Many action stars are known to appear to risk their lives onscreen. Tom Cruise puts his life on the line with his death-defying stunts. Cruise’s development as an action star is fascinating. In the late ’80s,’ 90s and 2000s, Cruise worked with many of the greatest filmmakers of all time on high profile projects that showed his great versatility, but now Cruise is best known as a charismatic action hero. .
Cruise was an unlikely choice to play the role of Ethan Hunt in 1996’s “Mission: Impossible,” but the Brian de Palma classic shows that he could perform impressive stunts and deliver a compelling dramatic performance. The final train streak and escape from the aquarium are incredible physical feats, but Ethan is still tormented by the loss of his entire team. Each suite explores a different genre, with matching sets. “Mission: Impossible II” is an exaggerated John Woo vehicle, “Mission: Impossible III” is an explosive spy film, “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol” redefined international espionage and “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” looks like a Hitchock thriller. The latest film in the series, “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” features some of the franchise’s best stunts, including the vertiginous HALO jump and an incredible Paris motorcycle chase.
Outside of the “Mission: Impossible” series, Cruise has done incredible work in sci-fi action films like “Minority Report”, “War of the Worlds”, “Oblivion” and “Edge of Tomorrow”. He has also appeared in tougher action thrillers, including “Collateral”, “Jack Reacher” and “Valkyrie”.
