983)

Still getting his legs under him in the movie biz, Cruise signed onto this teen comedy in which he's one of four friends who go on a hard-partying road trip to Tijuana in hopes of losing their virginity. Yes, even Cruise couldn't hide from the teen-sex-comedy genre when he started his career.

38. "Mission: Impossible II" (2000)

Man, John Woo deserved better than this. The legendary Hong Kong director took over the "Mission: Impossible" reins after Brian De Palma kicked things off with the first movie, but Woo didn't find the same success.

"Mission: Impossible II" did go on to become one of the highest-grossing movies of 2000, with over $546 million earned worldwide, but with its weak plot and character development, it has not aged anywhere near as well as the first movie (or the other movies in the franchise).

37. "Jack Reacher" (2012)

Though "Jack Reacher" was the first time Cruise worked with his longtime "Mission: Impossible" director, Christopher McQuarrie, and it features the legendary director Werner Herzog as the movie's villain, Cruise as Jack Reacher is a seen-it-before character who isn't exciting.

36. "Oblivion" (2013)

Here, Cruise attempted to go the sci-fi route in hopes of having a breakthrough "Minority Report"-like experience for the audience. But the story was nowhere as sharp, and its postapocalyptic vibe left us all feeling uninterested.

35. "Lions for Lambs" (2007)

Marking the first movie released by United Artists after Cruise and his producing partner Paula Wagner took over (the two left UA after a couple of years) was "Lions for Lambs," a tense drama set around the war in Afghanistan and directed by Robert Redford.

Cruise gave his all playing an agenda-pushing senator and has some strong scenes opposite Meryl Streep. But the movie is just dull.

34. "Far and Away" (1992)

Cruise and his wife at the time, Nicole Kidman, paired together in this 1890s-set epic directed by Ron Howard. The two play Irish immigrants seeking a fortune in America. Outside the lush photography, there isn't much to enjoy about this movie. And don't get me started on Cruise's awful Irish accent.

33. "Vanilla Sky" (2001)

At the tail end of Cruise's heartthrob phase, the director Cameron Crowe teamed with him again after their hugely successful collaboration on "Jerry Maguire" to make a very different love story.

Based on the Spanish movie "Open Your Eyes," Cruise plays a vain New York City media playboy who has a different outlook on life after being in a horrific car crash. Though Cruise, Cameron Diaz, and Penélope Cruz (who also starred in "Open Your Eyes") all give top performances, Crowe goes too weird with the story, leaving viewers out in the void by the time the movie gets into the home stretch.

32. "American Made" (2017)

Mixing action and dark comedy in telling the real-life story of the drug runner Barry Seal seemed like a nice pivot for Cruise, but at the end of the day, the director Doug Liman's movie is just too glossy to be taken seriously. (Accent update: Cruise delivers a tolerable Southern drawl.)

31. "The Last Samurai" (2003)

Cruise stars as an American soldier in 19th-century Japan who embraces the samurai culture. The movie went on to receive four Oscar nominations, but it's the kind of title in which one viewing is enough.

And on a side note: Wow, would this movie get hammered on social media if it came out today.

30. "Valkyrie" (2008)

Another release from the time Cruise was calling the shots at UA, "Valkyrie" sees him playing one of the rogue Nazi officers who attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

(Accent update: Cruise — and basically most of the other Nazi officers — decided to not even bother with a German accent. Good choice; the audience didn't even notice [ holds back giggles ].)

29. "Cocktail" (1988)

It's one of the movies in Cruise's career that ride fully on his good looks. Honestly, this movie should have just been titled "Sex." Cruise plays a hot New York City bartender who has dreams of making it big, and it's his hotness that's going to get him to the top. It's classic Hot Guy Cruise — who cares that the story is garbage.

28. "War of the Worlds" (2005)

Steven Spielberg teamed up with Cruise after "Minority Report" for this blockbuster remake of the classic sci-fi movie. Though it made a lot of money, it was dark in tone — maybe a little too dark. Be honest: Have you wanted to see this movie again?

27. "Knight and Day" (2010)

This is one of those movies that don't get enough credit. The director James Mangold cleverly takes all the common action-hero traits and has Cruise make fun of them. You might want to give this one another viewing.

26. "Taps" (1981)

Unlike in "Endless Love," Cruise really capitalized on this small role. As a military cadet who takes his responsibilities way too seriously, Cruise is a standout in the movie and showed audiences (and Hollywood executives) that he had leading-man potential.

25. "Mission: Impossible III" (2006)

J.J. Abrams takes over the franchise for this one and does an impressive job. It also helps that you have the talents of Philip Seymour Hoffman playing the villain. It's better than "Mission: Impossible II," so we're going in the right direction.

24. "The Outsiders" (1983)

Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of the classic novel brought all the biggest names from young Hollywood together, and Cruise was right there in the mix. With Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Patrick Swayze, C. Thomas Howell, Emilio Estevez, and Rob Lowe, the movie is pretty heavy-handed with the drama, but it's fun to watch all these amazing talents on the screen together.

23. "Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation" (2015)

Rebounding from the so-so performance of "Jack Reacher," McQuarrie jumps on the "Mission: Impossible" franchise and ups the action stakes. Yep, this is the one where Cruise hangs from the side of a giant plane taking off. The movie also got an extra jolt with the inclusion of Rebecca Ferguson in the supporting cast.

22. "Mission: Impossible — Fallout" (2018)

This "Mission: Impossible" could go down as one of the best action movies ever — its stunts and action sequences are that amazing. This time, McQuarrie gives us a deeper look at what makes Ethan Hunt tick and the values he lives by. But it's really the action that stays with you.

21. "Minority Report" (2002)

With its breakthroughs in CGI and tech, the first teaming of Spielberg and Cruise lived up to the hype. This movie was so advanced in its execution and what it showcased that it had a "Jurassic Park"-style ripple effect, in the sense that it has influenced countless action and sci-fi movies since.

20. "Tropic Thunder" (2008)

Though Cruise doesn't have a lot of screen time, his presence in this movie cannot be ignored. Playing a despicable movie executive named Les Grossman, he brings that patented intensity to a role that for most actors would have been a mail-it-in cameo role. In Cruise's hands, it's one of the best comedic performances of the early 2000s.

19. "All the Right Moves" (1983)

Two months after Cruise hit theaters with his first lead movie, "Risky Business," he was back again with this very different movie about a Pennsylvania high-school football player who clashes with his coach.

"Risky Business" showed that Cruise had no problem being the face of a movie, but "All the Right Moves" proved he could be more than the charming lead with good looks. This one showed he could be a serious actor.

18. "Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol" (2011)

It's the movie that breathed life back into the "Mission: Impossible" franchise. It came five years after "Mission: Impossible III," and in that time Cruise struggled with an image problem and a string of underperforming movies. He had a lot to prove with this one. And with the casting of Jeremy Renner, Cruise probably sensed he could lose his beloved franchise if the movie didn't work.

However, Brad Bird's direction and Cruise's disregard for common sense — in this one he climbs the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, in Dubai — put him back on top, as the movie became a global hit.

17. "Top Gun" (1986)

Before "Days of Thunder," Cruise and Tony Scott teamed up for what would become one of the actor's most iconic roles: the fighter pilot Maverick. What Cruise doesn't pull off acting-wise he makes up for with brooding looks and shirtless volleyball skills.

16. "The Firm" (1993)

In "The Firm," based on the best-selling John Grisham novel, Cruise gives a fantastic performance as a hotshot lawyer who signs on with one of the most prestigious US law firms only to find it has quite a dark side. The era of "Tom Cruise runs" really launched with this movie.

15. "Legend" (1985)

Ridley Scott's beautiful fantasy movie is still a marvel of moviemaking. The practical effects and production design put into this movie, made back when CGI was scarce, are a treasure. And at the center is a fresh-faced Cruise who tries to get his girl back from the villain who gave me the most nightmares as a kid, Darkness (played perfectly by Tim Curry).

14. "Collateral" (2004)

We really don't talk enough about this one enough. Michael Mann's slow-burn crime movie stars Cruise as a hitman who forces a cab driver (Jamie Foxx) to drive him around Los Angeles as he goes on his "jobs." The acting by both Cruise and Foxx in this movie is some of their best work.

13. "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One" (2023)

There are many things to love about the "Mission: Impossible" franchise: Its James Bond-like gadgets. Cruise's disregard for his life and safety when it comes to pulling off amazing stunts . But the biggest thing to love is that the films just seem to get better and better.

The first "M:I," directed by Brian De Palma, set the bar very high. However, since McQuarrie took the reins in 2015 with "Rogue Nation," the franchise has gotten a jolt in the arm. It seems to always outdo itself, and "Dead Reckoning" makes good on that promise.

The high stakes, the timely villain being AI, and, of course, Tom Cruise in the middle of some amazing thrills makes this film one of the best in the franchise.

13. "Eyes Wide Shut" (1999)

Cruise and Kidman teamed up again, this time under the watch of Stanley Kubrick in what would be his final movie. Both actors are pushed to the limits as the movie explores a marriage at a crossroads. Though "Eyes Wide Shut" is not close to Kubrick's best work, Cruise and Kidman are riveting.

12. "Top Gun: Maverick" (2022)

Thirty-six years after playing Pete "Maverick" Mitchell he returns to the role in the rare legacy sequel that's better than the original movie.

Though Tony Scott's landmark "Top Gun" made Cruise a superstar and became an instant 1980s classic, the director Joseph Kosinski has elevated the story with more death-defying dogfight jet stunts and a more compelling story.

This time Maverick returns to the Top Gun school to be a teacher of the new hot-shot pilots. But he must deal with his own demons as one of the students is the son of his best friend, Goose, who died in his arms in the first movie.

Cruise delivers one of his best performances in years.

11. "Days of Thunder" (1990)

It's pretty much everything you would think would be in a Tony Scott movie: lots of fast cars and big egos. Cruise is in his glory in every scene playing the hot-shot Nascar driver Cole Trickle (and Kidman appears as his love interest).

10. "Risky Business" (1983)

It's the movie that made Cruise a star. The coming-of-age story doesn't shy away from its mature storyline, and Cruise delivers a playful performance but also shows sparks of his dramatic chops that he'll showcase in the decade to come.

9. "Mission: Impossible" (1996)

Boy have things changed since the first "Mission: Impossible." With De Palma at the helm, the movie had its action, but it was encased in a tense whodunit thriller. Since then the action has only gotten bigger (and the story, well, less of a concern), but Cruise has always been fantastic as Hunt.

The first movie is his best acting work of the franchise. (Accent update: Cruise delivers another Southern accent while disguised at the beginning of the movie — one of those classic face-rip-off disguises. It's brief but effective in the scene.)

