For months now, Tom Cruise has been in Europe, filming Mission Impossible 7 through the pandemic. I remember seeing photos of him working through Thanksgiving, and I would assume he’ll be working through Christmas. The MI7 set got permission to film in Italy through the pandemic as long as they were completely compliant with Italy’s covid protocols, which includes everyone being masked up, including the actors when they’re not filming a scene. The point is that it’s been a long, grueling shoot and for what it’s worth, Tom has personally modeled good mask-wearing behavior at all times when he’s not directly being filmed for MI7. In close-ups, you can even see that he’s double-masking. So, Tom expects everyone on the crew of MI7 to do the same. The production has already been shut down once because of a covid outbreak, and if that happens again, Tom knows it’s his ass, and he knows the studio is likely already hemorrhaging money to get MI7 done. So… when Tom saw some crew members NOT social distancing, he exploded. And someone was recording him, and they sold the recording to The Sun:
According to the Sun, Tom’s rant came after he saw two crew members standing within two meters of each other – the crew members were watching video playback on the monitor next to each other. That’s what led to this. While angry rants aren’t usually a good sign, it’s not like Tom is screaming incoherently over nothing. Everything he’s saying here is dead-on. MI7 is one of the few studio films being made this year, and that’s contingent on the cast and crew adhering to masking, social-distancing and testing protocols. They’ve been filming for months too, and again, everyone involved knows the stakes. While Tom is obviously a deeply problematic person, he’s not wrong here?
Also: Tom has put his own money into this MI7 production. He put in $500K so that cast and crew could isolate from the world on an old cruise ship while the production was ongoing. This angry rant happened in the UK, where they’re likely completing interior shots in studio space (meaning indoors, not open air).
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
I can’t stand Tom but he’s not wrong here. Its a stressful time for everyone, even super rich cult members lol
yup agreed. Not a Tom fan at all with all his cult crap, but here he’s dead on
The problem, if you listen to the tape, is that he says some odd things. He’s very worked up and doesn’t make sense. He could’ve just said you’re breaking the rules and you can be fired.
I don’t like what I hear about Tom and scientology, but I am a fan of his movies. In this clip, he sounds like me in my head, when I see all those people not respecting rules. this should be said and done. I agree with his rant, and I happy he must feel better after this and his crew should be ashamed.
I’m with you that “he sounds like me in my head when I see all those people not respecting the rules”.
I can’t believe I agree with Tom Cruise about anything but I agree with him here. I’d be livid too.
This. I was in the grocery store this morning, and the woman at the register didn’t have her mask over her nose. In my head, I went full Tom on her.
This.
Yep, first time I have ever agreed with creepy Tom Cruise, but he was absolutely right.
Honestly would have thought cos folks didn’t believe in the pandemic…? srsly. Wonder if he’s doing this for “show”
At his OT level, he should be immune to viral infections and able to heal others, so yeah, according to COS, it shouldn’t be an issue. Insurance companies might not like an outbreak though and as a producer, his money comes before his belief system? Insurance are more powerful than Xenu??
Look. I hate Tom Cruise. But yes right in this situation.
He’s not wrong. But can you imagine the outcry if this had been a woman or a Black man behaving like this.
I mean he’s not wrong, but he shouldn’t be wearing a vented mask.
THANK YOU! I wondered why nobody has been mentioning this. Most photos show him in a mask that protects him and endangers others.
he has a double mask on.
He is not wrong. But some of his wording seems to be scientologist-y. He says something about “if I can’t deal with your reason…” and something about logic. It sounds very much how scientologists use language in a strange way.
I took it to mean if you don’t have a good reason and you aren’t responsive to logic, then you can go.
His phrasing is odd
Yes, this. Lainey actually has a very good take on this, he is talking Scientology-talk. At the end of the day, he is still the face of a cult.
Yes, and good PR for him means increased recruiting for Scientology. The Daily Beast has an insightful article about his rant. Apparently he speaks to Scientology underlings in the same way. They also made the point that he did not need to go ballistic to make his point especially considering the power differential between him and the crew workers.
I agree he’s not wrong in this and listening to someone (anyone really) passionately yelling at someone else the same ways I’ve wanted to was deeply cathartic. But the most Scientology – y part of all of this is the swearing and yelling. He went full “Big Being” here. COB would be very proud.
He sounds exactly like CoB (David Miscavige). This is how the sea org and anyone below him are routinely spoken to. I found it chilling. Saying all the bigwigs he’s on the phone with “…PRODUCERS!” and that he is singlehandedly saving the movie industry and these “MFers” are destroying it… its straight up Miscavige. I’m surprised he said it in his outside voice, but not surprised he said it.
The fact that I agree with the substance of TC’s crazy rant… just more 2020 bonkers shit. So 2020 got me to agree with TC on something. LOL.
Yes, he is right. I have no patience for the massless..
It’s weird that Tom never seems to stop working yet has disappeared from tabloids. Does he have a life outside of work?
It also seems weird to me that people are still interested in Tom Cruise films? But they must be or this wouldn’t be happening.
Agreed that he is right on calling out his crew members. If more people did this, we might be in such a hellscape right now. One example, my friend’s daughter had lice family early in the pandemic and they went to this lady who specializes in treatment. They were outside but my friend noticed the woman’s mask kept slipping down as she worked on her daughter’s hair. She said she felt uncomfortable asking her to keep her mask on properly. And she berated herself afterwards for not being more forceful.
My husband loves Tom Cruise films. He doesn’t like his dramas or anything like that, but he loves his action movies. If Edge of Tomorrow (or whatever its called, the one with Emily Blunt*) or any of his MI movies are on, especially the newer ones, he watches them. He doesn’t really care for him as a person, but he just thinks they are good action moves (lots of jumping out of planes and high speed chases etc.) I think it helps that he’s usually working with a big budget.
@becks,
Same here, my husband loves his movies. He absolutely doesn’t care about Toms private life.
He doesn’t care for any celebrities private life.
