It’s always tough for an actor with a dramatic personal life: Can the public separate their real persona from the characters they play?
Tom Cruise, a polarizing figure known for his off-screen drama, has faced that dilemma multiple times. That includes this weekend, when “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” hit theaters. The film raked in $56 million, one of the highest-opening weekends ever for a “Mission: Impossible” film; perhaps a surprise to some, who wondered whether HBO’s controversial Scientology documentary “Going Clear” would affect Cruise’s appeal.
But how has Cruise’s notorious roller-coaster of a public image affected the franchise’s box office over time? We looked at the numbers to find out.
(Note: Box office numbers according to BoxOfficeMojo, adjusted for inflation of ticket prices.)
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1) “Mission: Impossible” (May 1996)
Box office gross: $332.4 million, the highest of all of them
Career: Cruise was an established movie star from films like “Cocktail,” “Rain Man” and “Risky Business” in the 1980s, along with “A Few Good Men” and “The Firm” later on. So when Cruise took the step to action hero, there was nowhere to go but up.
Public image: Handsome family man. A few years earlier, Cruise and his wife, Nicole Kidman, blissfully cuddled on the cover of People magazine with the headline “Tom & Nicole’s Endless Honeymoon.” The star couple was married since 1990 and adopted two kids. A couple years later, the tabloid would give Cruise the coveted title of “Sexiest Man Alive.” The mag called him “the star who can make a hit just by showing up.”
Impact: Cruise’s movie star persona was only boosted by the perception of his loving family life — he seemed like the megastar who could do no wrong, and it showed when his foray into action movies was a hit.
[No interviewers are asking Tom Cruise about Scientology. Here’s why that’s not surprising.]
2) “Mission: Impossible II” (May 2000)
Box office gross: $324.5 million
Career: On fire, thanks to movies like “Jerry Maguire” and “Eyes Wide Shut.”
Public image: Serious actor. By that point, Cruise scored his third Oscar nomination for his supporting role in “Magnolia” in 1999. This was also about a year before he divorced Kidman, and the two starred in the steamy “Eyes Wide Shut” together.
Impact: Cruise was one of the most reliable hit-makers in the world, even if he was taking on some wild roles. But audiences weren’t even close to getting tired of him.
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3) “Mission: Impossible III” (May 2006)
Box office gross: $166.1 million, the lowest yet
Career: Still going strong, even with a couple misfires. “Vanilla Sky” was a puzzle to some in 2001, but “Minority Report” (2002) and “War of the Worlds” (2005) were enormous hits, the latter taking in nearly $600 million worldwide.
Public image: Not great. The year before, Cruise, 42, made his infamous “Oprah Winfrey Show” appearance in which he jumped on a sofa to declare his love for his new girlfriend, 26-year-old Katie Holmes. Cruise’s giddy giggling shocked many people, including Oprah. This was also when Cruise started talking about his belief in Scientology more frequently: He publicly slammed Brooke Shields for taking medication while suffering from post-partum depression, as Scientology doesn’t believe in psychiatry. Cruise and Matt Lauer got into a heated discussion on the “Today” show the following month over Scientology and psychiatric drugs, with Cruise calling Lauer “glib.”
Impact: The public didn’t know what to make of this new version of Tom Cruise: Nothing was quite the same after those incidents. “Mission: Impossible” raked in much lower amounts than the first two movies. After the box office results of the third film, Paramount Pictures dropped him, blaming his public behavior.
4) “Mission Impossible — Ghost Protocol” (December 2011)
Box office: $215.8 million
Career: Shakier than ever before. “Lions for Lambs” (2007) flopped and “Valkyrie” (2008) did well but brought some controversy, as Germany wanted to ban filming thanks to Cruise’s Scientology ties.
Public image: While Cruise was still connected to Scientology (like his famous speech video that leaked in 2008) he stopped talking about it, obviously sensing that wasn’t going over well. He was still married to Katie Holmes at the time, too; though many questioned the authenticity of their relationship, the couple tied the knot in 2006 and had a baby girl, Suri, the following year.
Impact: By 2011, things had stabilized — and this was before his divorce with Holmes the following year. Cruise also got some goodwill by poking fun at himself in “Tropic Thunder” in 2008, showing people that (really!) he was in on the joke of his reputation. So when the dust settled, it was easier for people to see him as Tom Cruise the Movie Star once again. “[“Ghost Protocol"] has done much to restore Cruise’s star status, particularly in North America, where his more recent films have lagged,” wrote The Hollywood Reporter.
5) “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” (July 2015)
Box office: $56 million opening weekend
Career: Seemingly back on track, with films including “Oblivion” and “Edge of Tomorrow” doing respectable box office numbers.
Public image: While Cruise was constantly in the headlines after Katie Holmes filed for divorce in summer 2012 (along with a deposition that said Holmes left to protect Suri from Scientology), the frenzy died down. Now, Cruise is back lip-syching with Jimmy Fallon and goofing around with Jon Stewart, as his brief press tour reportedly requires that no one asks him about Scientology or his dating life — even though “Going Clear” just premiered a few months ago.
Impact: Apparently Cruise’s low-key reappearance back into the mainstream worked — and so did his refusal to acknowledge “Going Clear” at all. This is the second-highest “Mission: Impossible” opening, close to the $57 million made by the second movie in 2000. As Vulture sums up this latest phase of the actor’s career: “It’s Time To Start Liking Tom Cruise Again.”
Read more:
– Tom Cruise rides the franchise wave in golden year for Hollywood
– “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” proves there should be Oscars for stunt coordinat0rs
– The fifth “Mission: Impossible” injects new wit and energy into the franchise
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