Tom Cruise.

Thomas Cruise Mapother IV

Born 3 Jul 1962 Syracuse, United States

Citizenship United States

Age 64 yr Today

14 min read

Reading time

2,698

Words

Sep 21, 2026

Published

Awards

TL;DR

Tom Cruise, born Thomas Cruise Mapother IV in 1962, became a top box-office draw after starring in Top Gun 1986. He earned $75 million for Mission: Impossible II 2000 and received three Golden Globe Awards. Cruise is known for performing his own stunts, such as climbing the Burj Khalifa in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol 2011. He has also been married to three actresses: Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes.

Identity & family.

KIN · 8

Names, aliases, and relatives of Tom Cruise — birth name, kin, and personal ties.

Birth Name Thomas Cruise Mapother IV

Aliases Tomu Kurûzu

Parents: Mary Lee Pfeiffer Thomas Cruise Mapother III
Spouses: Katie Holmes Nicole Kidman Mimi Rogers
Children: Suri Cruise Isabella Jane Cruise Connor Cruise

At a glance.

STATS

Tom Cruise by the numbers — life, work, and family.

64 Age

11 Awards

3 Marriages

3 Children

Who is Tom Cruise?

BIOGRAPHY

Tom Cruise — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.

Early life

At age 14 in 1976, Tom Cruise enrolled in a Franciscan seminary to become a priest, but he dropped out after a year and turned to acting.

The son of a special education teacher and an electrical engineer, Cruise was born Thomas Cruise Mapother IV on July 3, 1962 in Syracuse, New York. His family moved frequently, and he attended 15 different schools in the US and Canada by age 14. He has German, Irish, and English ancestry. After his parents divorced, the family settled with his mother and stepfather in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. He attended Glen Ridge High School but left at 18 to pursue acting in New York City.

Career

Tom Cruise made his film debut with a small role in Endless Love 1981. His breakout came with Top Gun 1986, which earned over $350 million worldwide and made him a household name. He then starred in The Color of Money 1986 opposite his idol Paul Newman, and Rain Man 1988 with Dustin Hoffman. He followed with Born on the Fourth of July 1989, for which he won a Golden Globe for Best Actor.

In the 1990s, Cruise starred in blockbusters like Interview with the Vampire 1994, Mission: Impossible 1996, and Jerry Maguire 1996, for which he received an Academy Award nomination. He earned $75 million for Mission: Impossible II 2000 by taking a percentage of the gross. Cruise has produced many of his films and insists on performing his own stunts, including climbing the Burj Khalifa in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol 2011. He has worked with esteemed directors such as Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, and Steven Spielberg.

Personal life

Tom Cruise has been married three times. He married actress Mimi Rogers in 1987, but they divorced in 1990. Later that year, he married Nicole Kidman; they adopted two children, Isabella born 1992 and Connor born 1995, before divorcing in 2001. In 2006, he married Katie Holmes; they have a daughter, Suri born 2006, but divorced in 2012. Cruise also had a relationship with actress Penélope Cruz from 2001 to 2004.

In 1990, Cruise embraced the Church of Scientology, crediting it with curing his dyslexia. He has faced several controversies and lawsuits, including a $100 million defamation suit over alleged sex tapes.

Legacy

Tom Cruise is one of the highest-grossing actors of all time, with his films earning over $4 billion worldwide. He holds the record for six consecutive $100 million-grossing films in the US, from A Few Good Men 1992 to Jerry Maguire 1996. His Mission: Impossible franchise has grossed over $3 billion globally. Cruise has received three Golden Globe Awards, the Honorary Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2022, and an Academy Honorary Award for his contributions to film.

His dedication to stunt work has influenced action cinema, inspiring actors like Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hardy to perform their own stunts. Off-screen, Cruise has performed charitable acts, such as paying the hospital bills of a hit-and-run victim in 1996.

Awards & honors.

AWARDS · 11

Every award, honor, and recognition received by Tom Cruise — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
IAS Freedom Medal
star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Saturn Award for Best Actor
Honorary Palme d'Or
Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy
Critics' Choice Movie Award
Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres
Academy Honorary Award

Notable quotes.

QUOTES · 15

A wall of memorable lines from Tom Cruise — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.