He thinks Scientology is crazy but that’s it, he still loved his movies. I enjoy them too to be honest and i still send prayers to the universe for him to quit this cult 😉
@Esmom – tell your friend not to beat herself up! IMO, it’s a normal reaction to an uncomfortable situation.
I was in Whole Foods yesterday, stopping at the Amazon hub. Decided on quick grocery shopping. WF has a big sign when you walk in with a picture of the right way, and wrong way (under the nose) to wear a mask. People in my part of the state are good about following our mask mandate. But one of the WF workers was stocking in the produce dept. with his mask under his nose. I debated if I wanted to say something; WF isn’t my normal store, no one else, workers or customers, seemed to mind or even to notice. But it was very crowded because of the big snowstorm coming, and customers in produce also weren’t social distancing. Walked over to customer service and mentioned it. The woman I spoke to seem startled, like it was something new, and she didn’t know what to do. She finally said, hesitantly, we’ll take care of it, and I said, it’s up to you, and left the store. Maybe they checked it out, but who knows.
In retrospect, I would’ve liked to point to the identical mask sign 10 feet in front of her, and said, either your policy stands for something, or it doesn’t – but like your friend, was feeling slightly uncomfortable saying something to begin with. Kudos to your friend for saying something even if it wasn’t exactly the way she would’ve liked.
Becks, same. My husband loves his action movies. I used to enjoy anything he was in but his personal life really ruined that for me. Every time I see him on screen I think about the things he’s done to his family.
I read years ago he sold all his homes and just goes from hotel or rental, film to film
The goss that I’m here for! Because the dude has abandoned his daughter he has ceased to have any public life except for on set. I have been curious about how he lives now.
Never thought I’d say this, but Tom Cruise is right. I wish he would be walking around my town, yelling at people who don’t follow the rules.
Me too! Ai.
Now I want Tom Cruise roaming the streets of my city to scream at people not wearing masks.
Me, too! Lol.
Haha! I don’t care for Tom, but maybe he could be hired to go yell at all the maskless people in my city. That would be great.
I had a similar thought – could be come to my workplace and on my few essential shopping trips?
I’m personally tired of the excuse making, such as “forgetting” to wear a mask or carrying it in one’s hand. By this time, forgetting to wear a mask is like neglecting to wear pants in public.
Are we clear? CRYSTAL. He’s just a tad to in to the screaming for me. Also, several pilots who have been involved in the film stated publicly last year that they were told NOT to make eye contact with him. When one of them accidentally did, he was berated soundly. Pilot said he’s a top gun, responsible for a multimillion dollar plane but he was chastised for making brief eye contact with Cruise as if he was an imbecile. And, both these guys were huge fans prior to this and happy at the beginning to be involved with this film. So, yes the two people he was screaming at were too close and were in the wrong and it was right to confront them —-but were they UNmasked, were they touching…..I can understand his position and agree that the crew should do better, but come on….his rant is as if he caught them rolling around naked swapping spit on set. His screaming rant here is as over the top as his couch jumping on Oprah ….I swear this guy is on steroids.
That’s what I’m thinking. When I heard the rant, I assumed they were caught out on a town, drinking, partying in a bar or something – for that, I’d yell too. But if they accidentally moved a little too close at work – this seems over the top. Tell them to move back apart, end of story.
Short answer….No.
This is the kind of leadership I’ve wanted out of our federal government for the last 9 months.
Right??? I’m not mad at this.
Our Republican governor did go on a bit of a rant a month or two ago and didn’t yell, but very strongly said “and wear a damn mask!” A company put it on a mask and he started wearing it, lol.
Exactly. He is completely right to freak out like this – productions are hanging by threads and the industry is crashing. And still people push the damn limits and don’t distance and don’t follow rules.
Tom is Tom but the guy is producing and carrying this film, plus all EPs are on the phone all night dealing with the Covid aspects of production. I’m surprised they’re not all snapping. Maybe they should. We need some Christian Bale ranting on set again.
Masking and distancing is not hard. It’s inconvenient. Not hard.
I gained a little respect for him.
He is yelling. He’s cursing. So possibly an overreaction? But it’s hard to know if this was a first violation or he’s concerned it’s a pattern.
To be honest, after so many months… I want to yell like that at my fellow Americans not wearing masks and following basic safety protocols too.
At one point he says “I’ve said it, and now I’m telling you, you’ll be out of here”. I definitely got from the way he worded it he has tried talking. It’s the reason I give him a pass. I have tried talking to these buffoons too. They. Don’t. Listen.
In listening to it I definitely got the impression that this wasn’t the first time he’s seen protocol violations on set, and it’s probably the same violators.
This. Seems like it’s been building, he’s been saying it, they’ve been ignoring.
Many of these people have heard, they deliberately don’t care.
I have been mainlining Hells Kitchen seasons (all of them) this year mainly because I need to see someone yell and scream at incompetence. However unproductive, Ramsey is the conduit my rage at people and authorities needs right now.
@Godwina Same! I have to be very calm and collected no matter what crazy gets thrown my way at work and watching Gordon Ramsey yell at people is so cathartic for me! Sometimes I just imagine him yelling at people for me. 🙂
A stopped clock is still right twice a day. I will never criticize a rant about not taking social distancing seriously, particularly in a high risk environment. I’ll also point out that in most people when it comes out as a rant it has been building for a while. I wonder if people on the set have gotten generally sloppy about distancing and these individuals just happened to take the brunt of his frustration.
My understanding is that this rant came earlier in the year when Hollywood was completely shut down and this really was the first movie to go back into production?
am I the only one to think that this rant was staged?
NO, you are not. Maybe Tom Cruise can’t do anything without sounding fake and forced, but even so, the whole thing seems…contrived. To make the Tomster seem like even more of a hero. Barf.
totally agree. Tom Cruise goes dark for months, if not years, if we hear about him, it’s because he wanted us to.