8. "Interview with the Vampire" (1994)

Cruise gives one of his best performances as Lestat, a vampire from the 1700s who finds a lot of drama in his undead life once he recruits Louis (Brad Pitt). (Accent update: His little hint of a French accent to stay true to the character's portrayal in the classic Anne Rice book is perfectly subtle.)

7. "Edge of Tomorrow" (2014)

Whether you want to call it "Edge of Tomorrow" or "Live. Die. Repeat.," it's just a really great action movie. With Liman directing and McQuarrie as a screenwriter, Cruise is surrounded by people he trusts to make a risky project: a soldier who relives the same day. But the MVP of the movie is Emily Blunt, who delivers a performance that makes Cruise kick it up a few notches.

6. "Rain Man" (1988)

Always at his best when he's playing a character with major conflict, Cruise plays a guy always looking to capitalize on the angles until he's finally in a situation in which he has to be on the level: building a relationship with his autistic savant brother (Dustin Hoffman).

5. "Jerry Maguire" (1996)

Receiving a best-actor nomination for his performance as a slick sports agent whose life turns upside down after having a moment of clarity, Cruise was, thanks to this movie, at his height of stardom and power in Hollywood.

4. "A Few Good Men" (1992)

Rob Reiner's courtroom drama has Cruise going up against Jack Nicholson, and it's pure magic. Yes, there's the "can't handle the truth" scene, but for us, it starts earlier in the movie when the two characters meet for the first time.

Thanks to the incredible dialogue by Aaron Sorkin, both actors subtly trade off with each other, but it's the fire being held back that makes the ending when they are face-to-face again so memorable.

3. "Magnolia" (1999)

No matter what you think of Paul Thomas Anderson's epic look at family, love, and forgiveness, it's hard to dispute that it has the most powerful performance of Cruise's career.

Playing a pickup artist who uses his talents to build a public-speaking career, Cruise appears as we've never seen him before. Anderson and Cruise connected over dealing with the loss of their fathers and use that darkness to create the character of Frank T. J. Mackey.

2. "The Color of Money" (1986)

Paul Newman won only one Oscar in his iconic career, and it was for this movie. But you have to give a big assist to Cruise.

Playing the protégé to the pool player "Fast Eddie" Felson — the role Newman first played in 1961's "The Hustler" — Cruise is a cocky player, and you can never tell whether he's on the level with Felson. Cruise proved once again that he's more than just a pretty face.

1. "Born on the Fourth of July" (1989)

Cruise got an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of the veteran and activist Ron Kovic, who was paralyzed fighting in Vietnam. Oliver Stone traces Kovic's journey from being a wide-eyed soldier thinking he's doing what's right for America to coming home from the war to find everything has changed. Including the way he views his own country.

Cruise has never been better as he delivers a tour de force performance that still gives us chills.

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Why Tom Cruise is the Greatest Movie Star of ALL-TIME

Tom Cruise has done some weird stuff. Scientology. That couch jump . The Mummy . But through it all he’s remained the main man. A star with good looks, bags of talent, terrific taste in movies, and serious sustainability. Making him quite possibly the greatest movie star of all-time. For the following reasons.

Acting Chops

Tom Cruise can act. Really act. There are movie stars that get by on charisma. Or muscles. Or via jokes. But Cruise is a performer who delivers mind-blowing performances time after time after time.

Having debuted in ensemble flicks Taps and The Outsiders , he flashed that trademark grin in teen movies Risky Business and All the Right Moves . Became a superstar via Top Gun . Then went toe-to-toe with two of the all-time greats, holding his own opposite Paul Newman in The Color of Money , and Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man .

Though he’s received just three Academy Award nominations, with not a win to his name, Cruise continues to challenge himself, delivering unforgettable performances in the likes of Magnolia , Collateral , Jerry Maguire , and Born on the Fourth of July . In between the many blockbusters…

Those Frigging Stunts

When he isn’t ACTING, Tom Cruise is risking life and limb for your viewing pleasure. Via the likes of Minority Report , The Last Samurai , Knight and Day , Oblivion , Edge of Tomorrow , and The Mummy .

But they are mere starters when it comes to Cruise action. With Mission: Impossible being the main course. They kicked off with that iconic sequence that suspends Ethan Hunt from the ceiling of CIA headquarters, followed by the character jumping from a train onto a helicopter. Then flying back onto that train when said helicopter explodes.

But the latter was a CG-heavy sequence. And Tom Cruise stopped doing CG sequences. Meaning that Mission: Impossibles 2-6 are filled with some of the greatest stunts in the history of cinema. Performed by the biggest star on the planet.

The guy leapt out of a plane in the most spectacular HALO jump ever attempted on film. Clung onto the side of an Airbus while it was taking off. Held his breathe underwater for six minutes. And scaled the bloody Burj Khalifa! The movie greats looked terrific in a suit (as does Cruise). And frequently act their co-stars off the screen (as does Cruise). But none of them climbed a mountain in Utah using only their bare hands.

“Tom is taking you places you would never or could never go,”   Rogue Nation / Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie told Rolling Stone . “He’s allowing us to film things in a way they’ve never been done before. In some cases they’ll never be done again.”

Tom Cruise has stuck around. Pumping out hit after hit, in the process becoming the biggest movie star on the planet. For longer than anyone in history. And there’s science to this. Kind of.

From 1932 onwards, the Quigley Publishing Company asked American film exhibitors to select the Top 10 Moneymaking Movie Stars  of each year. Rock Hudson dominated the 1950s. Robert Redford was all over the 1970s. And Burt Reynolds was huge in the early ’80s.

But no one comes close to the dominance of Tom Cruise, the exhibitors charting him a whopping 20 times, and placing the guy at No.1 on a record eight occasions, in 1986, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2001 and 2005. Quigley stopped doing the list in 2013. But you know what? Cruise would have featured had they kept going. Probably five times.

As an actor, his films have grossed nearly $4bn , while as a producer he’s overseen many, many more hits. And with Top Gun 2 heading into production, those numbers are only going to rise.

The Cruise Factor

This is a tricky one. Because an actor can have all the above traits, without being Tom Cruise. The man is a superhero without ever having played one. Yet somehow manages to be relatable. Bad press bounces off him like the bullets in the Mission: Impossible movies. That grin could power the national grid. He frequently feels the need for speed, and when Cruise runs, it’s poetry in motion. He turned being cocky into an art-form, yet somehow remains likeable. He’s even managed to poke fun at himself, via his memorable turn as Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder .

Cruise is good at press. Spends hours with his fans on the red-carpet. And brings a professionalism to the film set that means everyone else has to up their game or find a new job. At a time when movie stars have been replaced by comic book characters and IPs, Cruise stands alone; the superstar’s superstar.

And it isn’t quite the X Factor. Rather, it’s the Cruise Factor. Something he was born with. Something he’s developed. And something he’s mastered. Tom Cruise has been at the top for 30 years. And with his star always in the ascendancy, the smart money’s on him being there for 30 more.

• Born July 3 , 1962 · Syracuse, New York, USA
• Birth name Thomas Cruise Mapother IV
• Height 5′ 7″ (1.70 m)
• In 1976, if you had told fourteen-year-old Franciscan seminary student Thomas Cruise Mapother IV that one day in the not too distant future he would be Tom Cruise, one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, he would have probably grinned and told you that his ambition was to join the priesthood. Nonetheless, this sensitive, deeply religious youngster who was born in 1962 in Syracuse, New York, was destined to become one of the highest paid and most sought after actors in screen history. Tom is the only son (among four children) of nomadic parents, Mary Lee (Pfeiffer), a special education teacher, and Thomas Cruise Mapother III, an electrical engineer. His parents were both from Louisville, Kentucky, and he has German, Irish, and English ancestry. Young Tom spent his boyhood always on the move, and by the time he was 14 he had attended 15 different schools in the U.S. and Canada. He finally settled in Glen Ridge, New Jersey with his mother and her new husband. While in high school, Tom wanted to become a priest but pretty soon he developed an interest in acting and abandoned his plans of becoming a priest, dropped out of school, and at age 18 headed for New York and a possible acting career. The next 15 years of his life are the stuff of legends. He made his film debut with a small part in Endless Love (1981) and from the outset exhibited an undeniable box office appeal to both male and female audiences. With handsome movie star looks and a charismatic smile, within 5 years Tom Cruise was starring in some of the top-grossing films of the 1980s including Top Gun (1986) ; The Color of Money (1986) , Rain Man (1988) and Born on the Fourth of July (1989) . By the 1990s he was one of the highest-paid actors in the world earning an average 15 million dollars a picture in such blockbuster hits as Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994) , Mission: Impossible (1996) and Jerry Maguire (1996) , for which he received an Academy Award Nomination for best actor. Tom Cruise's biggest franchise, Mission Impossible, has also earned a total of 3 billion dollars worldwide. Tom Cruise has also shown lots of interest in producing, with his biggest producer credits being the Mission Impossible franchise. In 1990 he renounced his devout Catholic beliefs and embraced The Church of Scientology claiming that Scientology teachings had cured him of the dyslexia that had plagued him all of his life. A kind and thoughtful man well known for his compassion and generosity, Tom Cruise is one of the best liked members of the movie community. He was married to actress Nicole Kidman until 2001. Thomas Cruise Mapother IV has indeed come a long way from the lonely wanderings of his youth to become one of the biggest movie stars ever. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Tom McDonough, Grant failor
• Spouses Katie Holmes (November 18, 2006 - August 20, 2012) (divorced, 1 child) Nicole Kidman (December 24, 1990 - August 8, 2001) (divorced, 2 children) Mimi Rogers (May 9, 1987 - February 4, 1990) (divorced)
• Children Isabella Jane Cruise Suri Cruise Connor Cruise
• Parents Thomas Mapother III Mary Lee Pfeiffer
• Relatives William Mapother (Cousin) Amy Mapother (Cousin) Katherine Mapother (Cousin) Lee Anne De Vette (Sibling)
• Often plays romantic leading men with an edge
• Often plays characters caught up in extraordinary circumstances
• Frequently plays intelligent yet laidback and likeable characters
• Beaming smile and intense eye contact
• Boundless off-stage energy
• His acting idol is Paul Newman . Much to the delight of Cruise, they became good friends during work on The Color of Money (1986) . Newman got him into racing, and Cruise ultimately raced on his team.
• Stopped to help a hit and run victim and paid her hospital bills. The victim was aspiring Brazilian actress Heloisa Vinhas (1996).
• Insists on performing many of his own stunts in his films, including climbing the exterior of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, during the filming of Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) , and driving during the car chases in Jack Reacher (2012) .
• Cruise earned roughly $75 million for Mission: Impossible II (2000) . He did this by turning down any upfront salary, for instead taking a back-end deal that landed him 30% of the film's gross for both his producing and acting duties.
• He did not stay for the remainder of the 2002 Academy Awards after opening them because it was his turn to look after his and ex-wife Nicole Kidman 's children. He reportedly left the Kodak Theatre by a back door after opening proceedings and dashed home to watch the rest of the event on television with his kids Connor and Isabella.
• The thing about filmmaking is I give it everything, that's why I work so hard. I always tell young actors to take charge. It's not that hard. Sign your own checks, be responsible.
• [to Jay Leno regarding his topless Vanity Fair cover shoot] I don't drink but I had a beer that night and they only did one setup like that. I'm a cheap date. What can I say?
• [on Eyes Wide Shut (1999) ] We knew from the beginning the level of commitment needed. We felt honored to work with Stanley Kubrick . We were going to do what it took to do this picture, whatever time, because I felt - and Nic [ Nicole Kidman ] did, too - that this was going to be a really special time for us. We knew it would be difficult. But I would have absolutely kicked myself if I hadn't done this.
• I have cooked turkeys in my day but when Mom's around I let her do it.
• I was 18 when I saw Akira Kurosawa 's Seven Samurai (1954) . After about 30 seconds, I realized that this was not just a cultural thing, it was universal. Years later, I read Bushido. It talked about many things that I strive for in my own life: loyalty, compassion, responsibility, the idea of looking back on your life and taking responsibility for everything you've ever done. I'm fascinated by the samurai and the samurai code - it's one of the main reasons I wanted to make The Last Samurai (2003) .
• Mission: Impossible 8 (2025) - $13,000,000 + % of back end
• Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023) - $13,000,000 + % of back end
• Top Gun: Maverick (2022) - $13,000,000 + % of back end
• The Mummy (2017) - $13,000,000 + % of gross
• Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) - $12,500,000 + % of back end

