Tom Cruise

Background

Thomas ‘Tom’ Cruise Mapother IV was born in Syracuse, New York, on July 3, 1962. Thomas Cruise Mapother III and Mary Lee Cruise are his parents. He is of German, Irish, and English descent and spent most of his childhood in Canada. Lee Anne, Marian, and Cass Cruise are Cruise’s three sisters. William Mapother, one of his cousins, is also an actor who has appeared in five films with Cruise. Cruise grew up in near abject poverty and was raised a Catholic. Later in life, he described his father as a “merchant of chaos,” a “bully,” and a “coward” who abused his children.

Cruise’s early career as an actor began when he was 19 years old with a small role in the 1981 film “Endless Love.” Cruise expanded his early career by appearing in a few more films. In 1983, he starred as Joel Goodson in the hit comedy “Risky Business.” Cruise’s big break came in 1986 when he played Lieutenant Pete in the action-drama film “Top Gun.”

The film was a huge success, solidifying his status as a superstar. His success continued into the late 1980s with films such as “The Color of Money” (1986), “Cocktail” (1988), and “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989). He also had success in 1996 when he played Ethan Hunt in the spy and action film “Mission: Impossible.” The film was a huge box office success, spawning a slew of sequels.

Throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, Cruise remained highly bankable and popular, starring in films such as “Eyes Wide Shut” (1999), “Vanilla Sky” (2001), “Minority Report” (2002), “The Last Samurai” (2003), “Collateral” (2004), “Rock of Ages” (2012), and “Edge of Tomorrow” (2014).

Since then, Cruise has established himself as one of the world’s highest-paid actors. He has worked with some of the world’s best actors. He is best known for his role as Ethan Hunt in the “Mission: Impossible” series of films. With over $2 billion in worldwide earnings, the series is the 17th highest-grossing film series of all time.

Cruise has been married to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes, all of whom are actresses. He has three children. Two were adopted during his marriage to Kidman and one is his biological daughter from his relationship with Holmes. Cruise is an outspoken supporter of the Church of Scientology and its social programs, which he credits with assisting him in overcoming dyslexia. He sparked controversy in the 2000s with his Church-affiliated criticisms of psychiatry and anti-depressant drugs, his efforts to promote Scientology as a religion in Europe, and a leaked video interview in which he promoted Scientology.