Right? Something very fishy about it… and it’s all very egotistical, like he thinks he is here to save the world by shooting a movie. It’s very Tom Cruise, he sounds like a nutcase.
He actually says he’s saving the movie industry.
I don’t think it was staged but I also don’t think he was right to handle it this way. Tom Cruise is like the king of any set he is on and the people he was yelling at are not. No evidence they weren’t wearing masks, all we know is they were not social distancing which is important. However, making movies requires so much close contact between so many different people I don’t think, especially because he did not use their names, that Tom even knows who these people are. He was likely frustrated because making a film right now is frustrating, but he was yelling his head off at 2 low power people in a workplace where he wields extraordinary power, where he will never worry about his future financially.
If he was a good boss who didn’t do this regularly, would the recorder know to record and then sell the recording to a tabloid? In all likelihood, this set is terrible and he is a tyrant and this is the one rant that has been sold, not the first rant to occur. It is a nearly impossible ask to make a big budget film during a pandemic. Tom Cruise would have better spent his money paying everyone to stay home and resuming production next year.
Completely agree Souperkay, I am quite surpised at how many people approve if this!
Whilst his message is ‘correct’ I personally think there are few instances in life when shouting at your colleagues (employees?) is acceptable. If they were wearing masks but standing close to look at a monitor as this article suggests, then I personally think it was an over-reaction to what have been a momentary lapse of judgement. He could have politely reminded them to stand further apart, I don’t think he needed to shout and I don’t think he needed to go on and on and on like he did (loves the sounds of his own voice). I would say if they weren’t wearing masks or this is a repeated offense then I can understand his reaction more, but I still think he shouted too loudly and for too long. Why not just have a two strikes and you’re out rule? That way you’re being strict but fair and not rudely shouting at and humiliating your colleagues.
I also agree with the above comments that this was leaked by Cruise’s team to make him look like some kind of saviour. I enjoy his movies but my god is he an egomaniac…
You know what….you can talk to people nicely and politely and if they continue to blow you off every time, then it’s okay to start yelling. Especially when your actions endanger public health.
@Charlotte: Tom’s an EP for this film so he is yelling at employees, not colleagues.
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 I’m so tired of screaming and name calling from the last 4 years. What has happened to civilized discourse or a boss speaking to an employee as if they are a human being. This is about power and humiliation of the peons.
It sounds rehearsed or at least not spontaneous but that could actually be the Scientology. There’s a certain way of talking, terminology etc. that is probably drilled into him so it’s hard to say.
I like the message and I would love to yell at the maskless sometimes but I’m also not anyone’s boss. The expletives towards employees aren’t okay.
For all his flaws; he has taken this very seriously and obviously this project has helped a lot of people secure work. I can only compliment him on this rant also as someone coming from this industry. People need to be responsible, especially when they have a chance to work. If a Scientologist can see this…
Sorry he is right.
I am over telling people to keep their freaking distance from me at the mall, at the market, I try to be polite, but it’s stressful and I can’t anymore: I am repeating the same stuff over and over.
The signs are all over the places, we are all exhausted, so I can see why he is yelling and cursing, and like it or not there are people working thanks to him they already had to stop because of covid, so someone got sick.
Not a fan but appears he just reached his breaking point & snapped. I’ll give him a pass. Also I agree with him, mask up!
Social distancing is important. He’s not wrong about that. But I rolled my eyes at the bit where he tried to make it seem like he was upset about a possible shut-down, because people working on the film need to feed their families and pay for their children’s education. Come on. He wants the film production to continue, because of his own ego, not because he cares so much about the crew.
Remember just a few months ago, Tom filmed a video encouraging people to watch movies in movie theatres? He wasn’t concerned about social distancing then. It’s all about his desire to make his action films and get people to watch them.
He’s def. feeding his own ego, but he was not wrong in pointing out that if the production shuts down, many people will loose their jobs. And as the rule-breakers don’t need to care about his career, they should care about “normal” people loosing their work because of them. It was the right thing to point it out.
Oh his ego’s huge. that’s how the cult got him. But…I do think a lot was riding on Mission Impossible.
I know people who have worked with him and they said he was kind and generous. Yes it’s about his ego too but I wouldn’t write off him caring about other people so quickly.
If only he cared about the forced labour right in his home by Sea Org members or the families separated by the “church” in which he is #2. But hey! He’s so professional on set!
My guess is Cruise is TERRIFIED about the state of the movie business. His only identity, and the only identity that matters to him is BIG SCREEN STAR!!! And that role has never been less important or certain. Add into that his cult superpowers cannot do jack all about the situation and my guess is he is not in a good place. I mean if he can’t make action movies what is he going to do? Volunteer? Be a father to the kid he hasn’t seen in years? No, he’s definitely freaking out.
Good take, I definitely agree it’s all he has, and he needs to keep it going.
Excellent analysis! Add on the pressure of being the main money maker for CO$ and *that’s* why he’s “taking this seriously” and not talking about vitamins and past lives as a cure.
Cosign. He has no other identity and David Mscavige is probably breathing down his neck to bring home the bacon. Or mabye Xenu got on his case.
Yes he sold his homes and goes from set to set. He has kids but doesn’t seem to stop working, as if hes running away from something. Most want to slow down spend time with kids family but not him
I’m not a fan of him personally, but he works hard and is very responsible and well-respected in the industry. If movies die, his lucrative acting career goes too and he knows it. He’s not a TV guy, and he wants his face 40′ tall in front of people who left their homes to see his movies at premium prices. That’s his value – it’s not so easy to say you deserve double-digit millions when your movie debuts on a subscription streamer.
There’s a huge battle in the industry over Warner Bros unilaterally dropping all their 2021 films to their proprietary streamer HBOMax. The movie industry is in crisis.
Actually, a lot of A-listers are getting huge 8 figure pay deals from streaming services. Companies like Netflix and Amazon have very deep pockets, and they’re willing to shell out huge sums of money to land a big star. However, I agree that TC would never accept such a deal, not because of the money, but because he sees himself as an old-school movie star and needs to be on the big screen.
