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“Mission Impossible”? Today, on our screens, the actor and producer of the new blockbuster refutes this for the fourth time. He’s almost fifty and he’s still saving the world…
It’s completely unexpected that he’s already here. No, I was not late at all, I arrived exactly where he told me to – to the Sir Stamford Hotel by Sydney’s Round Pier – even a quarter of an hour before the appointed time. And he is already sitting on a small red sofa under the window in the bar, tucking his leg under him, leaning his elbow on the back, and is talking intently on the mobile. Approaching, I catch the end of the conversation. Tom Cruise says calmly, without pressure: “And please make sure it gets done today.” I personally do not have the slightest doubt: what needs to be done today will be done today. He speaks in the tone of a man who is aware of his strength, but carries it through life with ease. There was no pressure in his voice, but there was no request, not even an intonation of command. He said exactly what he wanted to say: make sure it gets done. Take responsibility… But there was no doubt in his voice that the interlocutor corresponded to the role entrusted to him. There was trust in that person. And even more – to everything that happens in general.
This trust is felt in the free stance of Cruz. And in a discreetly neutral suit – a black jacket, black trousers, a gray sweater. And in the way he smiles at me – not at all a 1000-watt on-screen “Tom Cruise smile”, but a calm smile of a middle-aged man disposed towards a new acquaintance. The smile of a man who has taken place, strong, both in the literal and figurative sense of the word: Cruz, although not tall (only 170 cm tall), gives the impression of a physically strong person, muscular, well-cut, well-knit. And he has the same handshake – quick and strong, as if all his energy was concentrated in his palm at that moment. Yes, energy. If I were asked to describe Tom Cruise in one single word, I would use it. He is collected and energetic, disciplined and, as it seems, is simply not able to become sour. Super-success did not make him a relaxed sybarite. And he obviously has never been a romantic: he looks at me questioningly when, trying to revive the conversation, I tell how much I love Sydney, how I can spend hours walking over the coves of the Bondi area or along residential, but such an artistic Paddington, how I like to ride a monorail right above George Street and move from area to area on the most common type of municipal transport here – by ferry, by ocean … I think he should understand me – because part of his life is connected with Sydney: he often visited here, and even lived when was married to Nicole Kidman. And Sydney is impossible not to fall in love … As, according to many, and Nicole Kidman. But Cruz seems to have parted ways with both – a beautiful city and a beautiful woman. Now he’s just here on a business trip – “some kind of production estimates.” That is, now he is married to another beautiful woman, and a different geography is relevant for him …
Dates
- 1962 Born in the family of electrical engineer Thomas Cruise Mapother and teacher defectologist Mary Lee.
- 1981 Debut in Infinite Love by Franco Zeffirelli.
- 1988 “Rain Man” by Barry Levinson.
- 1990 Marriage to actress Nicole Kidman; The couple adopts two children, Isabella and Connor.
- 2006 Marriage to actress Katie Holmes, birth of their daughter Suri.
- 2006 Forbes magazine proclaims Cruise the world’s most powerful celebrity.
- 2011 Brad Bird’s Mission: Impossible 14 is released December 4, with Cruise as producer and actor.
Three Trials of His Glory
The Case of the “Sect Star”
Cruz’s principled commitment to Scientology gets him into serious trouble. In 2005, the Council of Paris not only refused to grant him the title of honorary citizen of the city, but generally declared him an undesirable person – because of his passionate propaganda of religious teachings and agitation for the recognition of Scientology in Europe as a religious denomination (while Europeans tend to consider Scientologists a religious sect). The Council’s decision operated on Cruz’s definitions of “scientist gunman” and “cult star.” In 2006, the Paramount film company announced the termination of a 14-year partnership with the actor due to his “inappropriate behavior.” Cruz’s speech against official psychiatry and the “brain-crushing” medicines prescribed by it was considered inappropriate and intolerable. The performance was also inspired by the actor’s Scientology beliefs.
