“I hope I’m the right guy”: Tom Cruise Worked for Free in $273M Movie to Prove Director Wrong Who Felt Tom Hanks Was Born to Play the Role

bySmriti SnehAugust 27, 2023, 3:56 pm

Tom Cruise has quite the filmography to his name. The Eyes Wide Shut star has exhibited great versatility over the course of his career, having acted in a plethora of roles that had him portray a diverse set of characters. No wonder he was successful in carving out a name for himself in the span of just half a decade in the industry. But he didn’t let the success get to his head. The instrumental role he played in the success of Jerry Maguire is a testament to that.

Jerry Maguire hit the theatres all the way back in 1996. And it took the world by storm, being a massive hit both amongst the critics and the viewers. It bagged a stellar $273 million at the global box office.

Critics were also unanimous about the Renée Zellweger starrer’s quality, showering praises upon the people responsible for its success. That list will be a long one definitely. But on top of it, a spot should be reserved for none other than Tom Cruise.

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Tom Cruise achieved great renown when Jerry Maguire‘s writer/director Cameron Crowe was contemplating how the movie would take shape. He had a vision for the film. But the Top Gun: Maverick star was not a part of it. The director had other names in mind, with Tom Hanks leading the list.

Fate had other plans in store for him. It was after the Forrest Gump star turned down the role that Cruise was considered. In an episode of Alec Baldwin’s Here’s the Thing podcast, he opened up about what he expected having Tom Cruise on board would be like (and how it actually turned out to be).

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Cameron Crowe was wary of Tom Cruise’s “domineering nature”. His friends had advised him that he would eventually “lose your power”. The Trophic Thunder star was anything but this. From the moment “he got off the plane”, he was always ready to help the team.

When the audience testing seemed to be going sideways, the Knight and Day star took matters into his own hands. What followed was a spree of promotions that said Jerry Maguire’s rating skyrocketed. What Crowe cherished the most was the fact that he didn’t even charge for his acting.

The 66-year-old told Baldwin,

“It was the brawn of him coming to say, ‘OK, guys, I act for free. This is what you pay me for. I’m going to give them everything I’ve got for this movie.’”

Safe to say Crowe didn’t regret casting him.

Also Read: “It served me right for not being religious”: Tom Cruise’s $63M Breakout Movie Co-Star Was Scandalized With Actor’s S-x Addiction That He Disguised as Bible Study

Source: Cheat Sheet

Cameron CroweTom CruiseTom Hanks

Smriti Sneh is a Content Writer at Fandom Wire specializing in celebrities and everything pop-culture. Being a literature research scholar from the University of Lucknow, she is cashing in on her writing skills by working in the entertainment news sector - studying literary theories by day, and navigating celebrity net worths through the night. Although you can find her writing poems at any and all hours.