I agree, plus he’s a deadbeat dad that chose religion over his own child.
I have no problem with this at all.
I live in London and we are back into Tier 3 because so many people went out shopping etc without masks. The footage from the centre of town shows hundreds of people in close proximity and its like, spot the person wearing a mask. Infuriating.
I would love part of this to be broadcast through loud speakers to those idiots!
I hear in England they are relaxing all social distancing rules for Christmas. Is that right? Before it was going to be three families could gather together (whatever, still dumb), but now is the idea the COVID is going to grant the British Empire a temporary truce? Like Germany and the Brits in 1914 WWI? Because…no.
I hear Wales as well is going back as well. Everyone could have had a great Christmas had everyone just followed clear guidelines from the start. Some countries are getting back on track, just in time for the holidays.
Also, Tom Cruise made so much sense. I think they got off lightly, too. They could have been kicked off set.
He is not my favourite actor, but seriously someone needed to say this! Boorish Johnson is waffling day in and day out, over the pond Orangeface has done literally nothing to control the spread, and people are blaming Cruise?! Everyone of us needs to practise social distancing, wear a f%^£*g mask and wash our hands if we want to get out of this any time soon. Now can he do the same for the London Tube and the other means of transport and the royals who keep flouting the rules?
He’s not wrong. I wish I could yell at my father like that.
Release your inner Tyra, girl.
While the content of his message is not wrong, screaming at co-workers (with considerably less power than you) is unprofessional at best. Sure, we are all under pressure and crack, but a regular person would not get away with this outburst at work, or be widely applauded for it . Oh, and I’m not giving a co-conspirator in a massive criminal enterprise that destroys people and their families a cookie for any reason.
This. As much as I agree with what he said, I could do without the swearing (am I so delicate???). In any other business, his language would be unacceptable.
CEOs and Presidents can get away with the yelling and cussing. I’ve heard it in every company I’ve worked. It’s middle management (and women) who it’s not acceptable for.
Cruise is right to say this. He’s rich so the impact of shutting down doesn’t hurt him, it hurts the crew members.
That’s exactly my point – this kind of behaviour from higher ups in any industry is abusive, full stop. I refuse to give a man who profits from abuse and enslavement a pass, regardless of whether he is “right” on this.
@Sarah, yes I think the word is “abusive”.
I think this is a very abusive display.
The message may have been spot on, but the delivery was horrific.
Triggered!
Cruise is correct.
If the production gets shut down, Tom may lose some money, but he’s going to be alright. He’s going to go home to one of his many homes, have a nice meal, and go to sleep frustrated. He won’t have to worry about next month’s bills.
The production crew will though. So will the lighting and sound folks. And all the other “little” people that help make movies.
The violators are lucky he didn’t fire them. Most folks would have.
Yeah I wouldn’t have yelled tbh. I would’ve just told them to go home. If you don’t want to abide by the guidelines then fine, but you’re not gonna put everyone’s job at risk.
Exactly. As EP, he is in charge of so many people’s livelihoods and their *lives*. Now is not the time for niceties. People everywhere are openly flouting the rules as if people aren’t dying every minute from this thing now. So good for him. Someone needs to say it.
Huh. Who had ‘Tom Cruise is right about something’ on their 2020 bingo card. I certainly did not.
The KopyKate Trainbridge hosting the Bingo event because…I’ll pass.
I’m sure there’s a supervisor he could have spoken to instead of doing it himself. Sounded fake, but that could be his bad acting.
He looks rough in those pix.
He’s an exec producer on these movies so the buck stops with him as he is ultimately responsible for what happens on set.
Exactly. Could crew members get away with screaming at him like this, if the roles were reversed? Absolutely not.
yeah you don’t talk to your employees like that
I’m not even mad at him in this. And for whatever one thinks about Tom, his cult, the way he’s treated his wives, his children, I’ve always got the sense that he felt a personal responsibility for his cast and crew and you can hear it in this rant.
Also, he’s using profanity, yes, and yelling is unprofessional, of course but I don’t hear any belittling or denigrating, just a frustration that the rules aren’t being followed and a reminder that while Cruise will be fine no matter how this shakes out, much of the rest of the cast and crew will not be, so follow the easy rules and stop playing.
Folks hand waving away what is in your first paragraph is deeply troubling. Great. He’s professional on set. He’s also complicit in human rights abuses, if not directly involved.
There is no hand waving.
Tom Cruise is a cultist. And he’s right that people need to follow protocol.
And look, we aren’t getting rid of this virus unless we get even the worst of us to social distance, wear a mask, etc.
Half this comment section is hand waving, but okay.
I’m amazed at all the hand waving, people are so quick to forget the truth. It’s like Cruise farted and said excuse me, and now everyone is all– omg I love Tom Cruise. The dude is practically head of an abusive cult, and he’s culting out in this convenient little PR drop.
Then reply to an actual hand waver, okay?
‘…for whatever one thinks about Tom, his cult, the way he’s treated his wives, his children, I’ve always got the sense that he felt a personal responsibility for his cast and crew and you can hear it in this rant”
I replied exactly where I meant to. He is #2 in an org that enslaves and imprisons people, forces abortions, separates families, covers up sexual assault and child abuse, blackmails, stalks and harasses people just to name a few things. Let alone how he treated his wives or children. These are facts, regardless of how right he is about Covid protocols or how great he is on set. He should not have a career.
Who said he should have a career?
Who is denying how awful scientology is and his part in it?
What kind of immature, zero sum, all or nothing game are you playing at?
Exactly. And remember there’s also post production and VFX which is in the crapper right now. IF this movie doesn’t get finished, then there are thousands and thousands of people out of work who will/already have lost homes and such.
