Just when you think Tom Cruise has scored his biggest possible cinematic triumph with the hit sequel to Top Gun, the blockbuster star comes up with an idea that’s literally out of this world.
The 60-year-old Hollywood veteran has reportedly joined The Bourne Identity director Doug Liman in a film that involves filming in space, which was first introduced in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic halted plans.
Cruise and Liman are said to have approached Universal Filmed Entertainment Group (UFEG) with an idea that will see the actor rocket up to the International Space Station.
“I think Tom Cruise is taking us into space, he’s taking the world into space,” said UFEG president Donna Langley, per BBC News.
“This is the plan. We have a big project in development with Tom… Take a rocket to the Space Station and shoot.”
Langley revealed that most of the film would be shot on earth, culminating in “the character”. [going] into space to save the day,” adding that he hopes Cruise will become “the first civilian to do a spacewalk outside the space station.”
If the film lands, Cruise would be the first movie star to shoot in outer space on the International Space Station.
While the move is unprecedented, it’s fair to say that it’s no surprise that Cruise is looking into space, with the Jerry Maguire actor known for his ambitious stunt work.
On Cruise’s 60th birthday in July, mission impossible Director Christopher McQuarrie shared a rare photo of the American actor performing a truly insane stunt.
In the footage, Cruise can be seen hanging from an airborne red biplane with very little, if any, help.
He made headlines when he was injured on the set of Mission Impossible 6 in 2017, with leaked video footage showing his death-defying rooftop jump gone horribly wrong.
Cruise was seen crashing into a building, hanging in the air from his harness before rising to the roof and stumbling towards the crew members.
Just a few months later, he was back on set in London shooting stunts again.
Cruise was recently asked at the Cannes Film Festival why he chooses to give up being a stunt actor, and he reportedly replied, “Nobody asked Gene Kelly, ‘Why do you dance?’
Appreciation for Cruise, who has been working in Hollywood since the early 1980s, is at a fever pitch following the huge success of the long-awaited sequel.Top Gun: Maverick.
It became Australia’s fifth-highest-grossing film just weeks after its release in May, having climbed to third place and surpassing A$1.4 billion ($2.2 billion) at the global box office.