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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 Tom Cruise Gave June Squibb and Director Josh Margolin His Blessing for Their ‘M:I’ Homage in ‘Thelma’ Johnny Depp Almost Didn’t Audition for ‘Edward Scissorhands’ After ’21 Jump Street’: I’m Just a ‘TV Actor Guy’

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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Opinion: Tom Cruise Is The Greatest Action Movie Star Ever

He’s just one of a kind..

Top Gun: Maverick was released two weeks ago and has been enjoying great success both critically and commercially. The film currently has a 97% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and has made over US$500million so far.

It also broke a US box office record when ticket sales only fell 32 per cent from its debut — the smallest week-to-week decline ever for a movie with a US$100 million opening weekend.

This is a colossal achievement for a non-comic book or huge franchise movie. Needless to say, Top Gun: Maverick is a phenomenon but a movie like this could only have happened thanks to the actor Tom Cruise’s unrivalled passion for Top Gun.

The movie made minimal use of green-screen or CGI trickery. Cruise made it clear that he would only reprise his role as Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell if real fighter jets were used in the sequel.

Cruise’s penchant for authenticity and practical filmmaking is just one of the few reasons why this writer believes he is the greatest action movie star ever.

More than an actor

For many years now, Cruise has played a pivotal role in the production process of all of his films. Besides being the lead actor in those movies, he also serves as one of the producers, meaning he always has a say in all aspects of the films’ production.

Producing movies is something near and dear to Cruise’s heart ever since he began his career in the movie industry. In an interview, he said during the production of one of his first movies Taps (1981), he would visit every single department of that film’s production to study how each of them worked so he could better understand the process of filmmaking.

From the very beginning, Cruise is not merely an actor who shows up, says his lines and goes back to his Hollywood mansion; he is also a student of cinema and is always learning ways to make his next project the best theatrical experience it can be for audiences worldwide.

A natural-born leader

If you plan on acting alongside the Mission Impossible star, you have to be prepared to be pushed to your physical limits because in every one of his recent films, Cruise not only expects the best out of himself but also everyone around him. Top Gun: Maverick is the latest example of Cruise’s leadership skills, which were put on display both on- and off-screen.

All the fresh-faced actors on Top Gun: Maverick, such as Miles Teller, described the intense training they underwent to prepare for the movie, including getting used to being inside extremely fast jets. Cruise was able to push his fellow co-stars because he understands what it takes to fly a fighter jet, seeing as how he has a pilot license.

Cruise makes the effort to actually know what he’s doing and talking about, so that people around him respect his authority and are inspired to follow in his footsteps.

Has the acting chops to boot

Another reason why I believe Cruise is the greatest action movie star of all time is that apart from exuding a charismatic presence in his movies like most known stars, he’s also a highly versatile actor who possesses a wide range of emotional expressions in his performances.

And I mean no disrespect to other Hollywood legends like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and Keanu Reeves, who have all given Oscar-worthy performances.

Despite Cruise having some stinkers over the years such as The Mummy, Mission Impossible II and Legend, Cruise still boasts an overall better and consistent filmography in his career compared to his peers, especially in the last decade with masterpieces such as Edge of Tomorrow and every Mission Impossible entry since Ghost Protocol.

Beyond the stunts

Some might think that Cruise is only a Hollywood great because he does the craziest stunts on his own like hanging out of a plane in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation but in reality, his daredevil behaviour is only the icing on the cake. What truly makes him stand out from all the other Hollywood stars is his unrivaled passion to give audiences the most genuine, authentic and memorable experience they will ever have in a theater.

There has never been someone like Tom Cruise and it is unlikely there ever will, so let’s appreciate the man while he’s still capable of giving us these memorable movies.

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• Favorite Characters
• Scientology Rumors
• Wild Facts All Fans Should Know
• Crazy Stunts He's Actually Done
• Over-the-Top Performances
• Moments That Are So Tom
• Stunts That Could Have Ended Him
• What He's Like to Work With
• All His Movies, Ranked

The Best Tom Cruise Characters Of All Time

More than perhaps any other modern actor, but firmly in the tradition of the Hollywood star system, Tom Cruise’s movie star persona tends to eclipse whatever character he might be playing. We may know a Mission: Impossible movie is about IMF agent Ethan Hunt going on death-defying, globetrotting adventures, but really, it’s a movie about  Tom Cruise going on death-defying, globetrotting adventures. Particularly in the later, action-hero stages of his career, Cruise has become a niche within his own existing movie-star brand. The name “Pete Mitchell” might not ring an immediate bell, but “Tom Cruise as a fighter pilot”? Yeah, now we’re on solid ground.

Even so, Cruise has played a number of great roles during his legendary career - from real-life figures like Ron Kovics and Claus von Stauffenberg to larger-than-life creations like Interview with the Vampire ’s charmingly predator vampire Lestat or Tropic Thunde r’s bombastic Hollywood agent Les Grossman. From John Anderton in the eerily accurate sci-fi thriller Minority Report to dirtbag sexvangelist Frank T.J. Mackey in Magnolia . And then of course, there are the roles that need no introduction: Jerry Maguire. Jack Reacher.

The best Tom Cruise character is probably Tom Cruise himself… but other than that, who is the most memorable screen creation of his career?

LT Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell

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All about the life and career of the ageless actor Tom Cruise.

Empire’s 50 Greatest Actors Of All Time List, Revealed

Ever since there have been movies, there have been movie stars – and becoming one of the world’s greatest actors involves being able to be many things at once. For one, you have to be able to act – to really inhabit a character’s deepest emotions, to step into their skin so that the words on the page come across as lived and felt. Plus, you have to be able to take that technical mastery and apply it across multiple genres, from quiet character dramas to epic action-packed blockbusters. And on top of that , you have to have that thing that can’t really be learned, or taught – a charisma, a command of the camera, an energy that enlivens even the most stellar script, and makes audiences flock to the multiplex in their droves.

For Empire ’s February 2023 issue, we asked readers to vote for the best actors of all time – the silver-screen stars that always deliver, that have changed the game, and whose distinctive talents can never be replicated. Your votes were counted, totted up, and in the magazine – on sale Thursday 22 December, and available to order online here – we take a deep dive into the resulting list, speaking to the stars themselves, gathering tributes from the directors that worked with them, and much more. We spend a day at Nicolas Cage’s Las Vegas home for our cover story , get an acting masterclass from Tilda Swinton, have Ridley Scott waxing lyrical on the power of Joaquin Phoenix, Ang Lee paying tribute to Heath Ledger, Gina Prince-Bythewood hailing the talents of Viola Davis and much, more more.

While you’ll find those goodies exclusively in the pages of Empire magazine – or, available to read when you sign up to the Empire members site here – we can now reveal the full 50 Greatest Actors list below, as voted for by you. And the winners, in no particular order, are…

Denzel Washington

Notable roles: Alonzo Harris ( Training Day ), Malcolm X ( Malcolm X ), Private Silas Trip ( Glory ), Troy Maxson ( Fences ), John Creasy ( Man On Fire ), Frank Lucas ( American Gangster ), Robert McCall ( The Equalizer , The Equalizer 2 )

Oscars won: 2 ( Glory , Training Day )

Iconic line: “King Kong ain’t got shit on me!” ( Training Day )

When it comes to an effortless ability to command the lens, look no further. Denzel Washington is a powerhouse who packs serious gravitas and considerable charisma, in a career that encompasses icons both real and fictional – with frequent detours into muscular action territory in his team-ups with Tony Scott and Antoine Fuqua .

Notable roles: Forrest Gump ( Forrest Gump ), Andrew Beckett ( Philadelphia ), Woody ( Toy Story ), Jim Lovell ( Apollo 13 ), Captain Miller ( Saving Private Ryan ), Captain Phillips ( Captain Phillips ), Josh Baskin ( Big )

Oscars won: 2 ( Philadelphia, Forrest Gump )

Iconic line: "Houston, we have a problem." ( Apollo 13 )

If you ever need to convey conviviality, Tom Hanks is your man – ever a reassuring presence on screen, even in films where death seems the likeliest outcome. From disaster movies, to sweeping historical epics, the spirit of American optimism can almost always be found in the work of Hanks; we all have a friend in him.

Marilyn Monroe

Notable roles: Rose Loomis ( Niagara ), Lorelei Lee ( Gentlemen Prefer Blondes ), Pola Debevoise ( How to Marry a Millionaire ), The Girl ( The Seven Year Itch ), Sugar "Kane" Kowalczyk ( Some Like It Hot ), Roslyn Tabor ( The Misfits )

Oscars won: 0

Iconic line: "I wanna be loved by you, alone… Boop-boop-a-doop!" ( Some Like It Hot )

A true movie star, in every sense, Marilyn Monroe 's earth-shattering fame sometimes threatened to overshadow everything else – but beneath the ‘blonde bombshell’ sex symbol was the heart of a true artist, who was comfortable with her sexuality and femininity and used it to brilliant ends, in comedies and dramas.