Whenever a boss has a yelling, cursing temper tantrum like this I lose all respect for them. Because you have all the power but you discipline people using public embarrassment? That’s terrible leadership. All he had to do was walk up to those 2 people, tell them they were breaking covid protocol and suspend them for the rest of the day without pay. The word will spread, people will realize this rule is being enforced and change their behavior. I also find the comments about how ‘he’s trying to save the entire industry, people’s jobs, college funds’ etc, suspicious. Makes me think this was leaked on purpose to make him look good.
Given the reaction to this, looks like it’s working. Really disturbing to see how many people are giving him a “pass” when he is #2 in a cult that actively harms and enslaves people.
I think it’s working because people don’t understand what it is like to be on a set. They don’t understand it’s normal behavior to crowd around monitors just offscreen and then the hierarchal clumps behind the monitor clump. For a big budget action film, there are numerous people that need to be available just offscreen to do their jobs once the camera stops rolling. The ask that Tom is making to add distance is needed during a pandemic but it calls into question even making the film at all during a pandemic. Films are collaborative efforts where many people do one small thing that creates a whole film.
The secondary piece is Tom is stepping on Christopher McQuarrie’s toes here. Even though Tom is an executive producer, the director is the head of the set always. Tom controls the money yes, but this rant is the kind of mood killer that makes shooting anything else that day more difficult, which does not fall on his head but McQuarrie’s. Tom is making everyone’s job more difficult by stopping production in its tracks to lash out abuse.
People who work in film production put up with all kinds of weirdness on sets that never gets recorded or sold because they are part of team of artists working toward a common goal. That this was recorded and sold really tells me that Tom has poisoned this particular set and any other anecdotes about him being lovely and caring about crew on past films are moot. When the rubber meets the road, as a boss, Tom reverts to what he knows from his cult, abuse.
Broken clocks and all that. A lot of people need to be on the receiving end of this rant. So many jobs are on the line, the movie getting shut down could be devastating for some of the staff. I’d be going off too especially since it seems like it’s not the first time he’s had to ask them to adhere to guidelines.
Lol yeah I was wondering if someone was going to make the broken clock analogy.
He’s right on this. But he’s also a batshit crazy Scientologist. Both things can be true.
I am so relieved he is finally looking his age. I was starting to think he had a creepy portrait hidden away somewhere. He looks good old.
He’s not wrong… but it was a little extra especially if it was an honest mistake. He probably could have handled it at a 4 or 5 rather than a 10
I rank rants on the level of Christian Bale and Christian Bale.
This doesn’t even register on a Christian Bale.
And he is 100% right.
Christian Bale is my go-to rant in times like these.
He runs a business, the employees have rules for health and safety, , the employees are not obeying therrules . They get to be fired. But he needs to not verbally abuse. And I actually like Tom most times but he needs better communication
Is anyone else surprised? Scientology has a history of pooh-poohing a lot of other medical issues, so I half expected them to claim to have a solution for this too. I’m guessing the ton of public scrutiny they received in the last few years has made them quiet down a bit.
Tom is in the right here, and likely is at his wits end I’ve seeing people ignore the rules. He’s a terrible person and a leader in a dangerous cult, but he does seem to take these films very seriously.
I had to go to a store the other day and asked an employee a question, and she came right up to me to answer! Thankfully we were both wearing masks, but I backed away so fast! I hate people in my personal space, so I’m loving the 6 foot thing, but some people just don’t get it.
I hadn’t thought of that- that Scientology would be schilling its own solution- the only solution. But when the chips are down and his money/identity are on the line – he follows the actual science.
I also read this morning someone articulating what a lot of y’all have said above- he’s crazy, but he is not wrong.
A lady said- he is completely right about this, but i also completely get why his ex wife had to use multiple burner phones to escape him.
Additionally, my weakness is the spacing when i talk to people. I always wear a mask, but my hearing is not very good, and the masks don’t help that of course. So i constantly step closer.
Most of us are trying to do the best we can. And occasionally we all fail.
Hopefully it is minor, and we catch the mistake, and we stay safe.
He’s not wrong. I get the comments saying he could have handled it without reaching defcon 1 levels, but we don’t know if there were previous warnings to crew that didn’t result in a freak out to remind them about how important it was to both wear a mask AND maintain social distancing. There have likely been multiple meetings, notices, announcements before filming begins each day, etc. etc. And seeing the rules flouted once again might have set him off. I agree you shouldn’t talk to your staff like that, but your staff needs to be responsible, which these folks clearly weren’t. It only takes one instances of the rules being flouted to lead to transmission.
No he’s not wrong but it made me wonder if he regularly ranted at his ex-wives especially Katie and explains his estrangement from Suri.
I wonder this too, he’s shown more than once he has a bad temper that he can’t control. Doing it at home, in secret, is usually worse.
I mean, good for him. Honestly I wish some people in our government felt this way!!
He’s a Scientology crackpot. Do not like.
Screaming rants are very deserved for the tin foil hat wackadoodles endangering everyone’s safety but that wasn’t the reason for his rant here.
He didn’t care that people could die. He cares about his crappy movie and losing money. No we don’t need another mission impossible. Bore off with your amazing stunts.
I also think there’s a more professional way that could’ve been handled.
A serious and stern chat is one thing. And follow that up with a stern pep talk for all.
But screaming at someone in front of everyone else. Nope.
Nasty little fella, that one. I’m always shocked that people buy his nice guy BS.
On a set, there are people who are above the line and people who are below the line. Tom, as movie star and executive producer is above the line, crew are below the line. The line is about money: above the line people are generally going to be paid no matter what and they’re going to be paid a lot, EPs, screenwriters, directors, movie stars, are all above the line. This sounds like two people below the line saw a free monitor outside video village and got wrapped up in actually being able to see something. Below the line crew work hard to create things but generally on set they get to see very little and video village where the monitors are is restricted so the director can concentrate. When the camera is rolling, everyone on set has to be silent so whatever sound they record has the possibility of being used so there builds these bubbles of tension where everyone is waiting silently while the camera rolls then tension breaks and everyone talks once it’s cut which if you are directing is so distracting and chaotic and makes it hard to keep everyone on task because everyone is hoping their contribution means that the take is going to be good.
