Tom Cruise Has To Be Told To ‘Stop Smiling’ When He Does His Stunts
Tom Cruise is one of the most notable action movie stars to ever enter Hollywood. Although he first garnered critical acclaim from his performances in dramas such as Rain Man and Jerry Maguire, he’s made a substantial portion of his $570 million fortune from starring in action films such as Top Gun and the Mission: Impossible franchise.
Because he’s been in so many action flicks, Cruise’s films often require a lot of stunts. While most actors prefer to have someone else do their stunts for them, Cruise is notorious for doing all of his own stunts.
Over the years, he’s developed a love for the thrill of doing stunts, and has been told on several occasions to stop smiling as he does them.
Tom Cruise loves doing his own stunts
Cruise talked about how much he enjoys doing stunts during a recent visit to the Graham Norton Show, according to Daily Mail. According to Cruise, he’s accumulated many injuries over the years doing stunts.
“I am a very physical actor and I love doing them. I study and train and take a lot of time figuring it all out. I have broken a lot of bones,” Cruise said.
He’s been told to ‘stop smiling’ while he does his stunts
Cruise’s passion for doing stunts can be difficult for him to hide. In fact, he gets so happy that he often starts smiling as he does them.
“The first time of any stunt is nerve-wracking, but it’s also exhilarating. I have been told a few times during shooting a stunt to stop smiling.”
He’s done some insane stunts over the years
Having starred in numerous action films over the course of more than three decades, Cruise has done some truly amazing stunts. While filming his upcoming movie, Mission Impossible 7 in 2020, he leapt from a motorbike while it flew off of a ramp 500 feet in the air.
He also swung from Dubai’s Burj Khalifa building at 2,700 feet, hung on the outside of a plane as it took off, and held his breath underwater for six minutes.
On Mission Impossible: Fallout, he did an extended free-fall from a plane at nearly 30,000 feet. He flew through the air at speeds of up to 220 mph and had to do the stunt under the supervision of the United Arab Emirates Royal Air Force, as they were the only country that would legally allow him to do it.
He broke his ankle after slamming into a wall
Although Cruise has had a lot of fun filming stunts for his roles, some of them have come at a cost. While filming Mission Impossible: Fallout in 2018, he broke his ankle after he smashed into a wall while jumping across buildings. Cruise talked about the botched jump during a separate 2018 interview with Graham Norton.
Unfortunately, Cruise’s injury left him unable to shoot any more scenes for several months, so production had to shut down until he healed.
“I didn’t want to do it again,” Cruise said. “I knew instantly it was broken … I just run past [the] camera, we got the shot, it’s in the movie … I just went and said, ‘Sorry guys, it’s broken. Take me to the hospital, it’s broken. That’s a wrap. Everyone, [the] crew got on the phone and made their vacation arrangements.”
