Despite Tom Cruise’s prolific Hollywood endeavors, the megastar’s ultimate dream to have the industry united under one common, altruistic, and shared vision seems almost too good to be true. And yet, the veteran actor who first glided his way into our hearts, half-naked, and wild with untapped potential and energy in 1983’s Risky Business, and who has been putting his life at risk ever since in increasingly dangerous stunts took zero risks when it came down to protecting the lives and jobs of those around him.
And it is impossible to reach a certain stage and position of rank, authority, and power in an industry as brutally critical as Hollywood without upsetting a few people along the way.
Tom Cruise Furious Rant Gets Leaked on the Internet
The packed filming schedule that narrates Tom Cruise‘s life and his every waking hour was at a peak during the pandemic. So while the world was at a standstill, the actor was busy providing jobs and ensuring a source of livelihood to thousands of people across Hollywood’s different sectors. However, the matter also quickly becomes a double-edged sword as working in massive Hollywood productions during a time of social distancing and isolation also meant that the actor – as the face and the representative of the franchise/film – was deliberately putting hundreds of lives at risk every day by making them come to work.
As such, despite a thorough follow-through of the essential safety protocols on set, it is near impossible for a film crew to maintain a safe distance from each other in a nearly packed set. During the Mission: Impossible 7 shoot, an issue quite similar evoked a rant from a furious Cruise – the audio recording of which later found its way onto the internet:
“They’re back there in Hollywood making movies right now because of us. We are creating thousands of jobs. That’s it. No apologies. You can tell it to the people that are losing their f–king homes because our industry is shut down.
We are not shutting this f–king movie down. Is it understood? If I see it again, you’re f–king gone.”
Despite drawing a lot of flak and criticism for his rude rebuke of his production crew, the speech also drew a fair share of support and appreciation for being justified in its attempt to ensure all COVID-19 safety protocols were being followed and no lives were being put at risk.
George Clooney Called Out Tom Cruise For Pandemic Rant
The Ocean’s trilogy actor George Clooney, although a bit taken aback by Tom Cruise’s rant at first, eventually stood by his words. Clooney maintained that even though Cruise’s intentions were right, the way he approached the matter at hand was brash and cruel:
“I wouldn’t have done it that big, I wouldn’t have pulled people out. You’re in a position of power and it’s tricky, right? You do have a responsibility for everybody else, and he’s absolutely right about that, and if the production goes down a lot of people lose their jobs. People have to understand that and be responsible. It’s just not my style to take everybody to task that way. It doesn’t help necessarily, to point to specific people in that way, but everybody has their own style.
The people who were on that shoot will tell us more about it. I understand why he did it, he’s not wrong at all, I just don’t know if I would have done it quite that personally. But I don’t know the circumstances, maybe he had it 10 or 15 times before.”
Clooney also added that despite how unnecessarily rude the tone of his rant might have been, it was also understandable as “he didn’t overreact because it is a problem.” Currently, Tom Cruise is gearing up for the very same film that once laid at the heart of such controversy and debate in the media.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One hits the theatres on July 12, 2023.
Source: The Howard Stern Show