So this rant is closer in nature to Christian Bale’s rant to me because the above the line people like Tom yelling at the below the line people does not give me warm fuzzies or confidence in the professionalism and safety of the set overall. Tom may be an EP but it is ultimately the set is the director Christopher McQuarry’s. If I were the director, I would not want an EP yelling at any of my below the line people. EPs can be just the money people, in that they fund a portion of the film or own intellectual property rights but don’t actively become involved in the filmmaking process, so having a money person yell at an hourly person who would not regularly access video village would chap my hide as a director who has to collaborate with everyone. Tom may not be a money only EP, he may actively produce but that doesn’t excuse his behavior because he is letting all this anger out on people who aren’t financially protected.
Absolutely, everyone should social distance, wear masks, especially on a film set where there will be close contact. It can be extremely difficult to do the work recommended and see people break the rules but ultimately Tom was yelling at people he could have fired and threatened to fire them when they have the least power on set and he has so much. You cannot make films without other people, a lot of other people, and you have to treat those people well especially when the ridiculous difference in money above/below the line comes into play.
He should have lightly admonished them without yelling “social distance, 2 meters guys”, circled department heads, made sure everyone was where they needed to be on set, and gotten rid of the excess monitor if it is causing a problem. Because of the money differentials, the department heads should be in charge of yelling and firing, they know people best and know if it was a moths to the light moment or if they are flouting the rules normalizing deviance.
Oh come on.
If they were indeed breaking covid-restrictions rules and their actions could have led to production being shut down or postponed, then they got of easy.
Being under the money line doesn’t give you the right to jeopardize health and safety of other people. And no, no need for people to go easy on you. Actions SHOULD have consequences and soft approach often doesn’t work (I see this at my workplace). “Follow the rules or pack your stuff” is the best way for idiots to understand this is serious.
All the power to Tom Cruise in this case!
This is like the COO of a grocery store chain melting down on a cashier during a pandemic where the cashier is not getting extra pay but is being asked to provide the same service under restriction, the power differential is enormous and the COO is seeing one tiny slice of behavior for something they are responsible for but are not involved in day to day. These 2 are the little guy or Tom would not be yelling at them like this.
I have had 2 productions shut down so we could test. It is an extremely difficult time to work in film production. Persisting with a big budget film like this is extremely questionable because of the very nature of filmmaking requiring close contact with numerous people frequently. If MI7 is the test, I don’t know if they have proven it is wise or safe to continue and yelling at 2 low power people about the impossibility of the ask isn’t a flex.
So what if the COO is melting down on a cashier if the cashier is being reckless? Who cares WHO does it, somebody has to.
At my workplace, the restrictions are clear, and yet in the production area (not movie production, factory production), people are trying to ignore the rules as much as possible. (Conspiracy theories, who dares to restrict my freedom, that kind of stuff.) When the health and safety guy tried to explain what has to be done and why, the workers nodded, and when he was gone, they ignored him.
Even those who didn’t ignore him at first, after a while became reckless.
Guess what happened when the big boss, instead of the health and safety guy, came and told them what to do and what will happen to them if they don’t? Sure they’re grumpy, but they do not dare to break the rules so openly anymore.
This mf-er is “king” of a cult that enslaves people (forced labor and no pay) and he going to act righteous about people (including him) losing their jobs, income, etc. He’s so f-ing dense. I’m down with the message but the messenger is a majorly delusional hypocrite.
It sounded to me as if this wasn’t the first time he’d had to remind these particular people. That would be very frustrating. They’re lucky he gave them another chance considering what is at stake.
Doubtful Tom knows their names or has even seen them before. To make a big budget film, there are so many people that need to be available just off camera. In a pandemic, keeping everyone socially distanced when they need to be just off set sounds impossible. I mean, camera is cinematographer (who generally will not be operating the camera but watching the takes), camera operator(s) (the number depends on how many cameras are recording a scene which varies but 2 is not uncommon, who will hold and move the camera), 1st camera assistants (one can focus the camera again one needed for each camera rolling, one can be on hand for lenses and filters), and 2nd camera assistants (one for the clapper keeping track of takes/what’s being recorded, one for actor marks/measuring distances for the camera). That is 6+ people that need to be close at hand for one section of one department because lighting is its own department but it falls under the purview of the cinematographer.
This also only covers the A production crew, or the crew working directly for the director/with the stars. There is also a B crew that will be generally the same size but recording something needed for the film but doesn’t need the stars, the scenes of cities and such between the scenes.
I’ve been wanting to scream this at other people like this all year! It probably isn’t proper HR policy for him to berate employees quite like this, but it sounds like he was finally pushed past his breaking point.
I understand him being really upset about this and oftentimes I feel anger creeping up on me when ppl don’t abide by social distancing. In this case, there’s a lot of money (his own included) at stake, so I get his anger even if the screams placed on certain words seem artificially forced to me. I personally think sending ppl home for the day as a reprimand is more effective and leaves some dignity intact than screaming at them in front of others.
But pretending to be concerned about ppl losing their homes etc. is so disingenuous to me, whatever he might be telling himself at night. He fears for his only current movie success not for the safety of people or else how could he be a leading part of an organization that imprisons and tortures his members among other atrocious things.
I agree with the rant, and I want to yell those words often in the grocery store! But this feels like a publicity stunt. And it also works to cover his butt in case COVID shows up on set.
Yes, I want to yell those words often in the grocery store! But this feels like a publicity stunt. And it also works to cover his butt in case COVID shows up on set.
Dang, he’s getting old……ugh, that means I’m getting old too :/
Tom Cruise is setting an example? Tom is doing something I wish the government had been doing almost a year ago? You mean this nutcase is taking hundreds of thousands dead seriously? 2020 is certainly singular.