The case with the couch
And even more – “trouble with the couch” – that’s what the American press calls Cruise’s exalted jumps on the couch (and even through it) during the Oprah Winfrey TV show in 2005. Thus, the actor shared his joy in connection with a new feeling – for Katie Holmes. The video resources of the Internet are filled with this episode, and Cruz himself, although he regrets it, treats what he did quite ironically: he says that his ex-wife had the most adequate reaction. Nicole Kidman just asked, “where to get what he smoked before going to this show.”
Orientation case
Tom Cruise has repeatedly sued the tabloids in connection with rumors spread by them about the unconventionality of his sexual orientation. In 1998, he won a case against the British Daily Express, which suggested that marriage to Kidman was a cover for his homosexuality. Three years later, he won a case against Actustar magazine, which allegedly published a confession from a porn actor that he had an affair with Cruise. Almost in parallel, Cruz also won a lawsuit against the editor of Bold Magazine, who claimed to have video evidence of Cruise’s homosexuality, but was forced to apologize to him and confirm the actor’s heterosexuality.
Psychologies: Are you feeling nostalgic at all?
Tom Cruise: I think no. I am really calm about Sydney – as I am generally calm about landscape beauties. And I am not inclined to divide life into past, present and future. This is not English grammar! There is no “past continued” and “past completed”. We all have one life. In the sense of yes, there is only one life, because it is the only one. But for me it is mainly one, therefore it is one.
Does this mean that your relationship with Nicole Kidman continues for you in some sense, they are not left in the past?
T.K.: But what about the children – our children, who spend as much time with me as they do with Nicole? And in general – what can “remain in the past”? What, Paramount in the past? Well, yes, the contract is broken, but the people from the studio – I am friends with them and work with them now. I don’t idealize or deny the past, so I don’t look at Sydney with nostalgia or bitterness there – I’m still at home here, this is my city. Like Louisville, where he lived as a child, like New York, like Los Angeles.
That is, for you, the past is not something that has ended, something that no longer exists …
T.K.: But I do exist! The past is all of us. This is me. I am its result, the one I am now. I do not divide life into components. I also don’t divide between work and family. And films – those that will bring the box office, and those that I’m interested in making. I shoot and shoot as a producer only what I consider important and right. Here’s an example: Steven Spielberg and I even made The War of the Worlds because we wanted to make a story about our own, about our own father’s experience. Aliens – yes, but the relationship between father and child against the background of the cataclysm – it seemed really important to us. For me, that’s what I call living life to the fullest. “We don’t talk about work at home, and at work we don’t think about anything else…” Hypocrisy! Mania of definitions. I have no such mania.
“I DO NOT DIVIDE LIFE INTO TIMES. THE PAST IS MYSELF, THE ONE I AM NOW”
Do you mean to say that you know others behind you?
T.K.: Perhaps … Maybe the main thing is to regularly prove to myself that I can do what I could not do before. It’s been with me since childhood. I was probably thirteen when we moved to Canada. I was an absolute black sheep there – a southerner in a winter hockey country. And I also wanted to play hockey. And I only had girlish figure skates! Mom said: “Why do you need this hockey? No, if you want your teeth knocked out, then of course … ”In a word, she did not want me to play hockey. But I was overwhelmed. And I went to train before school and after school. And almost became a professional hockey player. If not for a knee injury, maybe now I would have been a coach! Prior to that, having played enough in the NHL. I love it – test yourself for “I can.” And when I start to check, I always get to “yes, I definitely can.” My second manic side has to do with commitment. I am a pathologically obligate person. And… no, I just love that feeling of responsibility.
What does this feeling give you?
