The 25 most memorable Tom Cruise performances

Cruise had been in a few films before this, including the parade of ‘80s stars that was “The Outsiders,” but this was his breakout star role. It’s also the movie where he danced to “Old Time Rock and Roll” in his underwear when his parents leave him home alone. That’s become an extremely famous, and parodied movie moment.

In terms of slick ‘80s action films, “Top Gun” may be at the top of the list. Cruise’s turn as Maverick was so indelible they decided to make a sequel over 30 years later. “Top Gun: Maverick” was supposed to hit theaters in 2020, but now we have to wait to see Cruise in one of his iconic roles a little while longer.

There’s a lot of prestige to this movie, even if it is a sequel. After all, Martin Scorsese directed it. Paul Newman returned as “Fast Eddie” Felson, winning an Oscar for his efforts. However, Cruise was along for the ride as well, cast as a hotshot young pool hustler because of the actor’s own rising stardom.

“Cocktail” is an incredibly goofy movie, but a lot of people remember it fondly. It’s about Cruise as a cocksure flair bartender, after all. For many, it was their first look at that kind of bar and that kind of bartending. “Cocktail” also may have helped put the Beach Boys’ “Kokomo” into the cultural lexicon, for better or worse.

Dustin Hoffman had the showy performance in “Rain Man.” He’s the one who won the Oscar. In fact, the movie also won Best Picture. However, don’t overlook Cruise. Then again, was Cruise ever getting overlooked in the ‘80s? He had a tough role in “Rain Man,” having to manage a presence on screen while sharing it with Hoffman’s over-the-top acting, but he did it because he was a true star already.

This was Cruise’s attempt to swing big for an Oscar like his castmate Hoffman had the year prior. While Cruise didn’t win an Oscar, he was nominated, and many consider this his best performance. Cruise played real-life Vietnam veteran Ron Kovic in this visceral melodrama that allowed the actor to really emote all over the place.

Tom Cruise as a racecar driver. It just makes sense, doesn’t it? “Days of Thunder” is not necessarily remarkable as a movie, but we still remember it. Why? Because it starred Cruise. Also, maybe because his character was named Cole Trickle. That kind of tends to stick in the mind.

We all remember “You can’t handle the truth!” Jack Nicholson gives one of his most memorable performances in “A Few Good Men.” However, we also remember the lawyer who wanted the truth from Colonel Jessup. That was Cruise, and his performance is just as indelible as Nicholson’s. It’s the truth, and we can handle it.

Anne Rice’s Southern Gothic romantic vampires were quite popular in the ‘90s. A movie based on them was surely going to grab attention. Then Cruise and Brad Pitt got cast. Cruise plays Lestat, maybe the most famous vampire out there not named Nosferatu or Count Dracula. Well, or Edward Cullen now, we suppose.

Over a decade into his acting career, Cruise started the action series that would keep him as one of the biggest action stars in the world for over 20 years. That was not to expected in the comparatively-tame opener to the series. Bear in mind this movie was directed by Brian De Palma. When his movie is considered “tame” by a series’ reputation, you know things got crazy eventually.

Cameron Crowe’s film is packed to the brim with famous lines. Simply by yelling, “Show me the money!” Cruise birthed what was effectively a meme for a pre-internet time. However, there’s much more to this performance than merely one shouted catchphrase.

Sometimes external factors make a movie more memorable. For starters, this was Stanley Kubrick’s final film. Second, it starred the then-married couple of Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Given the plot of this film, that created a sense of intrigue, perhaps morbid curiosity. When Cruise and Kidman divorced that only added fuel to the fire.

Clearly, 1999 was Cruise taking one more big swing at trying to win an Oscar. He made films with both Kubrick and Paul Thomas Anderson. Anderson was following up his breakout hit “Boogie Nights” with the ensemble piece “Magnolia.” Perhaps “Magnolia” was a little too complicated, a little too messy. Cruise is very good, but there was no Oscar.