The Thing About Filmmaking Is I Give It Everything, That’s Why I Work so Hard. I Always Tell Young Actors to Take Charge. It’s Not That Hard. Sign Your Own Checks, Be Responsible.
I Have Cooked Turkeys in My Day but When Mom’s Around I Let Her Do It.
Awards Are Wonderful. I’ve Been Nominated Many Times and I’ve Won Many Awards. but My Journey Is Not Towards That. If It Happens It Will Be a Blast. If It Doesn’t, It’s Still Been a Blast.
I Believe in Life. I Know That Life Comes in at Your Heart and It Doesn’t Matter If You’re an Actor, a Filmmaker or a Gentleman on the Street, It Comes at You. What Scientology Gives Me Is the Tools to Deal with That, to Better Enjoy My Life and to Be Able to Contribute More.
As a Young Actor, People Were Trying to Define Who I Was Before I Really Knew That for Myself. but I Still Remember Thinking, This Is What I Love Doing, and I Hope I’m Going to Be Able to Do It Forever..
I’ve Had a Very Interesting Life. There Are Ways of Handling the Complexities. I’m Willing to Take on Responsibilities as a Father, as a Producer, as an Actor – and I Enjoy That. I’ve Always Been Changing and Evolving and Growing. There’s No Pinnacle of Power Where You Can Sit Back and Rest.
I Would Live with All of My Sisters If I Could. We’ve Always Been Very Close, My Sisters and Me.
I Don’t Really Keep Counsel with Others. I’m the Kind of Person Who Will Think About Something, and If I Know It’s Right I’m Not Going to Ask Anybody. I Don’t Go, Boy, What Do You Think About This? I’ve Made Every Decision for Myself – in My Career, in My Life.
I’ve Never Agreed with Psychiatry, Ever. Before I Was a Scientologist, I Never Agreed with Psychiatry. Here’s the Problem. You Don’t Know the History of Psychiatry. I Do.
I’m Passionate About Learning. I’m Passionate About Life.
Every Single Time I Start to Do a Picture, Without Fail, I Feel as If I Don’t Know What I’m Doing.
I’m Not the Stanislavsky Kind of Actor. I Just Want to Communicate with the People in the Scene.
What Do I Want? I Want a World Without War. I Want a World Without Insanity. I Want to See People Do Well. and I Don’t Even Think That It’s as Much of What I Want for Myself. It’s More What I Want for the People Around Me.
In 1988, Tom Himself Was Quoted Saying: I Have Always Been Pretty Much the Same Weight, 147 Pounds – at 5 Feet 9 Inches..
Action Is Action, but If It Doesn’t Have Story and Character It’s Not Involving.

Did you know?

FACTS · 31

Little-known facts about Tom Cruise — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.