T.K.: It connects a person with others. If you think about it, I probably also have this from childhood. My parents separated, my father left us, I was 12. I was the only man in the family, where there were four more women – my mother and sisters. And we moved from place to place all the time. And they were always out of place. They were always brand new, and dressed differently from the new school style, and my haircut was stupid, not the way it was on that street that month. We just had to stick with each other. We were very close – me and Marian, she is only a year older than me, Leigh Ann and Cass – there is a two-year difference between them. We protected each other. I still automatically protect everyone who enters my circle of life.
Do you mean your family?
T.K.: Naturally. This is the main thing that interests me, what is called, keeps in life. I’m not for romance. Not for sex. Not even for love.
It’s hard to believe! Perhaps you speak in such a way as to console the unrequited feelings of your millions of fans? Are you really not interested in this area of life?
T.K.: I mean something else: she has never been for me either the main one, or in any way special. Sex for me is part of a relationship. The same part as … cooking Saturday dinner together. Or a trip on a motorcycle together … By the way, do you know that this is much more sensual than the actual so-called act? Okay, don’t be embarrassed. I mean that sex is part of the connection between people, its sign. But the connection itself is generally more important than sex! Good sex is a by-product of a truly serious relationship. But this product is therefore a side product, because it is not the main one. The main thing is a relationship with obligations, with children. Family. I am for a relationship with obligations.
Have you always wanted to have a big family?
T.K.: In fact, I had one as a child. For me, this is an organic state. And I always wanted to be a father, I always told myself that my children could depend on me in the best sense of the word – I will always be there. I never believed and do not believe that a child can be spoiled with love. There is never too much love. When Suri was born (daughter of Cruise and Katie Holmes. – Approx. ed.), you may remember something happened to the press – everyone wanted to get her picture, as if it should be some kind of extraordinary, radiant baby … And Kate and I decided that we should just invite journalists to our house in Telluride, Colorado. And two great just ladies from Vanity Fair arrived – the reporter and Annie Leibovitz herself. And we have … as one of my screenwriter friends says, “a caravanserai in ancient Khorezm.” Summer. We are all on vacation. We ourselves. My mum. Bella and Connor (Cruise’s children from marriage to Nicole Kidman. – Approx. ed.). My younger sister with three children – we lived together for several years, until I joined with Kate, well, we still cannot part, we still almost live together. I am more than an uncle, a second father to the Cass children. Holmes, the Kate brothers with their wives and children. Papa Kate. Bella and Connor sleep on the floor in my office – there is no more room, and in the morning they go to wake up Suri. Nephews at 7 in the morning start a basketball game. Niece fights Bella for Suri’s attention. Connor separates them. Everyone is yelling, shouting, laughing, and above all my trumpet – and absurd – voice: “Everyone get ready for a hike in the mountains! Grab the gear!” The ladies looked at this matter and sympathetically said: “It’s hard for you, probably …”
Isn’t it difficult for you?
T.K.: Yes, it’s just ridiculous! Difficult is when your mother comes after three shifts at different jobs and can barely move her legs. And she has four children, and there is nowhere to wait for help. And then you realize that this help is you. From the age of eight I worked – post office, delivery, mowed lawns, washed cars. It is difficult, believe me, these are completely different circumstances. Circumstances that are taught to overcome. And they teach you to understand that … your glass should always be half full. Because if you think you’re half empty, you won’t survive for sure. And if you loosen up, that’s it.
“THE MAIN THING INTERESTS ME IS THE FAMILY. I AM NOT FOR NOVEL. NOT FOR SEX. NOT EVEN FOR LOVE”
Indeed, it is difficult to imagine you upset …
T.K.: You will never see me like this. I have never shown it and never will. My mother, an amazing woman, no matter how unbearable, no matter how little money, she always lived with the feeling that her glass was half full. She believes in the life-giving, creative power of thought. If you think gloomily, life will also be darkened. You know, when she sees a sad person, even in a restaurant, she can come up to him and say: “Do you want me to sing for you?” And sings! And this invariably amuses the sad. She believes that while you are alive and well, while your loved ones are more or less in order, it is stupid to be upset. As long as you are in a zone of such relative prosperity, you can live easily. When we adopted Bella, I rushed about her like a hand-written sack. I couldn’t take my eyes off her, wouldn’t let her sleep – I was watching her so intently. But my mother arrived, instantly figured out diapers, powders and styling – after all, a great experience – and she told me sternly: “Don’t put pressure on the girl with your attention! Treat her lighter, let her live on her own. It looks strange: how can a two-month-old baby live on his own? But in fact it is true: a person has the right to live outside my field of vision. In a sense – so as not to crush him with your loving control.