Cruise has made a couple of action films with Steven Spielberg. “War of the Worlds” made some cash, but we don’t really remember it much. “Minority Report” is a different story. Its plot is a little fresher, and perhaps we also feel like the plot is more successful as well.

Yes, it’s a little odd that Cruise starred in a movie called “The Last Samurai.” Hey, at least it’s based on some historical fact, though there have still been some quibbles. Personally, we don’t feel like fiction movies need to be de facto documentaries. “The Last Samurai” was a big hit and got four Oscar nominations, and Cruise is definitely the face of the cast (with all due respect to Ken Watanabe).

Cruise has spent so much of his career playing action heroes and good guys. In “Collateral” he plays the villain, a callous hitman who makes life miserable for Jamie Foxx’s cab driver. It’s a grim film, but Cruise showed that he knows how to play evil. He hasn’t really done it since, though.

People were taken aback when Cruise showed up unexpectedly in “Tropic Thunder.” That’s partially because he buried himself under makeup and latex. It’s also because it had been a long time, and maybe it was the first time, he got so broad with his comedy. Cruise swears his head off and dances like a lunatic. In an insane comedy, Cruise may stand out above everybody else with his performance.

You may not have seen “Valkyrie.” It did make money. Quite a lot of it. It’s a thriller about an attempt to assassinate Hitler. However, we’d bet you definitely remember seeing trailers and posters for the movie where Cruise had an eye patch. See, now you remember “Valkyrie.” That’s what we call memorable. It’s also notable because it isn’t a sci-fi film, an action film, or something along those lines.

We skipped a couple of the “Mission: Impossible” films, but now we are getting to the point where Cruise kept trying to outdo himself with insane stunts. “Ghost Protocol” is the one where he climbs the outside of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. That grabbed people’s attention, and it increased interest in the film series.

Hey, they managed to make two “Jack Reacher” movies. That means the first one had to make enough of an impact to warrant a second film. It’s not like they made a sequel to “Knight and Day.” While Cruise is much more compact than the Reacher in the book, he took a character that a lot of people had never heard of and made him something of a household name.

“Rock of Ages” is a total fiasco. It’s a jukebox musical, but it doesn’t work like “Mamma Mia!” However, we all remember Cruise doing the whole hair metal thing. This was a big swing of a film and a big swing for Cruise. While it was a total whiff, it was the kind of failure we remember.

Maybe you know it better as “Live, Die, Repeat.” The marketing behind “Edge of Tomorrow” was a little middling. The movie, though, has a ton of fans. People consider “Edge of Tomorrow” one of the best sci-fi action films of recent vintage. It has a clever premise and also featured a fine turn from Emily Blunt alongside Cruise. In fact, she’s more heroic than he is.

For our money, “Rogue Nation” is the best of the “Mission: Impossible” movies. The plot is riveting and the action is fantastic. This film featured a couple of insane stunts from Cruise. While him having to hold his breath for upwards of three minutes for an underwater scene without edits is impressive, the big, showy stunt is clearly when Cruise held on to the outside of an airplane as it took off. Read that again. Think of how insane it is for a true movie star to do that.

“The Mummy” flopped for all intents and purposes. However, they had hoped to build a new cinematic universe off of it, which meant it got a ton of promotion. A lot of that focused on the titular mummy and her freaky eyes. That being said, Cruise is definitely the star, and this was a “Mummy” movie. It’s not his most memorable role, but it’s definitely a memorable one. Also, had the series taken off, it would have become even more memorable given the twist at the end.

Cruise was almost overshadowed by Henry Cavill’s mustache, but not quite. The movie was a massive hit, and in fact, has made more money than any movie in Cruise’s career. It’s another great action film that is filled with big action set pieces. Cruise infamously broke his ankle filming a stunt but kept filming the scene so that they could complete it for the film. The man is truly dedicated to his craft.

Maverick is back! It took decades, but it was well worth it. Not only do a lot of people find "Maverick" better than "Top Gun," but it was a massive hit. The sequel is the highest-grossing film of 2022 domestically, and second-highest-grossing worldwide.