Steven Spielberg credited Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick with “saving Hollywood’s ass” in a viral clip of the two biggies at Monday’s Oscar nominees’ luncheon.
Spielberg, 76, who is nominated for The Fabelmans, and Cruise, 60, embraced on the red carpet before the legendary director gushed about the six-time nominated action film.
Indiana Jones director Spielberg clung to Cruise and said, “You saved Hollywood’s ass. and maybe you have saved yourself the theatrical distribution.
‘Seriously. Maverick might have saved the entire theater industry.”
A humble Cruise – whose film will compete with the Fabelmans for the Best Picture Oscar next month – could be seen smiling and shaking his head in disbelief as he took the compliments from the other film icon.
What a compliment! Steven Spielberg credited Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick with “saving Hollywood’s ass” in a viral clip of the two movie greats at Monday’s Oscar nominees’ luncheon, released 36 years after audiences first met Cruise as Navy aviator Pete Mitchell saw play
The two previously collaborated on Minority Report in 2002 and War of the Worlds in 2005.
Top Gun: Maverick is nominated along with Elvis, Avatar: The Way of Water, All Quiet on the Western Front and The Fabelmans for Best Picture at the 95th Academy Awards hosted by Jimmy Kimmel on March 12th.
While Tom missed out on a Best Actor nomination, the Best Picture nomination could land him his first Oscar.
One of the highest-grossing films of recent years, Top Gun: Maverick was released 36 years after audiences first saw Cruise play Navy aviator Pete Mitchell.
Now, decades after the events of the original, Pete has been tasked with preparing Top Gun graduates for a high-risk mission. The team includes Lt. Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw (Miles Teller), the son of Pete’s late best friend Goose.
The film grossed $1.489 billion at the box office last summer and was nominated for numerous Critics Choice Awards, earning the gong for Best Cinematography.
The action-packed flick is also Cruise’s highest-grossing streak of all time.
The film was originally slated for a June 2020 release, although Paramount decided to delay the release until more fans can return, a move that has clearly paid off.
Thank you: Indiana Jones director Spielberg clung to Cruise and said, ‘You saved Hollywood’s ass. and maybe you would have saved yourself theatrical distribution.” Compliment: A humble Cruise smiles and shakes his head in disbelief as he accepts the compliments from the other film icon Loved it: “Seriously. Maverick might have saved the entire theater industry.
“I’m glad we made that decision to persevere. This film will be a huge hit.
“It’s going to draw people to the theaters who haven’t been in a long time,” predicted Chris Aronson, Paramount’s sales director, in a statement.
Spielberg is currently nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Director, Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay in connection with his latest release, The Fabelmans.
The Fabelmans is a semi-autobiographical film. It details the dissolution of the marriage of Mitzi (Michelle Williams) and Burt Fabelman (Paul Dano) as seen through the eyes of Spielberg’s replacement, played by Gabriel LaBelle.