Robert De Niro

Notable roles: Travis Bickle ( Taxi Driver ), Jake LaMotta ( Raging Bull ), Vito Corleone ( The Godfather Part II ), Jimmy The Gent ( GoodFellas ), Neil McCauley ( Heat ), Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein ( Casino ), Al Capone ( The Untouchables ), Frank ‘The Irishman’ Sheeran ( The Irishman )

Oscars won: 2 ( The Godfather Part II , Raging Bull )

Iconic line: “You talkin’ to me?” ( Taxi Driver )

Perpetual muse of Martin Scorsese , cinema’s go-to gangster, and a consummate character actor – somehow, Robert De Niro always disappears into roles while also infusing each one with his own unmistakable persona, in a career spanning into its seventh decade.

Bette Davis

Notable roles: Margo Channing ( All About Eve ), Julie Marsden ( Jezebel ), Leslie Crosby ( The Letter ), Charlotte Vale ( Now, Voyager ), Baby Jane Hudson ( What Ever Happened To Baby Jane? ), Mildred Rogers ( Of Human Bondage )

Oscars won: 2 ( Jezebel , Dangerous )

Iconic line: “Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy night.” ( All About Eve )

Seldom has an actor emanated so much force on-screen: Bette Davis was a cinematic cyclone, sweeping through scenes, leaving co-stars dazed and debris in her wake. She took on one complex role after another, not caring if the characters were unlikeable, and aced them all. Her work still bites today.

Natalie Portman

Notable roles: Nina Sayers ( Black Swan ), Jackie Kennedy ( Jackie ), Padmé Amidala ( Star Wars: Episodes I-III ), Mathilda ( Lèon: The Professional ), Lena ( Annihilation ), Jane Foster ( The MCU ), Celeste ( Vox Lux ), Evey ( V For Vendetta )

Oscars won: 1 ( Black Swan )

Iconic line: “I just want to be perfect.” ( Black Swan )

Taking psychological scalpels to her characters and laying their souls bare, Natalie Portman emerged from riveting child performances and a pivotal role in Star Wars ’ prequel trilogy to become a towering talent who frequently collaborates with boundary-pushing directors.

Gene Hackman

Notable roles: Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle ( The French Connection ), Harry Caul ( The Conversation ), Buck Barrow ( Bonnie And Clyde ), Lex Luthor ( Superman, Superman II, Superman IV ), Sheriff Bill Daggett ( Unforgiven ), Royal Tenenbaum ( The Royal Tenenbaums )

Oscars won: 2 ( The French Connection , Unforgiven )

Iconic line: “I’m not afraid of death, but I am afraid of murder.” ( The Conversation )

A stalwart of ‘70s cinema known for his versatility and toughness – Gene Hackman is a leading man with everyman looks who could slip between Oscar-winning dramas, wacky comedies, and rollicking B-movies.

Heath Ledger

Notable roles: The Joker ( The Dark Knight ), Ennis Del Mar ( Brokeback Mountain ), Patrick Verona ( 10 Things I Hate About You ), William Thatcher ( A Knight’s Tale ), Ned Kelly ( Ned Kelly ), Skip ( Lords of Dogtown ).

Oscars won: 1 ( The Dark Knight )

Iconic line: “You wanna know how I got these scars?” ( The Dark Knight )

A stellar romantic lead who radiated warmth and benevolence became a knockout performer in his later years – Heath Ledger brought real heart to unspeakable heartache, and sheer animalistic ferocity to one of the defining cinematic villains of the 21st Century.

Katharine Hepburn

Notable roles: Alice Adams ( Alice Adams ), Susan Vance ( Bringing Up Baby ), Tracy Lord ( The Philadelphia Story ) , Tess Harding ( Woman Of The Year ), Rose Sayer ( The African Queen ), Christina Drayton ( Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner )

Oscars won: 4 ( Morning Glory , Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner , The Lion In Winter , On Golden Pond )

Iconic line: “Put me in your pocket, Mike.” ( The Philadelphia Story )

Perhaps the most famous female star of Hollywood’s golden age, sometimes referred to as the ‘First Lady’ of cinema. Katharine Hepburn 's distinctive accent, incredible cheekbones, revolutionary taste for slacks over dresses, and knack for playing strong, independent, witty women made her an enduring icon.

Notable roles: Ethan Hunt ( Mission: Impossible ), Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell ( Top Gun , Top Gun: Maverick ), Lt. Daniel Kaffee ( A Few Good Men ), Jerry Maguire ( Jerry Maguire ), Frank T.J. Mackey ( Magnolia ), Charlie Babbitt ( Rain Man ), Major William Cage ( Edge Of Tomorrow )

Oscars won: 0 (3 nominations)

Iconic line: “I feel the need… The need for speed.” ( Top Gun )

The all-American epitome of a Hollywood Movie Star, intensity and dedication have been the hallmarks of Tom Cruise 's career as ultimate contemporary A-lister: whether in his early, compelling character dramas, or his mind-boggling, adrenaline-pumping, stunt-tastic action flicks.

Read Empire's list of Tom Cruise's 10 Best Movies Ranked.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Notable roles: Jack Dawson ( Titanic ), Dom Cobb ( Inception ), Billy Costigan ( The Departed ), Jordan Belfort ( The Wolf Of Wall Street ), Hugh Glass ( The Revenant ), Rick Dalton ( Once Upon A Time In Hollywood ), Romeo Montague ( Romeo + Juliet )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Revenant )

Iconic line: “I’m the king of the woooooorld!” ( Titanic )

The definitive ‘90s teen heartthrob became an actor who’ll go to the ends of the earth (often literally) to get under his characters’ skin. The go-to guy for some of the world’s biggest directors (including Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino), he’s effortless style meets undeniable substance.

Tilda Swinton

Notable roles: Orlando ( Orlando ), Eva Khatchadourian ( We Need To Talk About Kevin ), Emma Recchi ( I Am Love ), Rosalind ( The Souvenir , The Souvenir Part II ), Karen Crowder ( Michael Clayton ), Lucy Mirando ( Okja ),The White Witch ( The Chronicles Of Narnia )

Oscars won: 1 ( Michael Clayton )

Iconic line: “Same person. No difference at all. Just a different sex.” ( Orlando )

With an ethereality bordering on the extra-terrestrial, few have the unpindownable presence of Tilda Swinton. A regular collaborator of arthouse and indie legends – from Bong Joon-ho and Luca Guadagnino, to Wes Anderson and Joanna Hogg – she’s a master at playing otherworldliness, archness, but also quietly shattering humanity.

Samuel L. Jackson

Most notable roles: Jules Winnfield ( Pulp Fiction ), Ordell ( Jackie Brown ), Major Marquis Warren ( The Hateful Eight ), Mace Windu ( Star Wars: Episodes I-III ), Nick Fury ( The MCU ), Frozone ( The Incredibles , Incredibles 2 ), Ray Arnold ( Jurassic Park )

Oscars won: Honorary award

Iconic line: “Say ‘What’ again. I dare you. I double dare you, motherfucker! Say ‘What’ one more goddamn time!” ( Pulp Fiction )

When you absolutely, positively need to cast the coolest guy in the movie, accept no substitutes. Straddling several of the biggest franchises of all time while consistently delivering career-best work in his multiple-decade-spanning collaborations with Quentin Tarantino, he’s a cultural icon as much as an actor.

Toshiro Mifune

Notable roles: Sanjuro Kuwabatake ( Yojimbo ), Kikuchiyo ( Seven Samurai ), Taketoki Washizu ( Throne Of Blood ), Kingo Gondo ( High And Low ), Sanjuro Tsubaki ( Sanjuro ), Dr. Kyojô Niide ( Red Beard ), Miyamoto Musashi ( Samurai Trilogy), Tajômaru ( Rashomon )

Iconic line: “Use your balls, if you’ve got any!” ( Seven Samurai )

Akira Kurosawa’s right-hand man has a strong claim to the title of coolest man who ever lived. But while he was a ‘50s icon off-screen, he shapeshifted into roles as samurai or outlaws on screen, abandoning vanity for committed performance. A role model for action men everywhere.

Nicolas Cage

Notable roles: H.I. McDunnough ( Raising Arizona ), Ronny Cammareri ( Moonstruck ), Sailor Ripley ( Wild at Heart ), Ben Sanderson ( Leaving Las Vegas ), Stanley Goodspeed ( The Rock ), Cameron Poe ( Con Air ), Castor Troy ( Face/Off ) Charlie/Donald Kaufman ( Adaptation ), Red Miller ( Mandy ), Rob Feld ( Pig )

Oscars won: 1 ( Leaving Las Vegas )

Iconic line: “Put the bunny back in the box.” ( Con Air )

An acting style so unique, it could be its own genre. Nicolas Cage’s mystical, shamanastic-driven performances often involve a lot of shouting — but write him off at your peril. Despite being a major internet meme source, he remains an incredibly prolific and versatile actor, just as comfortable being an action hero as he is producing restrained turns in thoughtful indie dramas.

Humphrey Bogart

Notable roles: Rick Blaine ( Casablanca ), Philip Marlowe ( The Big Sleep ), Frank McCloud ( Key Largo ), Charlie Allnutt ( The African Queen ), Sam Spade ( The Maltese Falcon ), Duke Mantee ( The Petrified Forest ), Harry Dawes ( The Barefoot Contessa ), Roy Earle ( High Sierra ), Harry 'Steve' Morgan ( To Have And Have Not )

Oscars won: 1 ( The African Queen )

Iconic line: “Here’s lookin’ at you, kid” ( Casablanca )

The thing about Bogart is that his “iconic line” is basically every line he ever said. His laconic, tough-guy energy gave every line a spin of cool defiance that screenwriters rose to match. He wasn’t the tallest, strongest, or most handsome, and at times he barely seemed to move – but you could never take your eyes off him.

Viola Davis

Notable roles: Rose Maxson ( Fences ), Veronica ( Widows ), Ma Rainey ( Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom ), Nanisca ( The Woman King ), Aibileen Clark ( The Help ), Mrs Miller ( Doubt ), Amanda Waller ( The DCEU ), Michelle Obama ( The First Lady ), Annalise Keating ( How To Get Away With Murder )

Oscars won: 1 ( Fences )

Iconic line: “To be a warrior, you must kill your tears.” ( The Woman King )

A performer who never fails to stir up the most intense of emotions – fear, empathy and awe, to name a few. As at home in comic-book blockbusters, compelling murder-mysteries and all-out action epics as she is in award-winning dramas and her regular collaborations with Denzel Washington.

Cate Blanchett

Notable roles: Elizabeth I ( Elizabeth ), Meredith Logue ( The Talented Mr. Ripley ), Galadriel ( The Lord Of The Rings ), Katharine Hepburn ( The Aviator ), Jude ( I’m Not There ), Jasmine ( Blue Jasmine), Carol Aird ( Carol ), Hela ( Thor: Ragnarok ), Dr. Lilith Ritter ( Nightmare Alley ), Lydia Tár ( TÁR )

Oscars won: 2 ( The Aviator , Blue Jasmine )

Iconic line: “Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.” ( The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring )

With an incomparable screen presence and range as wide as it gets, Cate Blanchett is unstoppable. She made her name playing iconic women from both history and fantasy, before getting under the skin of some of cinema’s most challenging characters. Plus, with cameos and comic-book villain roles under her belt, she’s not afraid to have some fun, too.

