Exploring the legacy of Tom Cruise as a unique figure in cinema

Make no mistake, Mission Impossible films feature some of the most outrageous, death-defying stunts in Hollywood history. While there's no shortage of daredevils on the silver screen, this particular franchise goes above and beyond typical blockbuster feats. And unlike most action icons, Ethan Hunt is just built different. That's because there is one major distinction between Mission Impossible and basically any other American film series, the Tom Cruise factor. I'm going to shoot it in Norway. There would be a motorcycle jump off a cliff into a base jump. I've wanted to do it since I was a little kid. It all comes down to one thing, the audience. As the central star and driving force of eight Mission Impossible films, Cruise has repeatedly blown our minds with tremendous stunt work. And over the years, it's easy to forget how crucial his career really is. Cruise is perhaps the last movie star of his kind. First appearing in films at just 19, his brief early roles were highly indicative of the Cruise to come. In fact, as a greaser tough guy in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders, the actor pulled off his first on-screen stunts. Although Cruise could have quickly fallen to the wayside as just another hunk, 1983's Risky Business defied all expectations. Considered a defining moment in 80s culture, Cruise's performance in Risky Business elevated him to superstar status overnight. With the range of a seasoned actor and a magnetic charm you just can't fake, There's one thing I've learned. It's incredible to think Cruise had almost no formal training up to that point and had practically just ordered his first legal beer. But like any good origin story, Cruise had to face his demons on the road to fame, a big red demon played by Tim Curry. Every wolf suffers fleas. It is easy enough to scratch. Although his first foray into action films didn't cut it with critics, the actor wasn't willing to let legendary failures slow him down. And after starring as the enigmatic Maverick in Top Gun, Tom Cruise fully came into his own as an American institution. Because unlike the leading men who had come before him, Tom Cruise had acting chops and an unbelievable physical presence. Hoping to learn the stuntman trade which had compelled him since his early backflipping days, Cruise performed a number of his own stunts on Top Gun. Unfortunately, he also had his first lesson in the dangers of stunts gone wrong. Because, according to co-star Barry Wolfman Tubb, Cruise came as close to dying as anybody on set I've ever seen. In a gut-wrenching moment when Maverick discovers the fate of fellow pilot Goose, Cruise's parachute began filling up with water in real life. Moments before being sucked under the waves, a crew member noticed the sinking actor and rushed in to cut him loose. They would have never found him, Tubb recalled. He would have been at the bottom of the ocean. Relentless in his quest to become Hollywood's most interesting leading man, Cruise followed up the success of Top Gun with a long list of acclaimed credits. From heartfelt dramas, biopics, and sports films, Cruise distanced himself from major action. But even a slew of legal dramas couldn't stop Cruise from throwing in a few signature flips. Cruise then began his own production company after this string of success, and due to his partnership with Paramount Pictures, he secured the rights to a classic chosen adaptation of Mission Impossible as his first personal undertaking. Having already worked with visionaries like Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone, care, and finding the right talent to direct. Worried that his star power would shine too brightly in an ensemble cast, Cruise needed a strong vision to succeed from classic television to modern film. After dining with legendary auteur Brian De Palma, a meeting suggested by Steven Spielberg, the star-faced mastermind quickly hit it off and came up with a plan. The first thing we have to do, De Palma told Cruise, is kill off the whole team. Though De Palma's frenetic visual language lent itself to dizzying displays of high-tech action, the first Mission outing is a far cry from the bombastic set pieces we've come to love. Even still, the blueprints for what the franchise would go on to achieve are all laid out before us with this first entry. Mission implies, but the film was a stirring success. Backed by shattering box office achievements, Tom Cruise proved he could produce. And by performing his own stunts under the Ethan Hunt banner, a new type of movie star was powerhousing his way out of action and roles. As if rom-com Hall of Fame status with Jerry Maguire wasn't enough, Cruise also starred in Stanley Kubrick's final film, Eyes Wide Shut. Add to that a pivotal performance in Paul Thomas Anderson's third feature, Magnolia, and we see the sort of self-reflective work that Cruise just doesn't get enough credit for. While it's easy to dismiss the actor's eccentricities, few performers challenge their own identity like Cruise. In the love life of a professional narcissist dissecting the crumbling marriage between two powerful people or playing an aggressive cult leader, Tom Cruise's characters feel authentically Cruise. chalk it up to personal experience or pure on-screen charisma, it's no question the man knows his way around emotional performances. Now, despite a streak of effective, surprising choices, it was only a matter of time before Cruise got back in the hot seat. Returning as both producer and Ethan Hunt, Cruise snagged Hong Kong cinema titan John Woo to direct Mission Impossible 2. Featuring a scruffier, tougher version of the central character, Woo's take on Mission favors pure spectacle over espionage hijinks. Although it is perhaps looked down on in the grand scheme the franchise. Impossible 2 banked an even bigger