I think they way he shouted made him sound like a dick, but he was right in the things he said. Tv and film production has been shut down most of this year, and most of these people are freelance, so if they don’t work they don’t get paid. I can’t even imaging how much it would cost to shut down MI7 temporarily. All it takes is one person to pass it on to everyone. I’m sick of people being relaxed with the social distancing rules. Don’t even get me started on people who don’t wear masks in public. I don’t know how they can show their face, LITERALLY. It’s always maskless people who love to cough all over the place, or they are talking really loudly, ensuring their spittle is everywhere. It’s pure selfishness.
Same. Dislike Tom Cruise generally, but he was 100% correct to berate the crew members for not following COVID safety protocols, in particular because it sounds like they had been warned before. First warning should be firm, after that, they deserve a verbal lashing. It’s not just for safety, it’s to make sure the filming doesn’t get shut down, leaving many people jobless.
Good for him. Maybe we should all start yelling at people who aren’t masking up or social distancing. It’s getting out of hand. People are so stupid. How can you not be afraid of this virus when you see what it can do ??? Not only that but don’t these maskless idiots who are having their parties and get togethers willingly contributing to the spread of this virus care about business that have had to close, people losing their jobs, health care workers completely burned out? NO THEY JUST DON’T CARE.
You can express anger without yelling and swearing at the crew. This is unacceptable and unprofessional, even though his anger is justified in this situation.
Yeah but maybe he nicely warned them many times before but this time was his breaking point? I mean we really don’t know. Maybe asking nicely wasn’t working so he had to yell at them like children. I kind of don’t blame him for doing this. He’s fed up just like so many of us who have actually been following Covid protocols.
You should not regularly yell at children though.
Most people commenting are connecting with the frustration that strangers in their communities aren’t wearing masks and social distancing and how good it would feel to yell at those people. Tom Cruise isn’t yelling at some random stranger spitting at someone else in a grocery store. He is yelling at his employees for standing too close to one another that is frequently required as a part of their normal job. No evidence these 2 weren’t wearing masks. No evidence that it wasn’t required as part of their jobs and watching a computer monitor while making a film is a large part of the crew’s job.
What we do know is that employees recorded and sold audio of their boss on a rant where he calls his employees MFs. This is strong evidence that the question Tom is trying to answer, should big budget films be in production during a pandemic, is no. Tom is not generally known to be a tyrant on film sets so evidence is pointing to this particular set at this particular time being toxic and unsafe. It is far more likely that these 2 low power employees were trying to do their jobs in an impossible situation that a person with extraordinary power misunderstood and his choice of leadership in that moment was verbal abuse.
I understand the extreme stress everyone is under and connecting with the need to vent about how humans are flawed and our community has broken down to such an extreme that verbal abuse feels good but Tom is dead wrong here.
@ souperkay
Yes I know you shouldn’t regularly yell at children. That is a given. You make a lot of good points. I agree with much of what you said. It’s just people are fed up. At this point, people should know better, whether it’s at work or a grocery store. “Kindly asking” just isn’t cutting it anymore. Yes, obviously a boss shouldn’t speak to their employees that way…that is for sure. I just think most of us agree with what he was saying and not necessarily the tone he was using.
The other day I was at a grocery store here in Victoria, BC, where it is MANDATORY to wear a mask inside any public places. I saw a woman walk in wearing a mask, and the minute she got inside she took it off. The rage I felt was overwhelming so I walked over to a store employee and told him – he immediately got the manager who came over and said either she put the mask back on or leave the store. So I get Tom’s anger. Sure he’s a whack-doodle Scio but people who don’t take this pandemic seriously bring out my inner b*tch in a big way.
Yeah, I didn’t think higher ups could yell at their employees like this anymore. I thoroughly enjoyed it though. Is that wrong? I was missing Cruise in the news.
Tom Cruise doesn’t give a rat’s ass about anyone losing their home if shooting shuts down. This is all ego and performative, because it’s all about him. He’s part of an abusive cult that costs people their homes, families, friends and livelihoods on a regular basis. He abuses and screams at his Sea Org. unpaid employees and fellow Scientologists regularly. This is only gaining him praise because it’s about people who aren’t following the proper Covid protocols and because we are all frustrated with how so many are being so cavalier about the threat of this illness and ignoring safety measures. If he was screaming and cursing about someone bringing him a chipped cup, not having cookie dough where he expects it to be, or some other minor infraction, which he has done regularly, no one would be applauding the display of anger. If these crew members were Scientologists , he’d have them sent them away for punishment, but they aren’t so he can only scream at them. He’s channelling David Miscavige in a major way.
I loved every minute of that rant. Not only was it hilarious but he was RIGHT. Tom Cruise being a voice of reason is peak 2020.
Quick, somebody buy him a fish.
I feel like some people commenting just haven’t had to deal with certain situations. For example, where I live, they have done everything to try and get people to wear masks, especially in the elevators, I mean I must have 50 really stern emails on it. Guess what? People still happy-ass around here, no masks, even in the elevators. So of course I don’t get in with them, but their germs STAY. So what now? I told them in the office, you need to start fining them and adding the fines to their rents. Because you see, much of our population simply will not comply with anything if there are no consequences. And those consequences must be painful.
As far as talking to employees, I mean I totally agree about being abusive, but I have actually had employees, and my god. They. Don’t. Listen. And I am not even talking life and death like this stuff. Have you ever tried to keep employees off their cell phones all day long when they’re supposed to be working? Not too long ago I got into a situation where I felt as if I was paying people to text all day. See how long you hold your temper when people simply refusing to comply and at some point it reaches the level where they’re stealing from you. Every single day. Stealing from you.
@Darla I feel for you on this and am in a similar situation. My building refuses to do anything beyond a couple of flimsy signs in places no one sees them. It’s caused a serious uptick in my anxiety levels to have to deal with living here, being afraid for my life every time I got out of my apartment door and into the lobby whether for groceries, doctor visits or just to check the mail. They refuse to take any action and vendors regularly come into the building and work in common spaces without masks. I keep a log of it all and have told family and friends so that if anything happens to me, we know who to sue since I am careful to a fault in every situation.