Marlon Brando

Notable roles: Stanley Kowalski ( A Streetcar Named Desire ), Terry Malloy ( On The Waterfront ), Vito Corleone ( The Godfather ), Colonel Kurtz ( Apocalypse Now ), Jor-El ( Superman: The Movie )

Oscars won: 2 ( On The Waterfront , The Godfather )

Iconic line: “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse.” ( The Godfather )

Among the most influential screen actors of all-time, Brando hit Hollywood like a hammer in the early 1950s – fundamentally changing the definition of “good” acting, and with it films themselves. Brando’s deeply-felt naturalism was magnetic, and his power undeniable. All his famous difficulty was worth it for the magic he created.

Alec Guinness

Notable roles: The entire D’Ascoyne family ( Kind Hearts And Coronets ), Colonel Nicholson ( The Bridge On The River Kwai ), Prince Faisal ( Lawrence Of Arabia ), Obi-Wan Kenobi ( Star Wars )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Bridge On The River Kwai )

Iconic line: “Use the Force, Luke.” ( Star Wars )

An unfussy, immensely talented actor of the British old school, Guinness was comfortable across the gamut from light comedy ( The Man In The White Suit ) to deadly serious drama ( Kwai ). He effortlessly developed from young matinee idol to established character actor to elder statesman. Even what he saw as a throwaway “wizard” role in a kids' film in his 60s proved rather popular.

Michael Caine

Notable roles: Jack Carter ( Get Carter ), Alfie Cartwright ( Alfie ), Peachy Carnehan ( The Man Who Would Be King ), Harry Palmer ( The Ipcress File ), Charlie Croker ( The Italian Job ), Ebenezer Scrooge ( The Muppet Christmas Carol ), Jasper Palmer ( Children Of Men )

Oscars won: 2 ( Hannah And Her Sisters , The Cider House Rules )

Iconic line: “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!” ( The Italian Job )

The genial gent from the East End wrote the book on acting, literally, publishing a tome packed with practical tips (“When speaking to an actor off-camera, look into one eye and stick with it”). But there’s nothing by-the-book about his performances – melancholy, hilarious, spiky or charming. Who else could hold their own against Sean Connery, Steve Martin and Kermit the Frog?

Michelle Yeoh

Notable roles: Yang Chien-Hua ( Police Story 3: Supercop ), Yu Shu Lien ( Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon ), Mameha ( Memoirs Of A Geisha ), Eleanor Young ( Crazy Rich Asians ), Evelyn Wang ( Everything Everywhere All At Once )

Iconic line: "Of all the places I could be, I just want to be here with you." ( Everything Everywhere All At Once )

Who else on Earth can pull off intense dramatic scenes and do acrobatic feats that steal the show from Jackie Chan? A true marvel, she’s finally getting her global dues this year thanks to a certain multiverse movie, but has been killing it for decades. Now in her 60s, it feels like she’s only just getting started.

Notable roles: Max Rockatansky ( Mad Max: Fury Road ), Bane ( The Dark Knight Rises ), Reggie/Ronnie Kray ( Legend ), Eames ( Inception ), Tommy Conlon ( Warrior ), Eddie Brock ( Venom ), Alfie Solomons ( Peaky Blinders ), Charles Bronson ( Bronson )

Oscars won: 0 (1 nomination)

Iconic line: "It would be extremely painful... for you.” ( The Dark Knight Rises )

While once defined by his MySpace page and his (supposed) resemblance to Patrick Stewart ( Star Trek Nemesis ), Tom Hardy has become one of the most distinctive performers of his generation. Respect him for his dual Krays, fear him for Charles Bronson, but love him for Peaky 's inimitable Alfie Solomons.

Greta Garbo

Notable roles: Ninotchka ( Ninotchka ), Christina ( Queen Christina ), Gruinskaya ( Grand Hotel ), Felicitas ( Flesh And The Devil ), Anna Karenina ( Anna Karenina ), Anna Christie ( Anna Christie ), Elizabeth Dohna ( The Saga of Gösta Berling )

Iconic line: “I want to be alone” ( Grand Hotel )

Garbo came to Hollywood already a star, and left a megastar. Specialising in powerful, remote women, Garbo could also be extremely funny ( Ninotchka ) and play a compelling romance ( Camille ). As the only person who didn’t take her stardom seriously, she played studio moguls at their own game and walked away on her own terms.

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Notable roles: Scotty J ( Boogie Nights ), Phil Parma ( Magnolia ), Lester Bangs ( Almost Famous ), Lancaster Dodd ( The Master ), Allen ( Happiness ), Truman Capote ( Capote ), Caden Cotard ( Synecdoche, New York ), Freddie Miles ( The Talented Mr Ripley ), Owen Davian ( Mission: Impossible: III )

Oscars won: 1 ( Capote )

Iconic line: “The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you’re uncool.” ( Almost Famous )

Formidable whether he was playing insecure husks or intimidating villains, Hoffman had a presence like no one else, always adding supremely charismatic heft. And he had so much more to give: his premature death was a tragedy for cinema.

Jack Nicholson

Notable roles: JJ ‘Jake’ Gittes ( Chinatown ), Randle ‘Mac’ McMurphy ( One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest ), Jack Torrance ( The Shining ), Jack Napier/The Joker ( Batman ), Colonel Nathan R. Jessup ( A Few Good Men ), Melvin Udall ( As Good As It Gets )

Oscars won: 3 ( One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest , Terms Of Endearment , As Good As It Gets )

Iconic line: “Heeeeeeere’s Johnny!” ( The Shining )

Despite all the imitators, there’s nobody quite like Jack – nobody with such devilish charm, such easy-going menace, such mischievous playfulness. Only ever providing towering performances, he never met a scene he couldn’t steal.

Meryl Streep

Notable roles: Joanna Kramer ( Kramer Vs. Kramer ), Sophie Zawistowski ( Sophie’s Choice ), Miranda Priestley ( The Devil Wears Prada ), Florence Foster Jenkins ( Florence Foster Jenkins ), Donna Sheridan ( Mamma Mia! )

Oscars won: 3 ( Kramer Vs Kramer , Sophie’s Choice , The Iron Lady )

Iconic line: “Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking.” ( The Devil Wears Prada )

So dedicated, she can perform ABBA like it’s Shakespeare. Nobody brings the emotion like Meryl Streep when it comes to heavyweight dramatic material – but she can also dial up the camp when she wants to, to spectacularly playful effect.

Christian Bale

Notable roles: Batman ( The Dark Knight Trilogy ), Dicky Eklund ( The Fighter ), Patrick Bateman ( American Psycho ), Alfred Borden ( The Prestige ), Dick Cheney ( Vice ), Ken Miles ( Ford v Ferrari ), Trevor Reznik ( The Machinist ), Michael Burry ( The Big Short ), Jim ( Empire Of The Sun )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Fighter )

Iconic line: “I’m into murders and executions mostly.” ( American Psycho ).

Who knew the little boy from Empire Of The Sun would grow up to gleefully bury an axe in someone's head while bopping along to ‘Hip To Be Square’? Capable of physical transformations that boggle the mind ( The Machinist , Vice ), Bale has more range than a Kia Picanto.

Michelle Williams

Notable roles: Alma Beers del Mar ( Brokeback Mountain ), Cindy ( Blue Valentine ), Marilyn Monroe ( My Week With Marilyn ), Randi ( Manchester By The Sea ), Mitzi Fabelman ( The Fabelmans )

Oscars won: 0 (4 nominations)

Iconic line: “My heart was broken – cause it’s always gonna be broken, and I know yours is broken, too – but I don't have to carry it.” ( Manchester By The Sea )

Nobody does fragility like Michelle Williams, who plays damaged, broken and hurt characters with such heartbreaking sensitivity, you can never see the seams. It’s impossible to watch her performances and not collapse into a puddle of tears.

Anthony Hopkins

Notable roles: Hannibal Lecter ( The Silence Of The Lambs, Hannibal, Red Dragon ), Frederick Treves ( The Elephant Man ), James Stevens ( The Remains Of The Day ), CS Lewis ( Shadowlands ), Odin ( The MCU ), Anthony ( The Father )

Oscars won: 2 ( The Silence Of The Lambs , The Father )

Iconic line: “I do wish we could chat longer, but I’m having an old friend for dinner.” ( The Silence Of The Lambs )

Hopkins was 53 when he got the role of a lifetime, nabbing serial killer Hannibal Lecter when Gene Hackman passed. Since then, the Welsh titan has broken hearts in prestige dramas, hammed it up in Transformers , played popes, kings, gods and Hitchcocks. Undaunted by mighty challenges, he’s never not riveting – even when saying, “Duuuuude” to Mark Wahlberg in a giant-robot film.

Gary Oldman

Notable roles: Winston Churchill ( Darkest Hour ), George Smiley ( Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy ), Dracula ( Bram Stoker's Dracula ), Drexl Spivey ( True Romance ), Lee Harvey Oswald ( JFK ), Sid Vicious ( Sid and Nancy ), Jim Gordon ( The Dark Knight Trilogy ), Norman Stansfield (__Lèon: The Profes__sional), Jackson Lamb ( Slow Horses ), Sirius Black ( Harry Potter ), Zorg ( The Fifth Element )

Oscars won: 1 ( Darkest Hour )

Iconic line: "Eeeeeeeveryooooone!" (__Lèon: The Profes__sional)

Once notable primarily as a villain for hire, Oldman has become one of the most expressive, expansive actors around. Whether inspiringly articulating the British fighting spirit as Darkest Hour 's Winston Churchill, or insolently farting at Kristen Scott Thomas as Slow Horses ' Jackson Lamb, Oldman has elevated every role set before him.

Florence Pugh

Notable roles: Amy March ( Little Women ), Dani ( Midsommar ), Katherine ( Lady Macbeth ), Alice ( Don’t Worry Darling ), Lib Wright ( The Wonder ), Yelena Belova ( The MCU ), Saraya Knight ( Fighting With My Family ), Abbie Mortimer ( The Falling )

Iconic line: “I believe we have some power over who we love. It isn’t just something that happens to a person.” ( Little Women )

Simply one of the very best of her generation. At just 26, she already has a number of mesmerising performances under her belt. From sun-bleached horror to period drama, familial wrestling sagas to dystopian nightmares, the endlessly-compelling Pugh never fails to bring a grounded empathy to her characters. She has decades ahead of her – but has already solidified her place in the pantheon.

