Paramount Pictures; TriStar Pictures; Everett Collection; Dreamworks; Warner Bros./Getty "There will never be anotherTom Cruise." SodeclaredGlen Powell, who the iconic star mentored on and off-screen for 2022'sTop Gun: Maverick. Indeed, the conditions that produced Cruise — a global monoculture, a healthier Hollywood ecosystem, a stronger delineation between TV and cinema — are unlikely to recur in the streaming era. It's difficult to imagine any American entertainer ever achieving a similar level of fame and cultural impact. Yet Cruise's sheer fame isn't what makes him a great movie star — it's what he's done with the notoriety. At the height of his superstardom, he sought out ambitious, unusual projects from legendary filmmakers likeStanley KubrickandSteven Spielbergandthen-rising talents likePaul Thomas AndersonandCameron Crowe. He'd already made great films in almost every genre — the coming-of-age dramedy, the courtroom thriller, contemporary and period romances — before solidifying himself as his generation's defining action star. With a newMission: Impossiblefilm in theaters,Entertainment Weeklyhas ranked Cruise's best performances to date. Read on for our list of the top 15 Tom Cruise movies. Karen Ballard/Paramount Perhaps the most underappreciated entry in the Cruise canon,Jack Reachersees the titular drifter sucked into investigating a mysterious mass shooting in Pittsburgh. Fans ofLee Child's original novels decried Cruise's casting as Reacher, a hulking figure akin toAlan Ritchson(who now plays the character on Prime Video'sReacher). But divorced from the source material, there's an undeniable thrill in seeing a man of Cruise's stature (usually reported as 5′ 7″) taking on attackers far larger than him. The actor brings a hard-edged gruffness to a character whose anti-establishment cynicism feels unique in the performer's pantheon of protagonists. Where to watchJack Reacher: Paramount+ Buena Vista Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection Cruise's lone collaboration withMartin Scorsesecame in this pro-pool drama — a sequel to 1961'sThe HustlerwithPaul Newmanreprising his role as "Fast Eddie" Felson, the hard-edged mentor to Cruise's cocky nine-ball whiz Vincent. The Color of Moneyand Cruise's other 1986 project,Top Gun, established the star persona that he carries into almost every future film: a preternaturally talented, effortlessly charming golden boy oozing confidence and intensity, whose biggest challenges arise not from a lack of skill or competence, but from the thorniness of his ego and his fraught relationships with father figures. The film simultaneously functions as a passing-of-the-torch moment between two legendary stars and a celebration of Newman, who won his only (and long-overdue) Oscar for his performance. Where to watchThe Color of Money: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection InOliver Stone's harrowing war drama, Cruise plays Ron Kovic, a real-life Marine veteran who, in his autobiographyBorn on the Fourth of July, documented his worldview's radical shift after enlisting in the Vietnam War and becoming paralyzed on the battlefield. In the film's early scenes, Cruise displays a naive, unwavering patriotism that seamlessly meshed with the actor's military heroics inTop Gunthree years earlier — which makes Kovic's stark transition to impassioned anti-war advocacy all the more surprising in the runtime's second half. It's here that the actor first fully uncorks the bottled rage that seems to be simmering under the surface of most of his performances, channeling it into the righteous fury of a man who feels betrayed by his country and misled by its values. Where to watchBorn on the Fourth of July: Amazon Prime Video Phillip Caruso/Universal One of Cruise's only attempts at a non-American accent came inFar and Away, an immigrant drama partially inspired by the Irish-American ancestors of directorRon Howard. In their second of three on-screen collaborations (betweenDays of ThunderandEyes Wide Shut), then-real-life spouses Cruise andNicole Kidmanhave their strongest romantic chemistry, sharing more screentime here than in their other two projects combined. The film sees tenant farmer Joseph (Cruise) reluctantly flee to the United States with Shannon (Kidman), the rebellious daughter of his wealthy landlord. The diametrically opposed companions barely know each other when they traverse the Atlantic and share a sizzling, contentious flirtation while forced to adapt to a new culture. Far and Away's sweeping scale, energetic banter, and gorgeous visuals ensure it's among Cruise's most romantic love stories. Where to watchFar and Away: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) DreamWorks/Courtesy Everett Collection Michael Mann's tense crime thriller asks a chilling question: What if a Tom Cruise character was just straight-up evil (and also unironically used the word"homie")? As the mysterious contract killer Vincent, Cruise brings his usual on-screen qualities — strict professionalism, precise physicality, ruthless persistence — but turns them on their head to embody a terrifying, amoral murderer. The film sees Vincent forceJamie Foxx's mild-mannered taxi driver Max to chauffeur him around Los Angeles as he performs a string of chilling assassinations. All the while, Cruise maintains an unflinching, steely gaze that suggests he'sconstantlyconsidering the most efficient method of wiping out everyone in his field of vision. He's a cold, unfeeling killing machine — especially in the film's standout nightclub shootout sequence that echoesThe Terminator. Where