In 1996, Tom Cruise stopped to help a hit-and-run victim, aspiring Brazilian actress Heloisa Vinhas, and paid her hospital bills.
Paul Newman was Tom Cruise’s acting idol. They became good friends while working on The Color of Money 1986, and Newman introduced him to racing. Cruise later raced on Newman’s team.
Tom Cruise insists on performing many of his own stunts. For Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol 2011, he climbed the exterior of the Burj Khalifa, and for Jack Reacher 2012 he drove in car chases.
After opening the 2002 Academy Awards, Tom Cruise left early to take care of his children with Nicole Kidman, Connor and Isabella. He watched the rest of the ceremony at home with them.
Tom Cruise earned about $75 million for Mission: Impossible II 2000 by forgoing an upfront salary. He took a back-end deal giving him 30% of the film’s gross for his producing and acting duties.
Tom Cruise was the first actor to star in five consecutive $100 million-grossing films in the US: A Few Good Men 1992, The Firm 1993, Interview with the Vampire 1994, Mission: Impossible 1996, and Jerry Maguire 1996.
Disney animators modeled the character Aladdin 1992 after Tom Cruise’s features and good looks.
Since his first $100 million grosser Top Gun 1986, Tom Cruise has had only six films that failed to reach that milestone in the US.
At age 14, Tom Cruise enrolled in a Franciscan seminary to become a priest, but he dropped out after one year.
In 2005, Tom Cruise visited Brooke Shields at her home to personally apologize for criticizing her use of medication for postpartum depression. Shields accepted his apology.
Tom Cruise lived with Vanilla Sky 2001 co-star Penélope Cruz from 2001 to 2004.
Tom Cruise once shared a record with Tom Hanks for the most consecutive $100 million-grossing films 7. Will Smith surpassed them in 2008 with eight.
Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes were all 34 years old when they divorced Tom Cruise.
On April 3, 2013, Tom Cruise received a Certificate of Irish Heritage from the Irish government. His Irish roots trace back 840 years to the Norman invasion, and his ancestors were Barons in Ireland with lands including Hollywood in North County Dublin.
Emilio Estevez was the best man at Tom Cruise’s wedding to Mimi Rogers.
Tom Cruise does not allow his likeness to be used in video games or for action figures.
Tom Cruise has worked with acclaimed directors including Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, and many others.
Tom Cruise and Ving Rhames are the only actors to appear in all five Mission: Impossible films from 1996 to 2015.
Tom Cruise filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Michael Davis, who allegedly offered to sell videotapes of himself having sex with the actor. The suit claimed Davis made the statements to hurt Cruise and gain publicity.
On Mother’s Day during the Days of Thunder 1990 shoot, Tom Cruise took his mother skydiving in tandem. He recorded the jump and sent FedExed copies of the video to his unsuspecting family members.
Tom Cruise auditioned for the role of Howard Keach in Harry & Son 1984 but didn’t get it. However, director Paul Newman remembered him and later cast him in The Color of Money 1986.
Tom Cruise owns and operates a World War II P-51 Mustang named Montana Miss.
After a knee injury ended his high school wrestling career, Tom Cruise took up acting.
At the London premiere of War of the Worlds 2005, a prankster squirted water in Tom Cruise’s face during an interview. Cruise’s reaction was stern but controlled, and the culprit was charged with assault.
Tom Cruise recently restored an older home in the township of Biltmore Forest near Asheville, North Carolina.
In 1994, Tom Cruise earned his pilot license in Markham, Ontario, Canada.
Tom Cruise enjoys skydiving, scuba diving, and piloting his Pitts Special S-2B stunt plane.
Tom Cruise married two actresses who played Batman’s love interest: Nicole Kidman in Batman Forever 1995 and Katie Holmes in Batman Begins 2005.
Cruise’s character Lt. Daniel Kaffee in A Few Good Men 1992 was based on real-life Navy JAG officer Donald Marcari, now an attorney in Chesapeake, Virginia.
One of Tom Cruise’s films, Top Gun 1986, has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes celebrated their wedding on November 18, 2006 at Odescalchi Castle in Bracciano, Italy. The Scientology ceremony had over 150 guests, including Jim Carrey, John Travolta, and Will Smith, and Andrea Bocelli performed.

You wanted to know.

FAQ · 30

Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Tom Cruise.

When was Tom Cruise born?

Tom Cruise was born on July 3, 1962. He was born as Thomas Cruise Mapother IV in Syracuse, New York.
Where was Tom Cruise born?

Tom Cruise was born in Syracuse, New York, USA. He moved frequently as a child, attending 15 different schools by age 14.
How old is Tom Cruise currently?

As of 2025, Tom Cruise is 63 years old. He was born on July 3, 1962.
What is Tom Cruise's birth name?

Tom Cruise’s birth name is Thomas Cruise Mapother IV. He adopted the stage name Tom Cruise early in his career.
What is Tom Cruise's profession?

Tom Cruise is an actor, producer, and director. He is best known for his acting roles in blockbuster films and for producing the Mission: Impossible franchise.
What is Tom Cruise's nationality?

Tom Cruise is American. He holds United States citizenship and was born in Syracuse, New York.
What languages does Tom Cruise speak?

Tom Cruise speaks English as his native language. He has also learned specific lines in other languages for film roles.
Who are Tom Cruise's parents?

Tom Cruise’s parents are Mary Lee Pfeiffer, a special education teacher, and Thomas Cruise Mapother III, an electrical engineer. They later divorced.
Who has Tom Cruise been married to?

Tom Cruise has been married three times: to Mimi Rogers 1987-1990, Nicole Kidman 1990-2001, and Katie Holmes 2006-2012. He is currently not married.
Does Tom Cruise have any children?

Yes, Tom Cruise has three children: Suri Cruise with Katie Holmes, and adopted children Isabella Jane Cruise and Connor Cruise with Nicole Kidman.
What schools did Tom Cruise attend?

