He’s probably the biggest movie star of our time, so we all think we know him so well. But in fact, Tom Cruise’s life has been full of quirks and amazing incidents that have led him to become the giant that he is today. I bet some of these will really blow your mind, and maybe even change the way you think about the Hollywood icon.
He was on his way to become a priest
Before becoming a Hollywood icon, Cruise had some different plans. At 14 he wanted to become a Catholic priest, and even went to a seminary for it. Luckily for us, he was kicked out of school due to some alcohol-stealing and cigarette-smoking incidents. Thank god for those.
One of Disney’s most iconic characters is based on him
It may not surprise you to find out that Aladdin is somewhat based on Cruise. The movie’s animators team used some of Cruise’s hair and facial features in order to make the movie’s star more likeable to the audience. Cruise is so successful that they’re even basing animated characters on him!
He could possibly end Scientology
Cruise is the probably the most famous person in Scientology worldwide, and through the years he has become one of the most prominent figures in the church. In 2017 actress Leah Remini, who has left the church and now is a leading critic of it, said that Tom Cruise “has the power to end Scientology if he wanted to”.
He’s a hero even when the cameras are off
In 1996, Cruise witnessed a stranger getting hit by a car. He accompanied the injured lady to the hospital, and made sure she was taken care of. He even found out that she had no insurance, and decided to pay her expensive hospital bill. What a gentleman.
He divorced all his wives when they were at the same age
This one’s a bit bizarre. Cruise has divorced three women – Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes. When they divorced from Cruise, all three ex-wives were 33. It’s probably just a weird coincidence, but divorcing 3 33 year olds is kind of interesting.
His blockbuster film career has broken some incredible records
Cruise was the first actor ever to appear in 5 consecutive movies that grossed more than 100$ million. That’s right – five! Those were: “A Few Good Men”, “The Firm”, “Interview with a Vampire”, the immensely successful “Mission: Impossible”, and of course the cult film – “Jerry Maguire”.
Some of his other records are not as awesome
In 1988, Cruise became the first actor to star in two extreme movies – both the Razzie winner for Worst Picture, “Cocktail”, and the Oscar-winner for Best Picture, “Rain Man”. It’s true what they say – he’s man of extremes.
The famous “Risky Business” dance was an improvisation
The 1983 American coming-of-age comedy starred Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay. Many will not remember the movie’s plot, but one scene from it became one the most famous in 80’s cinematic history – Cruise’s dance scene. The scene took half a day to shoot, and Cruise totally improvised the choreography. The film’s script simply stated “Joel dances in underwear through the house”.
His birthday date appears in “Rain Man”
The 1988 comedy-drama starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman was a huge box office success, and includes a hidden detail from Cruise’s life. During the film, the number 3762 can be seen on the car’s windscreen. Cruise was born on July 3rd, 1962.
He was almost cast as Iron Man
Robert Downey Jr.’s amazing performance as Tony Stark (a.k.a. Iron Man) was the basis for the unprecedented success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to this day. But before he was offered the part, it was initially offered to Cruise. Cruise declined the role, but given the success he’s had in Hollywood even in recent years, I’m not sure he’s got any regrets about it.
His Oprah moment made headlines
It was in 2005, long before social media was ready to handle such meme-making moments, that Cruise was Oprah’s guest on her TV show. When talking about his then spouse, Katie Holmes, Cruise was full of excitement and passion, expressed in his very unique way by jumping all over Oprah’s yellow couch. That memorable moment was rated the “#1 Most Surprising Moment of TV” of 2005.
He refuses to get his own action figure
Ever since his early day of acting Hollywood and throughout many iconic action roles, Cruise denied countless requests to make action figures of him and video games starring his figure. This is truly disappointing to many of his fan, but it also make it more special when we actually need to go to the cinema to see him in action.
He’s a legit pilot
Inspired by “Top Gun”, Cruise got an actual pilot’s license in 1994. In fact, he has both a private and a commercial license, and likes to fly his own private jets. See, that’s just the kind of awesome movie stair Tom Cruise is.
An injury got him into acting
During high school, Cruise was an enthusiastic wrestler on the school’s team. When a suffered a knee injury and was unable to continue playing on the team, he looked for an alternative plan. This is probably what led him to audition for the school’s production of “Guys and Dolls”. And so it began.
He nearly died when filming “The Last Samurai”
During the movie’s filming, one of the mechanical horses used for the movie’s fight scenes has malfunctioned, causing his co-star, Hiroyuki Sanada, to swing his blade in a way that almost killed Cruise. “I just managed to stop my sword an inch from his neck”, he said. Cruise was obviously not traumatized by the incident – he continues to do pretty much all of his stunts on his own.
He has yet to win an Oscar
Shockingly enough, Cruise has never taken the golden statue back home from the ceremony, even though he’s been nominated for the award three times, for “Jerry Maguire”, “Magnolia”, and “Born on the Fourth of July”. Come on, he’s a living legend and hero, give the man an Oscar!