Sidney Poitier

Notable roles: Noah Cullen ( The Defiant Ones ), Homer Smith ( Lillies In The Field ), Virgil Tibbs ( In The Heat Of The Night ), John Wayde Prentice Jr ( Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner ), Buck ( Buck And The Preacher )

Oscar wins: 1 ( Lillies In The Field )

Iconic line: “They call me Mister Tibbs!” ( In The Heat Of The Night )

A genuine trailblazer. After decades of racism in Hollywood, Sidney Poitier made it possible to be a Black movie star, in every sense. He was a gifted performer, a charismatic presence, and incredibly popular with audiences, who loved his gravitas, power, and grace.

Julianne Moore

Notable roles: Linda Partridge ( Magnolia ), Dr Alice Howland ( Still Alice ), Marian Wyman ( Short Cuts ), Amber Waves ( Boogie Nights ), Cathy Whitaker ( Far From Heaven ), Maude Lebowski ( The Big Lebowski ), Laura Brown ( The Hours )

Oscars won: 1 ( Still Alice )

Iconic line: “I come in here, you don't know me, you don't know who I am, what my life is… you have the balls, the indecency, to ask me a question about my life?” ( Magnolia )

Melding prickly steeliness with trembling vulnerability, Julianne Moore vibrates with humanity. Whether her characters are coming undone, indulging in a massive cocaine binge, or ripping someone to shreds, she’s consistently fearless.

Shah Rukh Khan

Notable roles: Devdas Mukherji ( Devdas ), Rizwan Khan ( My Name Is Khan ), Rahul Khanna ( Kuch Kuch Hota Hai ), Mohan Bhargava ( Swades )

Iconic line: “Every day life kills us a little. A bomb will kill you only once.” ( Jab Tak Hai Jaan )

Ms. Marvel’s favourite movie star has a career that has now spanned four decades of near unbroken hits, and a fanbase of pretty much billions. You don’t do that without outrageous amounts of charisma and absolute mastery of your craft. Comfortable in almost every genre going, there’s pretty much nothing he can’t do.

Buster Keaton

Notable roles: Projectionist ( Sherlock Jr. ), Johnnie Gray ( The General ), William Canfield Jr. ( Steamboat Bill Jr. ), Buster ( The Cameraman )

Iconic line: (In intertitles) “Be careful, or one of us will get hurt.” ( Sherlock Jr.)

One of the most skilled, gifted silent comedians of all time. Ol’ Stony Face blended deadpan comedy (you will never see him raise so much as a smile) with fearless stunt work (he broke more than a few bones) and, most of all, an intrinsic understanding of his art form, and how to innovate within it.

Charlize Theron

Notable roles: Aileen Wuornos ( Monster ), Furiosa ( Mad Max: Fury Road ), Megyn Kelly ( Bombshell ), Mavis Gary ( Young Adult) , Meredith Vickers ( Prometheus ), Ravenna ( Snow White And The Huntsman ), Lorraine Broughton ( Atomic Blonde ), Cipher ( The Fast Saga ), Marlo ( Tully )

Oscars won: 1 ( Monster )

Iconic line: “Out here, everything hurts.” ( Mad Max: Fury Road )

Already a commanding presence in her early work, the aftermath of her Oscar-winning performance as serial killer Aileen Wuornos has brought Charlize Theron's regal presence and powerful physicality to a smorgasbord of genres – action, fantasy, comedy, drama, real-life adaptations and more. A true queen of blockbusters and beyond.

Laurence Olivier

Notable roles: Henry V ( Henry V ), Max DeWinter ( Rebecca ), Crassus ( Spartacus ), Dr Christian Szell ( Marathon Man )

Oscars won: 1 ( Hamlet )

Iconic line: “Once more unto the Breach! Dear friends, once more; or close the wall up with our English dead!” ( Henry V )

Olivier’s name remains an easy answer to any “greatest actor” question. Considered a master even in his 20s for his stage work, Olivier romped through every challenge Shakespeare could provide and then went slumming it as a film star. Hollywood was never his focus – he was kept busy setting up the National Theatre – but even as a part-timer he burned up the screen.

Kate Winslet

Notable roles: Rose Dewitt Bukater ( Titanic), Juliet Hulme ( Heavenly Creatures), Marianne Dashwood ( Sense And Sensibility ) , Clementine Kruczynski ( Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind ), Iris ( The Holiday ), Hanna Schmitz ( The Reader ), April Wheeler ( Revolutionary Road ), Mary Anning ( Ammonite ), Detective Mare Sheehan ( Mare Of Easttown )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Reader)

Iconic line: “Jack! Jaaack!” ( Titanic )

An English rose whose love-struck Rose will live on forever. Kate Winslet is a dramatic force, turning her hand to all kinds of periods and genres with an inimitable sense of dignity and strength. Recent roles have seen her expand into award-winning television and reunite with director James Cameron – she’s not done pushing boundaries just yet.

Penélope Cruz

Notable Roles: Raimunda ( Volver ), Maria Elena ( Vicky Cristina Barcelona ), Janis ( Parallel Mothers ), Sofia Serrano ( Vanilla Sky ), Pelagia ( Captain Corelli's Mandolin ), Mirtha Jung ( Blow ), Hermana Rosa ( All About My Mother )

Oscars won: 1 ( Vicky Cristina Barcelona )

Iconic line: “You’re still searching for me in every woman” ( Vicky Cristina Barcelona )

She won an Oscar for her Hollywood roles, but few would deny that Penélope Cruz’s best work has been with director Pedro Almodóvar, and in her native Spanish. With him, she has run the gamut of grief, fury, desire and delight. She’s a force to be reckoned with, even in her simpler works.

Notable roles: Michael Corleone ( The Godfather Trilogy ), Tony Montana ( Scarface ), Serpico ( Serpico ), Ricky Roma ( Glengarry Glen Ross ), Frank Slade ( Scent Of A Woman ), Carlito ( Carlito's Way ), Vincent Hanna ( Heat ), Lefty ( Donnie Brasco ), Lowell Bergman ( The Insider ), John Milton ( The Devil's Advocate ), Jimmy Hoffa ( The Irishman ).

Oscars won: 1 ( Scent Of A Woman )

Iconic line: "I know it was you, Fredo. You broke my heart." ( The Godfather Part II )

There are barely superlatives enough in the English language sufficient to describe Al Pacino's contribution to the craft of acting. Capable of pathos, hang-dog charm, thunderous power and wildly over-the top absurdity, Pacino has made an indelible mark on more than a few of the greatest films of all time. Hoo-ah.

Frances McDormand

Notable roles: Marge Gunderson ( Fargo ), Mildred Hayes ( Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri ), Fern ( Nomadland ), Lady Macbeth ( The Tragedy Of Macbeth ), Mrs. Bishop ( Moonrise Kingdom )

Oscars won: 3 ( Fargo, Three Billboards, Nomadland )

Iconic line: “I'm not homeless. I'm just house-less. Not the same thing, right?” ( Nomadland )

A perpetual figure in the films of the Coens, the recent years of McDormand’s career have seen her wrangle complex leading roles – playing women deeply wronged by life’s cruelties. Away from the warmth and goodwill of Marge Gunderson, her talents for embodying fire-and-brimstone rage and the peace of radical acceptance are miraculous.

Joaquin Phoenix

Notable roles: Commodus ( Gladiator ), Johnny Cash ( Walk The Line ), Merrill Hess ( Signs ), Freddie Quell ( The Master ), Theodore Twombly ( Her ), Arthur Fleck ( Joker ), Ray Elwood ( Buffalo Soldiers ), Jesus ( Mary Magdelene )

Oscars won: 1 ( Joker )

Iconic line: “Is it just me or is it getting crazier out there?” ( Joker )

A frighteningly powerful actor since he was a kid, Phoenix has become even more so over the past couple of decades as he’s become less conventional, more naturalistic, and increasingly enigmatic. To watch him is to not know what the hell is going to happen next. A true live wire.

Ingrid Bergman

Notable roles: Ilsa Lund ( Casablanca ), Alicia Huberman ( Notorious ), Joan ( Joan Of Arc ), Karen ( Stromboli )

Oscars won: 3 ( Murder On The Orient Express , Anastasia , Gaslight )

Iconic line: “Play it once, Sam. For old times’ sake.” ( Casablanca )

With cool Swedish beauty and a fiery intelligence, Ingrid Bergman refused to change to suit Hollywood’s expectations and became iconic in her idiosyncrasies. Hollywood tried to pigeonhole her as a nun, victim or saint, but her European work showed far more strength and passion, eventually bringing the studios around.

Morgan Freeman

Notable roles: Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding ( The Shawshank Redemption ), John Rawlins ( Glory ), Ned Logan ( Unforgiven ), William Somerset ( Seven ), Eddie "Scrap Iron" Dupris ( Million Dollar Baby ), Lucius Fox ( The Dark Knight Trilogy )

Oscars won: 1 ( Million Dollar Baby )

Iconic line: “I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.” ( The Shawshank Redemption )

Need someone to play a police detective? Or the President? Or God? Make damn sure you have Morgan Freeman on speed-dial. Nobody else conjures the same blend of authority, worldly wisdom and soulfulness, with a sonorous voice that has beguiled millions and a wry sparkle in his eye.

Paul Newman

Notable roles: “Fast” Eddie Felson ( The Hustler, The Color Of Money ), Reggie Dunlop ( Slap Shot ), Frank Galvin ( The Verdict ), Hud Bannon ( Hud ), Henry Gondorff ( The Sting ), Luke Jackson ( Cool Hand Luke ), Butch Cassidy ( Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid ), John Rooney ( Road To Perdition )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Color Of Money )

Iconic line: “Money won is twice as sweet as money earned.” ( The Color Of Money )

Cool, laconic, capable of eating way more hard-boiled eggs than you – Newman zings up every film like Newman’s own salad dressing zings up lettuce. A reliable, sturdy presence in big films – from The Towering Inferno to Cars – he picked surprisingly eccentric projects too, even adding pepper to the Coens’ The Hudsucker Proxy . He may have been The Hustler, but he rarely broke a sweat.

Olivia Colman

Notable roles: Queen Anne ( The Favourite ), Leda ( The Lost Daughter ), Hannah ( Tyrannosaur ), Hilary ( Empire Of Light ), Susan Edwards ( Landscapers ), Queen Elizabeth II ( The Crown ), Anne ( The Father ), Godmother ( Fleabag ), Angela Burr ( The Night Manager ), D.S. Ellie Miller ( Broadchurch ), Sophie Chapman ( Peep Show )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Favourite )

Iconic line: “I like it when she puts her tongue inside me.” ( The Favourite )

Few have a better and more varied back catalogue than Olivia Colman. Rising up through British TV comedies and iconic car insurance adverts, she’s gone on to become one of the most dependably excellent, effervescently charming people in the business, winning the world’s hearts with her Oscar acceptance speech for The Favourite in 2019. A true national treasure.