to watchCollateral: Paramount+ Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection Cruise's star-making turn in this stylish teen drama sees the his boyish charm at an all-time high. As wealthy high school student Joel, Cruise embraces his character's earnest dorkiness at the film's start. Considering the machismo and swagger of his future roles, it's almost jarring to see him play such a naïve sweetie-pie without an ounce of irony or cool factor. Yet Cruise's inherent magnetism still shines through in even the corniest moments — the "Old Time Rock and Roll" underpants-and-socks dance endures for a reason. As the film progresses and Joel descends into a darker world of exploitation and cruelty, Cruise gradually chips away at his innocence to reveal a sober, world-weary demeanor. Concluding the movie as a surprisingly mature teenager is a fascinating transition into a decade-plus of Cruise playing immature grown-ups. Where to watchRisky Business: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) Frank Masi/Paramount In one of his only performances as an ostensibly normal guy, Cruise brings magnificent dirtbag energy toWar of the Worlds' Ray, a working-class deadbeat dad whose one weekend with his kids (Dakota Fanningand Justin Chatwin) overlaps with an alien invasion. DirectorSteven Spielberg's body of work is notoriously full of divorced dads, but this film marks a rare attempt at framing the absentee father figure as a sympathetic protagonist, rather than an unsupportive side character or an unseen agent of disappointment. Cruise excels at highlighting Ray's total parental ignorance. Though the character's survival instincts allow him tojust barelynavigate the apocalyptic landscape, his utter failure to understand children makes him one of Cruise's most incompetent characters, leading to numerous moments of comedic gold and even more instances of alarming patheticness. Here, the star and director successfully ride the cultural wave of post-9/11 anxiety, making the film one of the darkest projects in either of their filmographies. Where to watchWar of the Worlds: Paramount+ Sidney Baldwin/Castle Rock Cruise's most verbose role comes inRob Reiner's adaptation of the fast-paced play byAaron Sorkin, who also wrote the screenplay. Te actor stars as Daniel Kaffee, the cocky lieutenant junior grade naval attorney who reluctantly defends two Marines (Wolfgang Bodison and James Marshall) accused of murdering their fellow officer at Guantanamo Bay. Like most Sorkin ventures,A Few Good Menromanticizes process and procedure. Many of the movie's most thrilling moments come from Kaffee working through the shoe leather of crafting a defense with his associates (Demi Mooreand Kevin Pollak) and arguing their case in the courtroom, making the screenwriter's detail-oriented dialogue sing. Yet there's also a stirring tension in the film's — and Kaffee's — view of order and discipline, as strict adherence to the chain of command ultimately enables cruelty and abuse. Cruise deftly portrays Kaffee's gradual disillusionment with the institutions to which he's dedicated his life. Where to watchA Few Good Men: Pluto TV Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection Cameron Crowe's audacious genre-bender — a remake of Alejandro Amenábar's 1998 Spanish filmAbre Los Ojos— fuses psychological thrills, romantic yearning, and existential sci-fi into an absurd fantasy melodrama. Vanilla Skyallows Cruise to do pretty much everything he's good at, as his character David Aames runs, jumps off a building, juggles multiple romantic interests (Penélope CruzandCameron Diaz), plays up his bro-chemistry with his best friend (Jason Lee), and questions his reality alongside an impossibly idealized father figure (Kurt Russell). The film is also an introspective interrogation of Cruise's stardom, confronting its main character with uncomfortable realities: his world is artificial, insulated, and fleeting, and his multimillion-dollar good looks could disappear in an instant. Does he actually possess any meaningful power or control? Does the life of a superstar mean anything at all? Is any of this real? It's a deeply paranoid feature that asks more questions than it cares to answer, drawing fascinating parallels to Cruise's singular position in American culture. Where to watchVanilla Sky: Paramount+ David James/Twentieth Century Fox In Steven Spielberg's adaptation of Philip K. Dick's futuristic sci-fi novella, Cruise portrays Detective John Anderton, a Washington D.C. investigator who heads the city's Precrime division. His job is to arrest would-be criminals before they break the law using predictive technology — until he's prophesied to commit a murder, and goes on the run to clear his name. Minority Reportis Spielberg's most thrilling action movie outside theIndiana Jonesseries, boasting tightly constructed chase scenes and suspense set pieces that feel like Alfred Hitchcock crafted a cyberpunk dystopia. It's also as thoughtful as it is entertaining, grappling with choice, fate, and knowledge while considering the flaws of the justice system. Cruise grounds the film with quiet pathos, giving Anderton a haunted, remorseful desperation as he reels from the death of his son and tries to survive an invasive surveillance state. Where to watchMinority Report: Paramount+ Warner Bros./Everett Collection Stanley Kubrick's final film stars Cruise as Bill Hartford, a young doctor in New York City who stumbles past the boundaries of polite society and into the mysterious underworld of the ruling class, rife with cultish orgies, exploitation, and, seemingly, murder. The