With over 40 years of classic movies under his belt, Tom Cruise is among Hollywood’s biggest and most recognizable stars. From his Oscar-nominated dramatic performance in Magnolia to his utterly hilarious, against-type, prosthetics-laden appearance in Tropic Thunder as an overweight, balding, foul-mouthed studio exec, he has proven himself to be one of the industry’s most adaptable and versatile actors.
Despite his long and varied career, when one thinks of Tom Cruise, there’s one specific genre that immediately springs to mind. From enormously successful franchises like Top Gun and Mission Impossible, to wildly imaginative, rip-roaring, high-octane sci-fi movies like Minority Report, Edge of Tomorrow, and Oblivion, Tom Cruise has become synonymous with action movies. As one of the genre’s most consistent stars, he has racked up dozens of action movie credits over the years.
Here, I’ve taken the best of his catalog and ranked Tom Cruise’s ten greatest action thriller movies, using the quality of the action, Cruise’s individual performance, and overall legacy as primary factors.
‘Oblivion’ (2013)
After Earth is rendered uninhabitable following a catastrophic war with alien invaders, survivors are relocated to a colony on Saturn’s moon. Tom Cruise plays drone repair technician, Jack Harper, who is stationed on Earth as part of a mass cleanup mission after the defeat of the aliens. He begins uncovering strange truths about the war, however, and starts to question his own identity and the mission he has dedicated his life to.
What starts as a slick sci-fi survival story slowly turns into a mystery about memory, humanity, and deception as Jack soon becomes the target of a hidden controlling threat. Oblivion‘s vision of a desolate Earth looks hauntingly beautiful, and when the action kicks in, it’s sleek and polished. From fast, precise drone battles and aerial dogfights to ground-level shootouts, it feels intense and thrilling, with the tension steadily escalating with each plot twist and turn.
‘Jack Reacher’ (2012)
Based on the “Jack Reacher” novel One Shot, written by Lee Child, Cruise portrays the title character and is supported by a fantastic cast including the likes of Rosamund Pike, Werner Herzog, Robert Duvall, David Oyelowo, Richard Jenkins, and Jai Courtney. The film focuses on the titular rogue investigator who is called upon to aid in a homicide investigation involving a trained military sniper believed to be responsible for a mass shooting.
Whether it deserves to sit higher on this list than the original Mission: Impossible movie is really down to personal taste, but I found its narrative flow to be sharper and its action to be harder-edged, delivering a more grounded sense of danger. While Cruise’s charming allure is always a delight to witness, many loyal fans of the books felt that his natural charisma and movie-star presence feel a little too polished and approachable compared to the colder, more physically imposing version of Reach from the novels – a version Alan Ritchson has since perfected in the critically acclaimed Reacher series.
‘American Made’ (2017)
Loosely based on the real life of Barry Seal, a former pilot who became a drug smuggler for the Medellín Cartel in the 1980s and then, to avoid jail time, became an informant for the DEA, American Made sees Tom Cruise at his most chaotically charismatic. It’s a breakneck journey back to the late ’70s and early ’80s told through the eyes of a protagonist who is as oblivious as he is ambitious.
Combining irreverent humor and satire with outrageous action, underpinned by a relentless, escalating sense of tension, it was a hit with critics and audiences alike, scoring an impressive 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s refreshing to experience a looser, more morally messy and comedic side of Cruise, especially when compared to more traditional and formulaic action thrillers like Jack Reacher and Mission: Impossible. The movie flew under the radar in 2017, losing some of the legacy factor that’s defined other Cruise thrillers.
‘Mission Impossible’ (1996)
Paramount Pictures had been toying with the idea of rebooting the classic 1966 Mission: Impossible TV series for years, but when Cruise founded Cruise/Wagner Productions in 1992 and decided on Mission: Impossible as its first project, it was all systems go. Now one of the biggest, most successful movie franchises in Hollywood history, it all started with 1996’s inaugural installment.
A shocking twist, a rocking soundtrack, and a more grounded, relatable protagonist than most other action thrillers of its time – the first Mission: Impossible movie might not be quite as outlandish in terms of the sheer stunt audacity as later entries, but it earns a place on this list for launching the series that redefined the modern espionage genre and cemented Cruise as one of the biggest action stars on the planet. While not as commonly celebrated as the more fast-paced modern installments, the original is undoubtedly an espionage masterpiece that deserves its place for kicking off a franchise.
‘Top Gun’ (1986)
After catching the attention of the industry in his breakthrough performances in the romantic comedy Risky Business and the coming-of-age drama The Outsiders, Tom Cruise was cast in the lead role of the dark fantasy movie Legend, directed by Ridley Scott, who was best known, at the time, for Alien and Blade Runner. It was expected to elevate Cruise into the realms of international superstardom, but unfortunately, the movie failed to live up to expectations and was a huge commercial and critical failure, placing a major stumbling block in front of Cruise’s once-promising career.
