Tom Cruise is forced to hire heavy bodyguards after a series of death threats from a former employee
- The A-list actor, 60, and the Mission: Impossible filmmaker, 53, have taken on a security team
- A stunt producer was fired from the film, which started the problem
- The sacking prompted “angry protests” and “fears of further reprisals,” a source said
- The fired employee has sued Cruise, McQuarrie and Paramount Studios
- A source connected to the film described the employee as “an angry ex-employee.”
Tom Cruise has hired a security team after he and director Christopher McQuarrie received a series of threats from a former employee.
The A-list actor, 60, and the Mission: Impossible filmmaker, 53, acquired the services of the security team after a stunt producer was fired, prompting “angry protests” and “fears of further reprisals,” The Sun reported .
A insider for the film told the outlet, “Tom and Chris are still working on Mission: Impossible 8, mostly in the UK, but things have gotten increasingly awkward with a former crew member and now it’s about not taking any chances.”
The Latest: Tom Cruise, 60, has hired a security team after he and director Christopher McQuarrie received a series of threats from a former employee. He was caught in France in May
“It’s a bit of art imitating life, the set is all about heavy protection and threats and now the same thing is happening behind the cameras.”
According to the outlet, the employee had been tasked with finding locations for scenes – including one depicting a train wreck – but his plans never materialized in the film.
The Top Gun: Maverick star “is used to having security teams around a lot of the time because of his fame,” the insider said, “but it’s a very new thing for Chris” as “no one’s taking any chances.”
The fired employee has launched legal action against Cruise, McQuarrie and Paramount Studios, the outlet reported, raising allegations that Russian oligarchs funded Cruise’s work and a related FBI investigation into Paramount over funding.
Cruise was photographed on the Top Gun: Maverick promotional trail in South Korea in June
Christopher McQuarrie has worked extensively with Cruise and directed his films including Jack Reacher (2012), Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018). They were snapped in Cannes in May
The source noted that while “everything has gotten very nasty…those involved with the films are confident everything is perfectly fine, he’s just an angry ex-employee.”
has reached out to Cruise officials for comment on this story.
McQuarrie has worked extensively with Cruise and directed his films including Jack Reacher (2012), Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018).
They are currently working on the two-part film series Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, which is scheduled to hit theaters in 2023 and 2024.
Cruise comes from the hugely successful sequel Top Gun: Maverick, which was held back during the pandemic to record massive grossing of $714 million domestically and $1.48 billion worldwide following its release last May.