movie concerns paranoia and infidelity, both real and imagined, as Bill struggles to reconcile potential flaws in his marriage to Alice (Nicole Kidman). Hartford is one of Cruise's more empty-headed characters. He'sjustsmart enough to understand that there are vast worlds — both in the upper crust's shadowy underbelly and within his wife's subconscious — that he's fundamentally incapable of grasping, but not smart enough to realize he'll never figure them out despite his persistent curiosity. It's one of the actor's funniest performances, as his unearned confidence and fragile ego leave him befuddled and offended in both ridiculous and mundane situations. Where to watchEyes Wide Shut: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection; Paramount Pictures Cruise's highest-grossing project(s) remain some of his finest work. In his first turn as Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in 1986, the actor shows off the greatest assets of his early career: his inherent hotshot charisma. That swagger helps clarify his character's natural skills (in this case, aerial combat in the Navy) and his barely-concealed grief. In the 2022 follow-up, Cruise returns as a middle-aged, weary Maverick, burdened by responsibility, guilt, and the difficulty of passing down his wisdom to the next generation. The film's somber romanticism grounds the immaculate airborne action with a rich emotional core, paving the way for overwhelming catharsis at the conclusion. Much like the latter-dayMission: Impossiblefilms,Maverickdoubles as a meta meditation on Cruise's place in Hollywood — the movies might have moved on from passionate superstar specialists like Cruise, but Cruise hasn't yet given up on the movies, and he's going to show everyone how it's done before it's too late. Where to watchTop GunandTop Gun: Maverick: Paramount+ Chiabella James/Paramount; Murray Close/Paramount Cruise has played fearless IMF agent Ethan Hunt in eight movies spanning 30 years — longer than any one actor has playedJames Bond— and the sheer insanity of the films (andthe actor's stunts) only continues to ramp up. While they all deliver breathless globe-trotting thrills, the franchise's first four entries are emblematic of their directors' distinct strengths:Brian De Palma's paranoid Hitchcockian suspense in the kickstarter (1996);John Woo's goofy maximalist action inM:I 2(2000);J.J. Abrams' character-driven gritt inM:I 3(2006); andBrad Bird's bravura visual storytelling inGhost Protocol(2011). The latter four entries are all helmed by Cruise's strongest contemporary creative partner,Christopher McQuarrie. They place further emphasis on the performer's daredevil stunts, including but not limited to: clinging to, jumping out of, and balancing atop airplanes; dangling from helicopters and cliffs; high-octane car and motorcycle chases; and, of course, sprinting against a backdrop of world-famous landmarks. It's perhaps the most reliable, carefully crafted American franchise of the last 30 years. All the while, Cruise carries the spirit of Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, and Jackie Chan by putting his body on the line for our entertainment. Where to watch theMission: Impossiblefranchise: Paramount+ The actor's strongest lead performance arrived in Cameron Crowe's sports-dramedyJerry Maguire, which is perfectly calibrated to Cruise's unique strengths. As hot-shot agent Jerry, he gets to be charming, unhinged, overly sentimental, and puzzlingly distant, often simultaneously. His unusual combination of intense directness and inscrutability is one of the film's key conflicts, as Jerry and Dorothy (Renée Zellweger) struggle to build a new life together. Jerry Maguireis both down-to-earth and larger-than-life thanks to Crowe's unique sensibilities, allowing snappy dialogue and sweeping romance to coexist with complex, understated character drama. It's a charming, meandering portrait of a flawed man trying to do his job — his arrogance upends his career, his fear of loneliness fosters questionable relationships, and those relationships unspool because of his inability to be vulnerable. After several somewhat disconnected scenes in which very little happens, you're suddenly left with the impression thateverythinghas happened. Where to watchJerry Maguire: Pluto TV New Line Cinema/Courtesy Everett Collection Though many films put Cruise's star power to good use in complex, cantankerous characters, none match the nuance and raw emotion ofPaul Thomas Anderson's sprawling, melodramaticMagnolia. As "Seduce and Destroy" mastermind Frank T.J. Mackey, the actor embodies an evasive unknowability, a seemingly bottomless intensity, and a piercing glare, spending the majority of the film antagonizing an interviewer and riling up a crowd of insecure incels. Mackey's aggressive misogyny borders on sociopathy. It feels like a facade concealing something else, yet there are so many layers of posturing that it's not completely clear if there'sanythingbelow the surface. Then, in perhaps the finest scene of his career, Cruise unearths the overwhelming pain at Mackey's core in a disarmingly honest breakdown at his father's deathbed. It's Cruise's most stunning performance and most challenging assignment to date. Here, he crafts a profoundly unlikable character — with limited screen time in a film with eight other similarly compelling leads — and manages to generate immense sympathy, both in spite of andbecauseof his surface-level monstrosity. Where to watchMagnolia: Amazon Prime Video (to rent) Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly
