Beau Bridges Praises Tom Cruise’s Stunt Work

Actor Beau Bridges has high praise for Tom Cruise’s evolving talent and daring stunts. Bridges, who worked alongside Cruise in the 90s film “Jerry McGuire,” shared his admiration during an event for “Matlock.” He remarked, “He’s a wonderful actor and just gets better with age. I mean, he’s still doing all those crazy stunts and stuff. Yeah. And I like working with him. I thought he was great.”

Cruise’s approach to stunts has also affected how Hollywood views such performances. Earlier in the year, Ethan Hawke expressed his frustration with how Cruise’s intense stunt work alters the expectations for actors. “Tom Cruise has totally changed what’s expected for actors,” Hawke stated at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. “Some part of me is getting angry over the years because everyone somehow feels like they’re less if they use a stunt team.”

The 63-year-old actor, known for not appearing in superhero films, has made a mark with his action sequences in franchises like “Mission: Impossible,” “Top Gun,” and “Jack Reacher.” Last year, Cruise pushed the limits while filming “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,” nearly injuring himself during an intense stunt. In a bonus feature from the film, Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie discussed a complex scene involving a biplane battle between Cruise’s character, Ethan Hunt, and Esai Morales’ character, Gabriel. The action unfolded with Ethan jumping between planes mid-air, enduring significant physical strain.

Oh, this almost broke my back,” Cruise told Entertainment Weekly.

Director McQuarrie added that the sequence was brutal to film. He described a moment where Cruise’s fingers were injured, swelling from the force used in the stunt. “Oh my God, it was so painful to watch,” McQuarrie recalled. In the scene, Cruise’s character had to crash into the aircraft’s side, recalling the experience as intensely painful. McQuarrie humorously noted that Cruise improvised some of the action, joking, “I didn’t ask you to do that.”