Tom Cruise is finally kicking off the Digger press tour with one of his very first interviews in years.
The actor, 64, sat down with GQ for what the magazine notes is his first cover with them in 20 years, and is also his first major magazine cover profile in a decade.
© Getty ImagesOver the past decade, Tom has kept himself busy with a variety of franchise vehicles, including a reboot of the Mummy franchise in 2017, three Mission: Impossible films, and the long-awaited Top Gun sequel in 2022.
He will next appear in Alejandro G. Iñárritu's Digger, set for an October 2 wide release, playing oil baron Digger Rockwell, who is trying to fix an impending environmental disaster that his company caused with nothing but a shovel. Watch the film's trailer below...
The actor spoke at length about his creative process, not being afraid of going to "the edge of the cliff" metaphorically and literally, and his dedicated work ethic, which can sometimes push him to the extreme.
"This is about humanity," he said of the craft of making movies. "I have nothing against cable or TV or Netflix. I think it's great. Create jobs and everything. But what I like about cinema is it is all of us coming together in a room and sharing an experience."
"I say, 'Understand the tools, then go create what you want to create.' When I'm working with people, I'm not afraid to, as I'm acting, to look foolish, to do it," he continued, noting that he's not afraid to put his all into the process and let people know up-front that they should expect it.
© Warner Bros. Pictures"And look, I work hard, and people that work with me, they know. I expect a lot and I'm up-front about it. It's like: 'The rumors are true. And do you want this?'" the Days of Thunder star quipped.
When asked if he actually said that to people he worked with, Tom affirmed: "We're there. I'm like, 'Trust me, the rumors are true. I'll be here before you. What experience do you want?'"
"And I'm very open," he added with a laugh. "It's not like we don’t have a plan. We have scripts, we have plans, we're going through it. But I also feel that level of responsibility for—I guess, for everyone. Even when I was a kid, they were like, 'Oh, come on, Tom. You're so intense.' I'm like, 'I don't know what to say. I am intense.'"
© Getty Images"I got a very good sense of humor about it, but it was like: When I'm interested in something, I want to learn it. I want to understand it. And you want to blast through the confusion and kind of build up that ability."
Tom's commitment definitely carries through. Mission: Impossible's stunt coordinator Wade Eastwood, speaking with HELLO! at the National Board of Review Awards in January, elaborated on the actor's desire to always push for the best.
© Warner Bros. Pictures"Normally with actors, they like the idea of doing the stunts, but when they realize how much training goes in, that idea of doing it all fades away," he told us. "With Tom it excites him. So when I put the training in place or the schedule, he just commits. I mean, beyond commits. Even on our days off, we're both training."
