Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise became a star in 1983 dancing in his underwear in the coming-of-age hit Risky Business. Three years later, 1986's Top Gun made him the biggest box-office draw of the decade and cemented his action-hero image.
Jersey Roots
Born in Syracuse, New York, he moved frequently as a child and briefly attended a Franciscan seminary. Severe dyslexia shaped his school years before acting gave him a focus.
The Top Gun Decade
After Risky Business, a run of hits, from Top Gun to Rain Main and Born on the Fourth of July, made him the defining male star of the 1980s. He earned his first Academy Award nomination in 1989.
Action Franchise King
In 1996 he produced and starred in Mission: Impossible, building a franchise that has run for nearly three decades. Known for performing his own stunts, he received an Honorary Oscar in 2025.
Career Timeline
- 1981Film debut in Endless Love
- 1983Risky Business makes him a star
- 1986Top Gun becomes year's top film
- 1988Rain Man wins Best Picture
- 1989First Oscar nomination for Born on the Fourth of July
- 1992A Few Good Men with Jack Nicholson
- 1996Launches Mission: Impossible franchise
- 1996Second Oscar nomination for Jerry Maguire
- 1999Third Oscar nomination for Magnolia
- 2025Receives Honorary Academy Award
Biggest Hits
- He does many of his own dangerous stunts, including hanging off an Airbus A400M during takeoff for a Mission: Impossible film.
- His films have grossed more than $13 billion worldwide, placing him among the highest-grossing actors of all time.
Portrait: Harald Krichel · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons