Happy return for an impossibly youthful Tom Cruise in Sydney
The Hollywood star is down under for the premiere of his latest blockbuster, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One.
On Monday, Tom Cruise celebrated his 61st birthday in front of a rapturous crowd at Sydney’s Darling Harbour for the premiere of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.
Having flown to Sydney on a private jet on Saturday, a beaming and seemingly eternally youthful Cruise walked the red carpet with co-stars Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg and Pom Klementieff, as well as writer-director Christopher McQuarrie, where he gladly signed autographs and took photos with adoring fans.
It was a vivid reminder that Cruise stands as one of Hollywood’s last true movie stars.
“There’s no one like Tom Cruise, that’s why he’s been at the top of his game for 40 years,” said Atwell.
Sydney has long held ties to this blockbuster franchise, dating back two decades to the second instalment, M: I-2, which was mainly filmed in Australia – a choice that was made by co-producer Cruise himself.
“This country is absolutely stunning. (Sydney) is such a beautiful city – I’d love to come back and film here (again),” Cruise had told Channel 10 in an interview. And on Monday, he charmed the red carpet crowd with his love for the country.
“Thank you very much for spending my birthday with me,” he said. “The people of Australia are always incredible. It’s a beautiful city. A beautiful country.”
It was a sentiment echoed by British actor Pegg, who said: “I’ve got a big affection for Australia, and added: “Even though it’s literally the other side of the world, I feel at home here.”
Mission: Impossible 7 follows the events of 2018’s Fallout, which was the highest-grossing entry in the franchise yet, earning nearly $US800m ($1.2bn) at the box office. To date, the Mission: Impossible series has grossed more than $US3.5bn globally.
Cruise’s reputation for performing daring stunts in the action series is well-established, from scaling Dubai’s Burj Khalifa to executing a HALO skydive with a cameraman. In the new film, he took on his most dangerous stunt yet by riding a motorcycle straight off a cliff.
“There is a reason my hair is this colour,” joked McQuarrie, the silver-headed director on the red carpet. “We like to say I am the portrait and he (Cruise) is Dorian Gray.”
Mission: Impossible 7 has been a long time coming. Paramount’s July 12 release of the film – which was shot in England, Italy, Abu Dhabi and Norway – was pushed back several times from it’s original planned 2021 launch date due to pandemic-related setbacks.
“It feels like the most delicious exhale,” said Atwell on Monday.
Also, the film’s production budget ballooned – burning through $US290m – thanks to a frantic shooting schedule that effectively saw Cruise and McQuarrie racing around the world trying to beat the disease. Box office pundits have predicted that it will be one of this year’s biggest releases, and are optimistic that it will bring more audiences back to cinemas.
Cruise has become a hero among cinema owners for promoting theatrical releases over streaming. Steven Spielberg said Tom Cruise had “saved Hollywood’s ass” with the box office success of Top Gun: Maverick.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One will be released worldwide on July 12.