box office and is a particularly special entry. Not only does Cruise inject Ethan Hunt with deeper layers of emotionality, the film also features one of the most exhilarating opening sequences in the series. I was really mad that he wanted to do it, Director John Woo said in the film's first scene. I tried to stop him, and I couldn't. He was so nervous that I might plummet to my death, and then he would be held responsible. And I don't blame him. In the film, Ethan Hunt scales the epic cliff face of Dead Horse Point in Utah. Strapped in with a meager climbing wire, the then-37-year-old actor insisted on doing the scene himself. "...I couldn't even watch the monitor when we shot it," Wu recalled. Although the studio nearly threatened to shut production down over the stunt, the film's actual producer prevailed. By way of sheer star power, Cruise convinced executives that handling the cliff himself was the only way to go. And to his credit, the actor was right. I've never had a problem with heights. As a kid, any time I get to the edge, I want to jump off. I don't know what it is. It's subconscious. I don't want to kill myself. I want to fly." The opening sequence just wouldn't have been the same if he hadn't done it himself. Co-star John Poulsen said, "...no amount of special effects can make you feel like that because you can tell that it's really just him." There is no question the actor struggled with negative tabloids and increasingly bizarre behavior after the sequel's success, but through it all, Cruise maintained his personable powers. All right, that's not the way he moves. He doesn't pivot that way. He likes to lunge left. He doesn't usually scoop under right. I think it's a bad idea. He's never going to go for it. It's not realistic. It's not a Tom Cruise kick." and continued to make movies with major impact. Few performers can ever hope to claim a single credit under Steven Spielberg, let alone two, in the span of a few short years. And how many actors can say they took part in a critically acclaimed thriller by American crime cinema guru Michael Mann? Toss in some successful historical epics, a few comedic cameos, and you have the of career dreams are made of. But for Tom Cruise, that's just a quick five-year run. Never long for another go as Ethan Hunt, Tom Cruise always returns home for more Mission Impossible. Pushing the envelope even further in the J.J. Abrams-directed threequel, Cruise embarked on the sort of sleek, terrifying stunts that now dominate the series. And like the early stunts and set pieces of Charlie Chaplin, or the awe-inspiring feats of Jackie Chan films, Cruise effectively became a genre unto himself. After The Incredibles, and Iron Giant director Brad Bird brought his previously animated antics into the Mission Impossible verse, it seemed like Ethan Hunt's exploits couldn't climb any higher. But for every successful ruler, there is always an heir apparent. And when Mission Impossible 4 director Christopher McQuarrie seemingly tried to slate co-star Jeremy Renner as the next Ethan Hunt, fans weren't having it. "...I'm afraid today is the day when the IMF's luck runs out." In fact, if any film series deserves to retire with its aging star, Mission Impossible makes a strong case. Without Cruise, would it really be Mission Impossible at all? Now, whether or not audience outcry had any say in the matter, Cruise came back as Ethan Hunt for 2018's Mission Impossible Fallout. A return to form for both the franchise and the actor, after the disastrous reception of The Mummy, Fallout is everything we love about Mission Impossible in one tidy package. With a ragtag gang of lovable agents, a famously mustachioed Henry Cavill and typically on-point athletics from Cruise, this sixth entry feels like an action fan's fever dream. And for all of Tom Cruise's miraculous stunts over the years, his famous halo jump at nearly 60 years old might just go down as the craziest on-screen feat of all time. Much like his free climbing sequence in Mission Impossible 2, Cruise said there were a lot of people telling us it wasn't going to happen. But even with a recently broken an ankle, and an extremely nervous studio, Cruise made the jump, well, around 100 jumps. Because due to the extreme nature of the stunt, the film crew were only able to make a shoot one time a day. And in the end, Cruise's unflappable drive to entertain gave us more than we probably deserve. When Dead Reckoning Part 1 was released in 2023, Mission Impossible still showed no signs of running out of gas. With crazier leaps of faith and tighter margins for error, Cruise made it clear that his return was no fluke. Less grounded than any of the previous films, Dead Reckoning hits like a Metal Gear Solid video game or a mid-'90s comic team-up. As a relief to Ethan Hunt fans, or those that just like to watch a guy climb around on a giant airplane, the seventh film in the franchise opens up a world of new possibilities. With more existential threats and less insistence on personal stakes, Dead Reckoning is practically a fresh start for a consistently fascinating series. Even though Cruise's late career has been filled with more action films than dramatic stunners, the actor has still managed to find ways to surprise audiences, because unlike many of his action-centric contemporaries, Cruise isn't afraid to lose face. And rather than writing clauses into contracts which only allow him to play heroes, Cruise takes on characters with authentic troubles. It's what makes Tom Cruise's selfish, distracted dad role in War of the Worlds feel like an actual guy, or why we so easily forgive our mummy grievances. It's that special sauce needed to take a squeamish, utterly terrified character like Major Bill and turn him into Edge of Tomorrow's biggest badass. And most importantly, it's the way Cruise makes us believe Ethan Hunt can fly, or climb, or swing, or soar.