Mission: PossibleRanking Tom Cruise’s performances
There will never be anotherTom Cruise.
For decades, his star power has endured, even as he faced controversy offscreen and flops onscreen.
To relive it all, we’ve taken on the impossible mission of ranking every Cruise film performance.
Credit: Paramount Pictures; Everett Collection; Dreamworks Llc/Kobal/Shutterstock
Yes, we’re showing you all the money roles!
44.Knight and Day(2010)
How do you secure the bottom position in these rankings?
heads to Tijuana with a few pals to lose their virginity.
Frank Masi/20th Century Studios
“I will never lose a fight again,” Cruise, probably.
41.The Mummy(2017)
Remember theDark Universe?
‘Twas a simpler time, 2017.
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And, somehow, the back and forth between Cruise andMeryl Streepis the worst of the three simultaneous stories.
Starring as Jasper Irving, Cruise almost seems too all-American to play an all-American Republican senator.
38.The Outsiders(1983)
Brat Pack assemble!
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I have now seenCocktailand can report that I was very, very wrong.
Also, were bartenders famous in the ’80s?
35.Oblivion(2013)
Oblivionis fine, and Tom Cruise is fine inOblivion.
Chiabella James/Universal Pictures
There’s not really anything else to add, and I think that says it all aboutOblivion.
And that is how you make your film debut!
But Cruise’s stellar work opposite Nelson and Chris Penn helps distinguish this from being another by-the-numbers sports film.
Francois Duhamel/MGM
Despite that, Cruise did an admirable job making the filmReacherfeel intimidating, no matter the size.
He’s particularly great with his insults and warnings ahead of a street fight.
“Remember, you wanted this,” he says, before taking out five guys with ease.
Chiabella James/Paramount
And that’s whyMission: Impossible 2comes up first.
WithRogue Nation, the answer is hanging from a plane 5,000 feet in the air and submerging himself underwater.
The presence of Ethan’s wife Julia provides sentimental stakes lacking from the other death-defying installments.
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13.American Made(2017)
Outside ofMission: Impossible, is Tom Cruise still a movie star?
That’s a valid questionbut only if you haven’t seenAmerican Made.
The Les-son: Les is more.
MGM
“), the 24-year-old can’t help but have your attention.
And bonus points for showing the importance of wearing a mask.
But it’sthe scenethat catapults Kaffee to one of Cruise’s best.
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Let this be the start of a whole new phase for TC: the action hero in gentle decline.
But what really setsEdgeand Cruise apart here is his crackling chemistry with full badass-modeEmily Blunt.
3.Collateral(2004)
Villain Tom Cruise!
Universal Pictures
CostarJamie Foxxearned a Best Supporting Actor nom forCollateral, but Cruise is what you leave talking about.
The bullets and fall killed him.”
From beginning to end, it’s a killer performance.
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2.Jerry Maguire(1996)
Cruise had us at “Show me the money!”
1.Magnolia(1999)
Magnoliashould have been Cruise’s Oscar.
Universal Pictures
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Phillip Caruso/Universal
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Neal Preston/Paramount
New Line Cinema
David James/Warner Bros.
Francois Duhamel/Warner Bros.
Karen Ballard/Paramount
Francios Duhamel/Paramount
Twentieth Century Studios
Richard Foreman/Paramount
Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’.Christian Black/Paramount
David James/Paramount
Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible’.Everett Collection
Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in ‘Mission Impossible: Fallout’.Paramount Pictures
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David James/Warner Bros.
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‘American Made’.David James/Universal Studios
Dreamworks Llc/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock
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Tom Cruise in ‘Top Gun: Maverick’.Paramount Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
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Stephen Vaughan/MGM
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