Tom Cruise has long been featured at the top of the box office for his tear-jerking romance films and as a beloved action movie star. As a star of ’80s cinema and beyond, he has become the standard for box-office prowess and is one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood. The Top Gun star has gone above and beyond in his commitment to putting on a good show for audiences. From hanging outside of moving planes, epic jumps, motorcycle stunts, and even performing under actual zero-gravity.
Cruise’s pursuit of the most epic stunt is a key reason why fans keep showing up in large numbers to see his films. During his forty-plus-year film career, he has broken stunt-related records and box-office records even into his sixties. Tom Cruise has even been nominated for four Oscars, with audiences clamoring for him to win for his performance in Top Gun: Maverick.
During his illustrious career, Cruise has stunned and shocked fans with his death-defying stunts and has broken quite a few records along the way. Give a read through the list below to look back on his most record-breaking performances.
7‘Eyes Wide Shut’ (1999)
Longest Continuous Film Shoot
In Stanley Kubrick’s final film, he pushed Cruise and his then spouse, Nicole Kidman to their limits. The film broke and still holds the record for longest-continuous film shoot. The shoot lasted an astounding 46 weeks filled with rewrites of the script, relentless takes of single scenes, and mental frustration due to the boundary-pushing director, Kubrick. The thriller classic from the director was born out of the pressure placed on its actors and still has fans guessing about the ending twenty-five years later.
Difficult Director
If there’s anyone who could match Kubrick’s intensity it is Cruise. The two perfectionists and relentless workers matched up well and Cruise remains on the short list of actors who enjoyed working with Kubrick. Set during Christmastime in New York City, the film depicts a couple as they become involved with a mysterious society that threatens to tear them apart. It is one of the most unlikely performances of Cruise’s career and takes him out of the standard heartthrob or action star persona he is known for.
6‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’ (2015)
On-Set Record for Breath-Holding Underwater (At the Time)
The fifth installment of the Mission: Impossible series had Tom Cruise and fans gasping for air during one of his most iconic stunts. Returning yet again as Ethan Hunt, Cruise is forced to test his resolve and his lung capacity during a particularly challenging scene. The actor set the on-set record for breath-holding underwater with an astounding time of six minutes. The record stood from 2015 to 2022, when Kate Winslet outlasted him. But for fans who get excited about these types of records, he is apparently looking to break that record in The Final Reckoning.
Death-Defying Stunts
Fans of Cruise are used to seeing him challenge himself physically and Cruise recognizes that. He has had multiple broken bones over the years and has avoided near-death experiences in the name of cinema. Thankfully, he was not hurt in this stunt and has gone on to take on even more difficult challenges.
5‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ (2018)
Longest Jump on a Film Set
There is no stunt too big or too dangerous for the fearless actor. This time it was about accomplishing an epic jump for the well-known Ethan Hunt. Tom Cruise proved himself once again, only this time at 25,000 feet in the air. In what is the longest jump done on a film set, most people would be horrified to try it once. But Cruise attempted the jump an astounding 106 times, proving that fear is not a factor for Cruise.
Giant Leap
Cruise is known for taking massive jumps of faith. Whether it is in rom-coms or action films, he relentlessly throws himself into every role and out of every plane. The massive stunt required military operators and Cruise to wear a specially designed oxygen mask. As the stunt racked up triple-digit attempts, Cruise finally got his director, Christopher McQuarrie a shot they could both be proud of.
4‘Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol’ (2011)
Climbed the Tallest Building in the World
The stunt for Ghost Protocol took Tom Cruise all the way to Dubai to conquer the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa. Cruise has shown off his climbing skills in Mission: Impossible II and displayed those skills once again here. The actor prefers to do everything as realistically as possible, so his production team set their sites on the world’s tallest building.
Epic Climb
After securing the proper permits, Cruise dealt with restricting gear in an effort to pull off the scene. The fourth film in the series found Hunt and his team with their backs against the wall as presumed terrorists. He set his sights on clearing himself and his team’s name and set his heights on something completely unexpected. While not quite as high as his 25,000-foot Halo jump, he is one of the only people who can claim to have claimed the famous Burj Khalifa.
3‘Top Gun: Maverick’ (2022)
Highest-Grossing Memorial Day Weekend
The box office “Maverick” did it again with the sequel to one of his most iconic films, Top Gun. The rebellious Pete Mitchell hit the skies once again and took the series to new heights with epic stunts and a shocking box office return. Cruise stands as the Guinness record holder for the most consecutive films grossing over $100 million with a shocking eight in a row. But this time he claimed an entire holiday weekend after surpassing Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End as the highest-grossing Memorial Day weekend film.
King of the Box Office
Showing that actors can still hit the top of the box office later in their careers, Cruise topped the charts yet again. Maverick was nominated for Best Picture and was praised for its emotional depth. That was especially the case in Cruise’s gut-wrenching scene with Val Kilmer. The film grossed $1.46 billion and became Cruise’s top-grossing film of his career and the fifth highest-grossing film of all time.
2‘The Last Samurai’ (2003)
Highest-Grossing R-rated Film in Japan (At the Time)
The Last Samurai received four Oscar Nominations but remains one of Cruise’s most controversial films. The portrayal of Cruise as a white savior character received fair criticism. But that didn’t stop it from becoming one of the highest-grossing films of the year. After its 2003 release, it surpassed The Matrix Reloaded as the top-grossing R-rated film in Japan. Known for shattering records and bones, Cruise cruised his way to the top of the charts once more.
A Major Hero
Cruise who portrays the character Nathan Algren, is a disgruntled soldier who helps to train a Japanese army to help suppress a looming attack. Algren is an outsider but becomes an integral part of the army while carrying out some of the most intense battle scenes witnessed at the time. Grossing nearly $500 million, the film managed to pull in top accolades as well in one of Cruise’s most iconic films.
1War of the Worlds
Fastest Steven Spielberg Film to Reach $100 Million at the Box Office
Two of the film industry’s most iconic characters, Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg team up in this epic sci-fi film which also stars a young Dakota Fanning. Teaming up with Cruise is a near guarantee for box office success and that was no different here. War of the Worlds became Spielberg’s fastest film to reach $100 million at the box office. Now ranking as the fifth highest-grossing Spielberg film of all time, it has left fans hoping to see the duo team up once again.
Incredible Sci-Fi
As extraterrestrials invade Earth, Cruise’s character, Ray Ferrier, must protect his family. The film showcases Spielberg’s filmmaking prowess as well as Cruise’s ability to thrill and engage fans. In yet another battle against an end-of-the-world scenario, Cruise proves yet again to be the right man for the job. The actor has shown the ability to smash records over the years and here’s to hoping he will continue to do so well into the future.