Daniel Day-Lewis

Notable roles: Johnny ( My Beautiful Laundrette ), Daniel Plainview ( There Will Be Blood ), Christy Brown ( My Left Foot ), Nathaniel ‘Hawkeye’ Poe ( The Last Of The Mohicans ), Newland Archer ( The Age Of Innocence ), Reynolds Woodcock ( Phantom Thread ), Abraham Lincoln ( Lincoln ), Bill The Butcher ( Gangs Of New York )

Oscars won: 3 ( My Left Foot , There Will Be Blood , Lincoln )

Iconic line: “I – drink – your – milkshake!” ( There Will Be Blood )

Since taking on his first starring role in 1985’s My Beautiful Laundrette , Day-Lewis has – every time – provided startling electricity, giving thunderous performances, his power matched by his tenderness. He is everything you could want from an actor.

James Stewart

Notable roles: Jeff Smith ( Mr Smith Goes To Washington ), Macaulay "Mike" Connor ( The Philadelphia Story ), George Bailey ( It's A Wonderful Life ), LB Jeffries ( Rear Window ), John "Scottie" Ferguson ( Vertigo ), Ransom "Ranse" Stoddard ( The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Philadelphia Story )

Iconic line: "Merry Christmas, you wonderful old Building and Loan!" ( It’s A Wonderful Life )

Initially known for his bumbling naturalism – regularly playing decent, charming, virtuous characters – Stewart’s later years saw him take on darker, more complex roles for Alfred Hitchcock and John Ford. But in George Bailey, Stewart could do both lovable and ambiguous, experiencing a dark night of the soul with some twinkly-eyed charm.

Nicole Kidman

Notable roles: Satine ( Moulin Rouge ), Alice Harford ( Eyes Wide Shut ), Grace Stewart ( The Others ), Virginia Woolf ( The Hours ), Millicent Clyde ( Paddington ), Rae Ingram ( Dead Calm ), Anna ( Birth ), Queen Atlanna ( Aquaman ), Celeste Wright ( Big Little Lies )

Oscars won: 1 ( The Hours )

Iconic line: “One day I’ll fly away / Leave all this to yesterday” ( Moulin Rouge )

Oscillating between steely strength and icy fragility, there’s an ever-present undercurrent of power and precision to all of Kidman’s performances. Equally at home in Hollywood blockbusters and quieter dramatic fare, her range is undeniable – but she’s especially adept at playing women facing inevitable doom.

Dig deep into Empire's Greatest Actors list with the new issue – featuring Ang Lee on Heath Ledger, Ridley Scott on Joaquin Phoenix, Baz Luhrmann on Nicole Kidman, James Mangold on Buster Keaton, an extended Q&A and acting masterclass with Tilda Swinton, and much, much more.

On newsstands from Thursday 22 December – or pre-order a copy online now .

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Tom Cruise Attends Coldplay’s Glastonbury Festival Set with Gillian Anderson and Simon Pegg

The set marked the fifth time the Grammy Award-winning band has headlined the music festival

Samir Hussein/WireImage

It was a star-studded affair at Coldplay ’s 2024 Glastonbury Festival set! 

Tom Cruise , Gillian Anderson and Simon Pegg attended the band’s headlining gig at the annual event in the U.K. on Saturday, June 29.

Pegg, 54, joined Cruise, 61, in the third Mission: Impossible movie as Benji Dunn. He went on to reprise his role in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol , Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation , Mission: Impossible – Fallout and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One . The actor is also set to star in the upcoming sequel.

Pegg and Anderson, 55, meanwhile, costarred in the 2008 comedy movie How to Lose Friends & Alienate People , based on Toby Young's 2001 memoir of the same name. 

The trio were dressed down for the occasion, with Cruise wearing an all-black attire, Pegg rocking a tan baseball cap and a white collared shirt with a dark denim jacket and Anderson in a muted pink coat with her hair pulled back in a ponytail. 

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In a video shared by BBC Radio 6 Music’s Matt Everitt , the three were captured jamming to "Don’t Look Back in Anger" by Oasis ahead of Coldplay’s performance.

The clip shows Pegg singing along to the hit song from a raised platform while pretending to conduct the audience with two hands. Cruise half-heartedly directs alongside him with one hand as Anderson films the scene with her phone. 

In addition to the three, several others stars showed their faces at the anticipated set — which marked the fifth time the seven-time Grammy Award-winning band has headlined the music festival.

Michael J. Fox joined Coldplay onstage to play the guitar during a performance of "Fix You." The actor, 63, was in a wheelchair for the portion of the show. (He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease back in 1991.) "The main reason we’re in a band is because of Back to the Future ," frontman Chris Martin said, referencing Fox's popular film. "So thank you to Michael, our hero."

In the crowd, Dakota Johnson supported fiancé Martin during the set and was captured on a livestream watching him and his band perform from the side of the stage.

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Earlier this week, Cruise was spotted spending some quality time with his son Connor while in London. The star was seen departing a helicopter in Central London, as his 29-year-old son followed behind.

Cruise waved to onlookers while wearing a pair of sunglasses, jeans and an off-white fitted top. Connor, meanwhile, donned a navy baseball cap, a black hoodie, jeans and a pair of athletic sneakers.

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Tom Cruise and Son Connor Spend Time Together in London During Rare Outing

The actor is a father to three children

Tom Cruise is spending some quality time with his son Connor .

On Friday, June 28, the 61-year-old Top Gun: Maverick star was seen departing a helicopter in Central London, as his 29-year-old son followed behind.

The actor waved to onlookers as he wore a pair of sunglasses, jeans and an off-white fitted top. Connor, meanwhile, donned a navy baseball cap, a black hoodie, jeans and some athletic sneakers.

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The rare public outing between the duo comes six months after another public appearance, when Cruise was spotted with both Connor and his older sister, Isabella "Bella," 31.

Back in December, the trio were photographed together in an image shared on Instagram by former NFL player Derrick Brooks. In the photo, Cruise was front and center with his son, as his daughter poked her head through the back of the group image.

Cruise shares his two older kids with his ex-wife,  Nicole Kidman , and shares his 18-year-old daughter Suri with his ex-wife,  Katie Holmes .

Related: Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's Son Connor Cruise Goes Golfing in Rare Photo — See the Pic!

In October 2021, the Mission Impossible star was seen out with his son at a Los Angeles Dodgers game . Before then, the pair were photographed  together in October 2019 in London.

While Bella often shares her artwork on Instagram , her brother tends to share glimpses of himself outside — and he usually updates fans with images involving golfing or fishing.

His last Instagram post came in April 2023, when Connor shared a snap of himself at the Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.

In the photo, Connor gave a thumbs-up to the camera and wore some nice golfing attire. "🏌️‍♂️⛳️," he captioned the image, his first since he shared a shot of himself and some fishing friends in 2022.

Related: Katie Holmes Celebrates High School Graduation of Daughter Suri, 18 — Who Goes by ‘Suri Noelle’ in the Program

While Cruise's eldest son has tried his hand at both  acting  and DJing, he isn't often spotted in public these days.

"Connor has a pretty simple life in Clearwater," a source  told PEOPLE  in 2018. "He lives in his own home in a Scientology community. His life is deep-sea fishing. He has a lot of friends and seems very well-liked."

Cruise's daughter Suri, meanwhile, recently became a high-school graduate this past month in New York City.

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Read the original article on People .

Suri steps out of the shadows: get to know Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes’ only child

Suri is the daughter of the top gun actor and dawson's creek star.

Suri Cruise has grown up before the eyes of the world; her famous parents,  Tom Cruise and  Katie Holmes , had a whirlwind romance that whipped up a frenzy around their small family and ended with a sudden split after nearly six years, followed by a reported estrangement from her father. 

Suri was the A-list of nepo babies in the 2000s; she even inspired a mean-girls-style Tumblr blog called  'Suri's Burn Book' which was full of sassy quips about other nepo babies like the  Beckham kids , written in her voice.

But she is no longer the timid child carted around by her doting mother; on June 21, the teen graduated from LaGuardia High School in New York, making headlines with her decision to  drop her famous father's surname and change to 'Suri Noelle'. Her name, meaning 'princess' in Hebrew, now incorporates her mother's middle name, proving just how close the two are.

Suri was the spitting image of her mom at graduation, dressed in a white flowy dress with her long dark hair worn down. Notably absent from the event was her father, who was seen  dancing up a storm at Taylor Swift's London leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour instead of attending his youngest child's graduation.

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Growing up in the spotlight.

Katie and Tom's love affair was a defining moment of the 2000s; we all remember the iconic moment when Tom jumped on Oprah's couch, so in love that he couldn't contain his excitement. The pair, dubbed TomKat by the media, met in April 2005, got engaged just seven weeks later, and  welcomed Suri in April 2006 before  marrying in October 2006. 

Tom  gushed to ABC News about the birth of his daughter, saying at the time, "It was everything that we wanted it to be... It was spiritual. It was powerful. It was indescribable."

Katie echoed his sentiments, telling  Vanity Fair in October of the same year, "The moment the doctor handed me Suri, I was just ready. The feeling is indescribable. All I can say is the moment I looked in her eyes, I felt like Mom."  

Katie's protectiveness over her only child has been a constant since her birth; she told  Instyle about the lengths she went to avoid the press and find privacy when Suri was growing up.

"We were followed a lot when she was little," she said. "I just wanted her outside, so I would walk her around to find parks at, like, six in the morning when nobody would see us."

Speaking to  Glamour in 2023, the Dawson's Creek actress reiterated how abnormal Suri's childhood was. "What has been really important for me with my daughter, because she was so visible at a young age, is I really like to protect her," she said. 

"I'm very grateful to be a parent, to be her parent. She's an incredible person," the proud mother continued.

Scientology vs fatherhood

Katie and Tom divorced in 2012, after less than six years of marriage. The relationship between Tom and Suri is  reportedly strained due to Tom's heavy involvement with the controversial Church of Scientology. 

Speaking in court during a  2013 defamation trial in which Tom sued a media company for claiming he abandoned his child, a lawyer asked if his ex-wife divorced him to distance Suri from the world of Scientology. 

Tom revealed, "That was one of the assertions, yes." The pair were last snapped together at Disney World in 2012.

Katie was granted full custody of Suri during the divorce proceedings, and Tom received visitation rights. Despite their separation, both parents expressed that they were "committed to working together as parents to accomplish what is in our daughter Suri's best interests." 

Suri’s promising path 

Katie's goal was always to "nurture her into her individuality, to make sure she is 100 per cent herself and strong, confident and able. And to know it," she told Instyle. “She came out very strong — she's always been a strong personality," she continued.

At 18, Suri has already started honing her talents; she lent her beautiful singing voice to two movies her mom directed: Alone Together (2022) and Rare Objects (2023). 

