Despite the fact he’s now 57 years of age, Tom Cruise shows no signs of slowing down, with the Hollywood star following up last year’s acclaimed action epic Mission: Impossible – Fallout by getting back in the cockpit for Top Gun: Maverick before reprising his role as Ethan Hunt to shoot a further two Mission: Impossible movies back-to-back.
While Cruise continues to amaze audiences with his nail-biting stunts and spectacle, it seems that Jack Reacher author Lee Child believes its time the actor called time on the action genre and instead looked to focus more on character work.
“Cruise was reluctant,” said Child in an interview with The Sunday Times where he discussed his decision to bring the curtain down on the Jack Reacher movie franchise in favour of a TV reboot. “He had his own investment in it, he was going to argue against it. It sounds extremely patronizing but I think it’s good for him. He’s too old for this stuff. He’s 57, he needs to move on, transition to being a character actor. He could get another 20 years out of it. He has the talent. He’s a terrific guy, very considerate, good fun.”
This isn’t the first time that Child has criticised Cruise, the author having stated last year that while he enjoyed working with him on Jack Reacher and Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, he agreed with his readers’ criticism that Cruise simply didn’t have the height and physicality to do the character justice.
What do you make of Child’s comments? Is Tom Cruise getting too old for action? Could you see these next two Mission: Impossible movies serving as his farewell to the genre? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or tweet us @FlickeringMyth…