The movie that followed for Cruise was Top Gun. Despite mixed reviews upon its release, it would go on to become a huge global success, establishing Cruise as a major Hollywood leading man and building the larger-than-life movie-star persona he’s known for today. While it might not be his most critically acclaimed and lacks the emotional depth and grit of some of his later movies, its impact on popular culture is undeniable, with it influencing fashion, music, and becoming a staple of parody and homage in popular culture, ever since.
‘Edge of Tomorrow’ (2014)
It’s always refreshing when a movie hits theaters and completely nails what it set out to do, and it’s even more refreshing when said movie isn’t a sequel, remake, or reboot. That’s exactly what happened in 2014 when audiences were hit with the Tom Cruise-led sci-fi action blockbuster Edge of Tomorrow.
Taking place in the future where most of Europe is now occupied by a hostile alien race, Tom Cruise plays a PR worker with no military experience, who is forced to join a landing attack against the aliens. He finds himself in a time loop, which he uses to his advantage as he orchestrates a means to defeat the aliens. Full of jaw-dropping special effects, a gripping story, and a subtle undercurrent of humor, the movie was a hit with critics and audiences alike and currently sits at an impressive 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite being a box office let-down, Edge of Tomorrow is peak Cruise and peak action.
Unfortunately, despite recent rumors to the contrary, it seems that there will not be a sequel released any time soon.
‘Top Gun: Maverick’ (2022)
Over three-and-a-half decades after the release of the original, Tom Cruise is once again donning his iconic aviator sunglasses as he returns to the role of Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. Maverick took everything that made Top Gun so iconic and elevated it to another level. The characters are better developed, the aerial action scenes are more exhilarating, the stakes feel higher, and the emotional ups and downs hit harder.
As a result, Maverick smashed all manner of records, becoming one of the highest-grossing movies of all time and scoring an impressive 96% on Rotten Tomatoes – a full 41% higher than the original. As Tom Cruise’s highest-grossing movie and one of the most influential modern action films, it deserves a place near the top, even if it’s not as layered as those ranked above it.
‘Minority Report’ (2002)
Set in 2054, where a specialized police “precrime” department predicts and prevents crimes with the use of foreknowledge provided by three psychic robots, it follows the story of the commanding officer of Precrime Chief John Anderton, as he finds himself on the run after being identified as a would-be murderer himself. Steven Spielberg directed the film and described it as being:
“50% character and 50% very complicated storytelling with layers and layers of murder mystery and plot”
Minority Report is an action-packed thriller that, while fun, fast, and frenetic, feels more intelligent, compelling, and thought-provoking than Cruise’s other sci-fi work. As Anderton desperately attempts to prove his innocence and uncover flaws in the system, the movie brings its exploration of free will vs. determinism to the forefront. Driven by a typically charismatic performance from Tom Cruise in the lead role, it was a huge critical and commercial hit. When you combine one of the greatest directors with one of the greatest movie stars, these are the results you’d hope for.
‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ (2018)
Scoring a near perfect 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, Fallout is not just the pinnacle of Mission: Impossible movies, it’s the pinnacle of the action genre, sitting among the all-time greats like Die Hard and Terminator 2. Fast, sleek, and oodles of fun, it certainly lives up to the ‘impossible’ part of its name by setting yet another ridiculously high benchmark for insane set pieces in a franchise full of them, with all the stunts being carried out by Cruise himself, to boot.
Here, Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt has evolved from a tightly controlled, mission-first operative into a more relatable, emotionally grounded character who openly bends rules and trusts his instincts. Elsewhere, Henry Cavill plays a convincingly ruthless and burly CIA assassin antagonist, and series staple Simon Pegg is on hand to provide a little comic relief in his role as Benji Dunn. No other Mission: Impossible entry quite matches its balance of relentless, cohesive action and emotional stakes, making it the best in the franchise and the second-best Tom Cruise action thriller movie of all time.
‘Collateral’ (2004)
If Mission: Impossible Fallout is the pinnacle of all-out action chaos, Collateral is the pinnacle of tension and atmosphere. It follows Max, a Los Angeles cab driver (played by Jamie Foxx), who is offered an unusually high fare for driving to several locations for a mysterious customer (Tom Cruise). He agrees but soon finds himself taken hostage by the customer, who turns out to be a sociopathic hit man on a contract killing spree.
The action, tension, and Cruise’s performance are all remarkably restrained, as Cruise plays against type, demonstrating a psychologically unsettling level of controlled menace never seen from the actor before. The movie is a slow-burn exercise in mounting suspense, punctuated by moments of intense, grounded, and brutally efficient action.
While it might not feature the gravity-defying, explosive stunts found in the Mission: Impossible or Top Gun franchises or the sleek sci-fi visuals of Minority Report or Edge of Tomorrow, it does feature what is arguably the most unpredictable and psychologically fascinating performance of Cruise’s entire career, and perfectly balances atmosphere, character tension, and grounded action, creating a modern crime masterpiece. In many ways, Collateral is the perfect blend of action entertainment and artistic endeavor.
- Birthdate
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July 3, 1962
- Birthplace
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Syracuse, New York, USA
- Birthname
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Thomas Cruise Mapother IV
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
