Tom Cruise’s career is a testament to dedication, top-speed pace in his career, smiles, and versatility in the film industry. Since his debut in the 80s, Cruise has excelled in a series of films that have made him one of Hollywood’s brightest stars. His roles in classics like “Rebels” (1983) by Francis Ford Coppola, “Legend” (1985) by Ridley Scott, and “Rain Man” (1988) by Barry Levinson, as well as his iconic role in “Top Gun” (1986) by Tony Scott, demonstrated his ability to attract both audiences and critics alike with tremendously different roles, all with Cruise’s personality stamp.
Despite his continued success, some directors still had doubts about Cruise’s acting abilities. One of those directors was Cameron Crowe, the man behind the film “Jerry Maguire.” Even though Cruise was already a established star at the time, Crowe initially did not consider him the ideal choice for the lead role in the film. But he was wrong, and he was proven wrong to the tune of 20 million dollars.
The director who doubted Tom Cruise
Cameron Crowe, known for directing films like “Almost Famous” (2000) and “Vanilla Sky” (2001), recently revealed on the podcast “Here’s the Thing” with Alec Baldwin that he did not want Tom Cruise in “Jerry Maguire.” Instead, Crowe had another actor in mind for the role: Tom Hanks. However, Hanks turned down the offer due to prior commitments.
The reason behind Crowe’s reluctance to choose Cruise stemmed from his perception of the actor’s dominant nature. He feared that Cruise could take control of the project and jeopardize his creative vision. However, Cruise’s surprising behavior proved pivotal to the film’s success. To show his commitment to the project and prove Crowe wrong, Tom Cruise agreed to star in the film “Jerry Maguire” completely free of charge, earning a percentage of the revenue once it was released. This was an important gesture, as Cruise’s cachet at the time was not insignificant.
Tom Cruise’s gamble turned out to be a brilliant move: When “Jerry Maguire” premiered in 1996, it became a huge box office success, grossing a total of 273 million dollars worldwide. Both audiences and critics praised the film, and much of its success was attributed to Cruise’s performance. This is why it’s not surprising that Cruise also took charge of promoting the film when he saw it starting to lose momentum at the box office, helping to attract more viewers who might not have been interested in a Cruise work that didn’t involve chases, fights, explosions, and stunts.
Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding Jr. in Jerry Maguire
A curious box office record
Coincidentally, “Jerry Maguire” holds a peculiar record at the box office. Despite its financial success, the film has the record for the lowest grossing film to lead the national box office at the time. This was because the film regained the top spot at the box office during a particularly slow weekend in January 1997. “Jerry Maguire” only needed 5.5 million dollars to secure the top spot at that moment, as the new movie market at the time was very unappealing to viewers. However, this return to the top spot demonstrated the film’s strength and sustained popularity among the public, especially thanks to Cruise’s promotional efforts. “Jerry Maguire’s” success not only reaffirmed Tom Cruise’s position as a top-tier film star but also made Cameron Crowe reconsider his initial perception of the actor.
What could have been
It’s interesting to think about how “Jerry Maguire” could have been if Tom Hanks had accepted the role instead of Tom Cruise. Hanks, an actor known for his skill in romantic comedies and dramas, would have brought a different style to the character of Jerry Maguire. As a curiosity, it should be mentioned that Hugh Grant also received the script for the film by mistake, but the offer was withdrawn after the confusion was realized. I don’t know about you, but it seems very difficult to imagine another actor in the role besides Cruise now.
Cruise is a whirlwind. While it seems impossible to separate him from his most flashy roles, like those in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise or Maverick, it’s still surprising that between blockbusters Cruise can fit in works like “Jerry Maguire,” the aforementioned “Rain Man,” or the excellent “Magnolia” by Paul Thomas Anderson (1999). The results may be somewhat irregular, but Cruise’s enthusiasm to always offer something interesting and entertaining for viewers cannot be denied.
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