Tom Cruise is the personification of the word ‘Superstar’ thanks to his unbeatable charm and a career graph that only seems to go upwards. With films like Top Gun: Maverick and Jerry Maguire, the actor has time and again proven why he is the best of the best in the film industry. Naturally, a superstar of his caliber will have gigantic paychecks coming his way, often upsetting the gender pay gap.
Tom Cruise has previously come under fire by Alec Baldwin for taking up too much of a film’s budget, leading to the actresses getting paid significantly less. However, if you have seen any of the Mission: Impossible films, you’d know that Tom Cruise is nothing short of a feminist, keeping the salaries aside. The films have constantly cast strong female characters, breaking the stereotypes we’ve been seeing in action films for a long time. The latest casting for Mission: Impossible 8 is no exception!
Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible 8 Welcomes Yet Another Great Actress
From Nyah Nordoff-Hall (Thandiwe Newton) to Zhen Lei (Maggie Q) to Grace (Hayley Atwell), the Mission: Impossible franchise has time and again introduced action fanatics to strong and badass female characters who will leave you in awe. Not to mention that the actresses behind these roles are so perfectly cast that the thin line between reel and real can easily be forgotten if you don’t pay close attention to the screen.
Keeping the streak alive, actress Katy O’Brian has joined the cast of Tom Cruise’s upcoming Mission: Impossible 8 (via Deadline). O’Brian was last seen in Love Lies Bleeding, where she played a jacked bodybuilder. Just seeing her play the role of Jackie to utmost perfection has us excited about what she will bring to the table for Mission: Impossible 8.
Unfortunately, details about her role as well as the film’s plot have not been made public just yet. However, if O’Brian’s filmography is any indication of what’s to come, it looks like Mission: Impossible 8 will be adding yet another badass female character to its franchise, and we are here for it!
What Did Alec Baldwin Say about Tom Cruise’s Role in Gender Pay Gap?
Back in 2009, Alec Baldwin had something to say about the unfair pay gap between an actor and an actress and even had a simple solution to the problem. According to Baldwin, if Cruise would take a step and cut a small amount of $29 million from his quote, Hollywood would have more zeroes to add to the paychecks of women.
While hosting Elle magazine’s annual Women in Hollywood dinner and awards show, Baldwin joked (via E! Online),
“I believe we can balance the scales if Tom Cruise would lower his quote by a mere $29 million. I realize this may be a bit unfair since he’s not here to defend himself and I really don’t want to put this all on one man, but if I had to, that man would be Tom Cruise…I assure you my salary would not make a difference. My annual salary is the budget for Altoids on one of Tom’s movies.”
Of course, Baldwin’s statement was in good humor, and his audience agreed as they erupted in laughter.
Mission: Impossible 8 is set to release in theatres on May 23, 2025.