I agree with the sentiment but I just cannot with cult leaders
I don’t think he was wrong to call them out and who knows maybe he apologized later (hopefully). But I think it’s ironic that he complained that the shutdown could cost jobs because didn’t his last movie get shut down after he broke his ankle doing a stunt? He was called out by other celebrities for doing his own stunts because it cost a lot of workers their pay when they couldn’t shoot around him.
Gotta say, I’m with him here. I wish our collective population could get a similar scolding and frankly be forced to adhere to these strict standards. If we did we could be out of this crap within months.
In his personal life he’s nuts, but I do think he’s professional and clearly understands the impact these safety measures have not just in this production, but on the film industry as a whole. He is absolutely right and more people needed to be yelled at to stop with their bullsh!t during COVID, honestly. I’ve wanted to scream every day for the past nine months.
Tom didn’t need to be a dick about it. BUT I’m happy to see a story about someone adhering to COVID-19 guidance for once.
I can’t believe that I’m completely agreeing with Tom Cruise, but hey, 2020, y’all…
I rarely post here. But I just wanted to pop in to say that I am 100% with Tom. He had a right to be angry. Corona has really shown how crappy human beings are. How hard is it to social distance?
We need more people with authority being disgusted and outraged and holding people accountable. I’m even a little shocked he has the empathy from his place of enormous wealth and privilege to realize people are struggling to afford food…much less tuition. I find this likeable after years of detesting his Scientology schtick.
Long time follower on CB, first time commenter because several of the commentators are incorrect and their statements are misleading.
My SIL worked with Tom Cruise behind the set on one of MI movies. He has a reputation for being positively engaging with all members of the set no matter what their role is. He learns all their names and collaborates fully… the statement that no one is allowed to look at him is simply BS. She was filming behind the scenes for a just a few days and he came up to her introduced himself and asked her name. This is rare…. normally actors dislike the behind the scenes clips because it’s
For promotional purposes and it’s outtakes, not the main movie. She mentioned that he is one of the nicest, but also one of the most professional actors she’s ever met. He’s all in when filming a movie, so anyone not following Covid guidelines on set probably wasn’t a first time.
Right… and you’re not a Scientologist, right?
Ugh. Tom… Why are you making me side with you when I’ve been actively disliking you for almost 20 years?! 2020 is so weird….
Ugh. Tom… Why are you making me side with you when I’ve been actively disliking you for almost 20 years?! 2020 is so weird….
I feel exactly like him everyday of my life now, I work in hospitality and you won’t believe how careless people are. We have to ask them to wear a mask and keep distance 1000 times a day and they get angry when you hold them accountable for their actions because apparently you’re taking their freedom of choice. They don’t think about all the employees that are losing their jobs and can’t provide for their families anymore just because someone didn’t feel like wearing a stupid mask, ugh!
I’m not a fan of abusive or agressive acts at your work environment but to be honest the fact that this was leaked to the press by one of the workers speaks volumes of their level of seriousness. I don’t know if they were expecting to gain sympathy from us but sorry Covid-19 is a very serious matter. We are in a deep crisis in many levels and after almost a year of hearing about the same health guidelines to follow we would expect people take this matter more seriously. Apparently not. Good for Tom Cruise reminding them.
No Tom isn’t wrong. The crew members who flouted the rules deserved the verbal wiplash they got . So many lives are at risk. So many livlihoods are at risk. It always takes some ignorant morons to carry on not follwing Covid-19 rules. Good on Tom 👏👏👏.
It’s a truly 2020 moment when Tom Cruise is the voice of reason.
Lol, yeah you said it. Who would think Tom Cruise would get any posts of agreement on Celebitchy. So very 2020.
2019 was a horrible year for our family. So we were so excited to celebrate a new year. And then 2020 said to 2019, hold my beer.
This makes me like him more, honestly.
So I guess he doesn’t have faith in Xenu anymore? That’s a fantastic sign
HE’S 100% RIGHT
And I don’t know if whoever leaked this audio was expecting sympathy or something? But you’re getting none from me. Covid is serious and I’m sick of ppl just ignoring that.
2020 has had me re-examining many things in my life
Reading this I had to give Tommy Boy a thumbs up
Never ever have I thought I would do that
After the horrible way he divorced Nicole and years later has seen to shut out his youngest child ( maybe he sees her once in awhile?)
Anyhow I see nothing wrong with his rant
I would do the same. Its not even just about protecting health. The people at work not social distancing and not wearing masks are f@cking up my income even more everytime we have to self isolate for covid exposure.
There are some people where I’d be okay with being like, “The worst person in the world has a point.”
Tom Cruise is not one of those people.
He can take his sanctimonious virtue signalling (and this is absolutely an instance where it is definitely real virtue signalling, not the fake shit Republican reactionaries like to scream about), and stuff it.
Also, under no circumstances is screaming at your subordinates okay. Sorry.
I’ve worked on set for over 12 years. There is no way to social distance on a film set of a feature film. There is just NO way , there is usually a crew of 60- 150 people on set , most departments work in teams , hair makeup and wardrobe have to physically adjust you all the time. The grips and the camera dept HAVE to work within centimetres of one another otherwise the cranes won’t move and the dolly on which the tonnes of camera equipment and the operator are sitting on won’t move. So that being said, he gives zero f*cks about covid safety , he is just an arrogant entitled narcissist ass, primarily because he is employing a crew of people who can’t realistically social distance because of the nature of the work that they do. Unfortunately not a single person who has ever not been on set which Is 99% of the population, will understand this and will commend his asinine crazy behavior. He is no hero, just a prick. I’d like to see how he gets his wardrobe and makeup done while social distancing …. asshole
This, all of this!!
Regardless of whether or not he was wrong, he’s the highest profile member of a criminal cult that’s incredibly adept at weaponizing all good press to their own ends. Just…. No.