In the  Glamour interview, Katie raved about her daughter's talents and the importance of involving Suri in her projects. "I hope she always does something on my films. I always ask her," she revealed.

"But both of those experiences came out of the same sense of what I love about our industry, which is, you have these projects, and you become a family with people. And it's this safe, beautiful, creative space.

 "So it comes out of love for me to include someone who I love dearly," she continued. "That's how I like to work. I like to have that kind of feeling. It was very meaningful to me to have her there because she's my heart."

 Katie's dedication to nurturing Suri's artistic talents is evident; she told  P eople in 2014 about her efforts to be "very creative" with her daughter and to encourage her artistic spirit. "That speaks to the girl in me," she said of her parenting style.

 In a now-deleted TikTok video, Suri hinted at her college choice by wearing a  Carnegie Mellon sweater .  She was also snapped heading to her  high school prom with her boyfriend, budding musician  Toby Cohen , reminding us again how much she has grown up. 

The mother-daughter-duo share an extremely close bond, and are sure to miss each other when Suri heads off to college. "My main goal is to just let her know how much I love her," the 45-year-old told People. "I'm very grateful to be a parent, to be her parent. She's an incredible person. She's my heart.

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Entertainment | After Tom Cruise once denied ‘abandoning’ Suri,…

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Entertainment | after tom cruise once denied ‘abandoning’ suri, she seems to get the last word, cruise’s absence from his daughter’s high school graduation last weekend has again sparked questions and criticism about his alleged choice to not have a role in her life.

In a September 2013 deposition for the case, the Hollywood mega-star explained his objections to reports by In Touch that said he had cut ties with a then-7-year-old Suri after Holmes divorced him in 2012. He took issue with the publication claiming that he, a top celebrity member of Scientology, had chosen the church over his daughter “for good.”

“‘Abandoned by Daddy,'” Cruise said angrily in the deposition, referring to the headline of the story. “I mean, come on, that is absolutely disgusting. That is absolutely disgusting.”

But as Queen Elizabeth II once famously said about “recollections,” definitions of “abandonment” also may vary in this situation. In a report this week, The Sun quoted insiders who said that Cruise has not seen his daughter in 11 years.

Allegations of “abandonment” returned last weekend as Cruise let himself be photographed at one of Taylor Swift’s sold-out “Eras Tour” performances at Wembley Stadium in London. The “Top Gun” actor was seen exchanging friendship bracelets, hanging out with NFL star Travis Kelce and dancing to Swift’s music in the VIP seats.

But the night before, Cruise very publicly missed a major milestone in Suri’s life: her graduation from the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City.

Cruise’s absence from Suri’s graduation made headlines. And then came more headlines about the 18-year-old dropping her father’s surname for the ceremony. She instead used the name “Siri Noelle.”

Sources told Page Six that the new name was a tribute to her mother. Noelle is Katie Holmes’ middle name, and Holmes has essentially raised Suri as a single parent in New York City since her divorce from Cruise.

It’s not clear whether Suri has gone to court to make the name change official, Page Six said. A source told the publication that Suri dropped her father’s surname because she wants her “own identity” and to “start fresh at college.”

But Suri’s new name choice also could be seen as a rebuke of her famous father — a sign that she has, in her way, abandoned him.

Tony Ortega, a journalist who covers Scientology, called Cruise out this week for “abandonment,” following reports about the actor going to Swift’s concert but not his daughter’s graduation. In an email newsletter for his Underground Bunker newsletter, Ortega said that choices Cruise has made over the past 12 years show that his “abandonment” of his daughter is “even worse than most people realize.”

Cruise and Holmes began dating in 2005, became parents to Suri in the spring of 2006 and married later that year in a ceremony at an Italian castle that was  attended by a number of high-profile Scientologists, including church leader David Miscavige.

Early in the marriage, Holmes was very involved in the church, which is said to exert a cult-like control over its members, Ortega said. But her interest in building her life around Scientology teachings cooled over the next six years, Ortega said. As Holmes was raising Suri, she also was getting to know Cruise’s older children, Isabella and Connor, whose mother is Nicole Kidman. Like Holmes, Kidman was initially very involved in the organization, but the Oscar winner’s interest similarly waned before her split from Cruise in 2001.

Isabella and Connor ended up living with Cruise following the divorce, where they were home-schooled and taught that Kidman was a “suppressive person,” or an SP, someone who is viewed as hostile to Scientology, according to a 2012 investigative story by Vanity Fair.

Holmes would have become aware that Scientology’s indoctrination for Suri would begin after her sixth birthday, Ortega reported. It’s no coincidence that Holmes decided to leave Cruise in 2012, around the time Suri turned six, The Sun also reported.

Cruise admitted he “didn’t expect” Holmes to file for divorce; the divorce proceeded quickly with the ex-spouses reaching a settlement within 11 days. The Sun reported that Cruise was granted sole custody of Suri. Under the terms of the settlement, Cruise also was required to pay $400,000 a year to help with her upbringing. There’s been no reporting that Cruise didn’t fulfill this obligation.

Holmes’ decision to leave the marriage, seek primary custody of Suri and enroll their daughter in private school caused “a massive public relations disaster” for Cruise and for Scientology, according to Ortega and Vanity Fair.

Holmes’ actions “would be automatic grounds for disconnection” from the church and Scientology members “if she were married to any other Scientologist,” Vanity Fair reported. But Cruise was given the option to maintain ties with his daughter, because of his celebrity status within the church, according to Ortega and Variety Fair.

To what extent Cruise maintained a relationship with his daughter became the chief source of contention in the actor’s lawsuit against In Touch and its owner, Bauer Publishing, according to The Hollywood Reporter . In his deposition, Cruise said he never “cut Suri out of my life — whether physically, emotionally, financially or otherwise.

Cruise acknowledged that he didn’t get to see often since the divorce. He said it was difficult to arrange visits around his film shoots and Holmes’ schedule.

“Certainly what doesn’t change is the love that I have for my daughter, and that I didn’t abandon her emotionally, physically or otherwise,” Cruise said. “And in terms of how I feel about her in terms of the responsibility that I feel towards my child is not—(has) not waned in any way.”

Several weeks after Cruise’s deposition became public, the actor settled his lawsuit with Bauer Publishing in December 2013, the Hollywood Reporter said. Terms of the settlement were not released, but Bauer Publishing released a joint statement with Cruise’s attorneys. The statement said that the publisher “never intended to communicate that Tom Cruise had cut off all ties and abandoned his daughter, Suri, and regret if anyone drew that inference from anything they published.”

Since then, there have been multiple reports over the years, saying that Cruise doesn’t see his daughter. The Sun’s report suggested that their visits ended around around 2013.

In his newsletter, Ortega took issue with Cruise’s alleged choice to Suri out of his life, even as he apparently enjoyed an exception in Scientology. Ortega said he could ignore rules that apply to most members, who are told to disconnect from family and friends who are non-believers,  Ortega said.

“Even if Scientology had formally declared Katie to be an enemy, Tom Cruise is not a regular Scientology member,” Ortega said. “He’s a celebrity. And in fact, the most important Scientology celebrity of all time. And as a celebrity, Tom would have the ability to ignore those rules and continue to see both Katie and Suri if he wanted to.”

“But that’s not what happened,” Ortega said. “As the years passed after that 2012 split, it became more and more obvious that Tom had completely cut Katie and Suri out of his life.”

Ortega believes that Cruise in fact chose Scientology over his own daughter, even after the actor denied doing so in 2012. Cruise did so because he’s convinced that the late Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard “is the greatest human being who ever lived” and that Hubbard’s “technology” is the only thing that will “save” this planet, Ortega said.

Cruise would therefore want to maintain his relationship with Scientology, even if it meant not having one with his daughter, Ortega said. But the journalist offered another reason that Cruise cut ties with Suri when he didn’t have to.

In Ortega’s view, Cruise is not an admirable person, not as he’s often portrayed in positive press accounts. Ortega actually used more blunt terms to describe Cruise and insisted that the media is “always too afraid” to call him out.

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Tom Hanks made $40 million from Forrest Gump after adding clever clause into his contract

Tom hanks earned a big payday from the 1994 comedy-drama..

Hollywood actor Tom Hanks definitely made a genius decision when he reportedly decided to insert a specific clause into his Forrest Gump contract.

In 1993, Hanks , then 37, nabbed the role in Robert Zemeckis’ award-winning movie after Grease star John Travolta decided to turn the part down.

The California native - who also beat out Bill Murray , Chevy Chase and Matthew Broderick to the role - began portraying the titular character in August of the same year and eventually went on to win Best Actor at the 1995 Academy Awards .

If you’ve yet to see 1994’s Forrest Gump or just want a refresher, check out the iconic trailer below:

The movie follows the life of an Alabama man named Forrest and chronicles friendship, love and loss in the 20th-century United States .

During the course of the movie, Forrest joins the U.S. Army and is sent to serve in Vietnam, becomes a shrimper and tells President John F. Kennedy that he needs to use the bathroom.

Starring alongside Hanks, now 67, in the charming movie was Robin Wright, 58, Mykelti Williamson, 67, and Gary Sinise, 69, among others.

Ahead of the film’s cinematic release, the Elvis actor reportedly negotiated a specific clause in his contract which would allow him to take home earnings based on a portion of box office receipts.

This was instead of receiving a flat fee for his acting role - a pretty risky move, right?

Thankfully though it paid off for Hanks as he reportedly took home $40 million from the 1994 project.

This was bolstered by the extra earnings he and Zemeckis raked in after investing their own funds in Forrest Gump to keep scenes in the flick Paramount Pictures supposedly weren’t willing to pay for.

Following Forrest Gump ’s triumphant cinematic release, the movie became the film house’s fastest-grossing offering, passing records of $100 million and $200 million.

And as Awards Season swung around, it took home six Oscar gongs including Best Picture, Best Director and the previously-mentioned Best Actor.

Unfortunately, Hanks has never shared his official records of Forrest Gump earnings but reports from Business Insider have previously claimed he could’ve taken home around $60,000.

According to Collider, Forrest Gump is Hanks’ fourth-highest-grossing movie - with the Worldwide Box Office Gross landing at $678,226,465.

Only 2006’s The Da Vinci Code ($760,006,945), Toy Story 3 ($1,067,316,101) and Toy Story 4 ($1,073,841,394) earned more at the box office.

Topics:  Tom Hanks , Celebrity , Money , Film and TV , Hollywood

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Jake gyllenhaal's acting has been described as 'tremendous' in his first tv role.

The Boys fans are only just realizing this main character was recast after the first season

One the boys fan described it as a 'mandela effect'.

People are saying this historical drama is the 'greatest movie of all time'

The brutal movie was written and directed by mel gibson.

Grey’s Anatomy star reveals 'real reason' why he was fired from the hit series

The grey's anatomy actor appeared on the show for six seasons.

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