Tom Cruise attended Henry Munro Middle School, Glen Ridge High School, and St. Xavier High School. He dropped out at age 18 to pursue acting.
What major awards has Tom Cruise won?

Tom Cruise has won three Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Drama for Born on the Fourth of July, Best Actor in a Comedy for Jerry Maguire, and Best Supporting Actor for Magnolia. He also received an Honorary Palme d’Or and an Academy Honorary Award.
How many major awards has Tom Cruise received?

Tom Cruise has won 13 major awards, including three Golden Globes, a Saturn Award, and the IAS Freedom Medal. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
What is Tom Cruise best known for?

Tom Cruise is best known for his lead roles in blockbuster films such as Top Gun 1986, the Mission: Impossible series, Jerry Maguire 1996, and Minority Report 2002. He is also known for performing his own dangerous stunts.
What is Tom Cruise's Instagram handle?

Tom Cruise’s Instagram handle is @tomcruise. He uses it to share updates with his fans.
How tall is Tom Cruise?

Tom Cruise is 5 feet 7 inches 1.70 meters tall. Despite his height, he has performed physically demanding stunts in films like Mission: Impossible.
What is Tom Cruise's Japanese name?

In Japan, Tom Cruise is known as Tomu Kurûzu. This is a phonetic adaptation of his name for Japanese audiences.
What is Tom Cruise known for?

Tom Cruise is known for his lead roles in blockbuster films such as Top Gun 1986, the Mission: Impossible series, Jerry Maguire 1996, and Minority Report 2002. He is also recognized for performing his own stunts.
Is Tom Cruise currently married?

No, Tom Cruise is currently not married. He was previously married to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman, and Katie Holmes.
What was Tom Cruise's first film role?

Tom Cruise made his film debut in Endless Love 1981 with a small role. It launched his acting career.
How did Tom Cruise meet Paul Newman?

Tom Cruise met Paul Newman when he auditioned for Harry & Son 1984 but didn’t get the role. Newman remembered him and cast him in The Color of Money 1986, and they became close friends.
How many directors of note has Tom Cruise worked with?

Tom Cruise has worked with over a dozen prominent directors, including Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Francis Ford Coppola. He has also collaborated with Cameron Crowe and Paul Thomas Anderson.
Does Tom Cruise have adopted children?

Yes, Tom Cruise adopted two children with ex-wife Nicole Kidman: Isabella Jane Cruise born 1992 and Connor Cruise born 1995.
Is Tom Cruise a pilot?

Yes, Tom Cruise earned his pilot license in 1994 in Markham, Ontario, Canada. He owns and operates a World War II P-51 Mustang named Montana Miss.
What charity work has Tom Cruise done?

In 1996, Tom Cruise stopped to help a hit-and-run victim, aspiring Brazilian actress Heloisa Vinhas, and paid her hospital bills. He has also supported various other causes.
What religion does Tom Cruise practice?

Tom Cruise is a member of the Church of Scientology. He joined the church in 1990 and has said it helped cure his dyslexia.
Has Tom Cruise ever been involved in a lawsuit?

Yes, Tom Cruise filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Michael Davis, who allegedly offered to sell videotapes of himself with Cruise. The suit claimed Davis made false statements for publicity.
What is Tom Cruise's connection to Irish heritage?

Tom Cruise has Irish ancestry dating back 840 years. In 2013, he received a Certificate of Irish Heritage from the Irish government.
How many consecutive $100 million movies did Tom Cruise have?

Tom Cruise starred in six consecutive films that grossed over $100 million in the US, from A Few Good Men 1992 to Jerry Maguire 1996. He was the first actor to achieve this.
What is the most dangerous stunt Tom Cruise has performed?

One of Tom Cruise’s most dangerous stunts was climbing the exterior of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, for Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol 2011. He performed the stunt without a safety harness in some shots.

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Audited & updated by

Olivia has 6 years of experience writing biographical profiles and still approaches every subject like it's the first one. She covers everyone from debut musicians to Hall of Fame athletes to novelists most people have never heard of. She finds something worth reading in all of them. Her drafts tend to come in already clean, which her editor appreciates. She says good writing is just good thinking written down. Hard to argue with that.

Published on September 21, 2026

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