Does that risk exist for you?
T.K.: Actually, yes. Although something has changed with the birth of Suri. Her name means “joy”. She is just joy. But besides, children grow up – and we parents, I hope, grow up with them. For example, one day you understand: all our education is to give them tools, but they still have to cultivate the soil of their lives themselves. Now Bella is quite an adult. And Connor makes the big decisions himself. And how long. Here, I remember, Nicole went to star in “Australia” by Baz Luhrmann. There were the most difficult conditions – the desert, the very depths of the continent. Connor gathered with her. I tried to dissuade him – why, it’s hard there, that you are the son of a star, no one will pay attention to such difficult shootings, you will be on errands for everyone … And he said to me so seriously: “Dad, mom is expecting a baby, I have to go to be with her.” I realized that we managed to raise a reliable person. And he didn’t argue anymore. He was then thirteen. I stopped worrying about him.
Have you ever thought that your longing to be the perfect father might be due to the fact that your own father left you?
T.K.: I am not introspective. And he never blamed his father. Yes, he left us and did not participate either financially or morally in our life. But shortly before his death, I managed to talk to him for real. When I found out that he was dying, I decided to visit him in the hospital. And you know, I understood it. Yes, he left us. But what if this burden was simply not for him? He wasn’t such a bad person. He just didn’t make it. But the main thing is that I understood it. Understanding is more important to me than forgiveness. understand naturally. Not easy, but okay. To forgive means to judge and justify. I don’t think we have the right to judge.
Does this belief of yours have anything to do with Scientology? It is known that it determines a lot in your worldview and you act as its passionate propagandist.
T.K.: “Judge not, lest you be judged…” is the gospel, not a Scientology principle, you must agree. Maybe the best thing a father could do for us was to leave. In any case… Well, I said to myself then: I will always be with my children. And he always kept his word. As for Scientology, yes, I am a staunch supporter of this religious trend. Without becoming one, I would not have achieved anything that I have achieved. Including overcoming dyslexia * – exactly such, absolutely false, the diagnosis was made to me in childhood. And no matter how hard I tried, neither my perseverance, nor my passion for overcoming – nothing worked. Scientology helped me – it promotes the self-development of a person. For me, this is not only faith, but also a tool for developing the abilities hidden in a person. It provides a method for overcoming problems.
“MY FATHER IS GONE. AND THEN I SAID TO MYSELF THAT I WILL ALWAYS BE WITH MY CHILDREN»
What problem worries you the most?
T.K.: We live in a cynical world where everything has a monetary value. Even defending yourself in the courts – and I had to fight in this way with the lies spread about me – you are forced to name the amount in which you, as it were, evaluate the damage … inflicted on your honor! And when journalists asked for a photo shoot of the newborn Suri, they also called the amount. And I know that Brad Pitt and Angelina (Jolie. – Approx. ed.) did just that – they took the money and gave it to charity. But I couldn’t. Kate and I then decided that we would not “transfer” Suri into money, even for good purposes. In our world there is so much sophistication, intellect, and so little spirit, spirituality. Scientology is about the spirit, about its perseverance, about self-improvement.
You sound like a samurai from your own The Last Samurai…
T.K.: But not the last! I’m an optimist.
* Dyslexia is a partial reading disorder in which the child’s brain misidentifies letters. This leads to a distortion of reading comprehension. Dyslexia occurs in 3% of primary school students, more often in boys.