19 times Tom Cruise left us mind-blown with his own stunts in Hollywood

Modified Feb 03, 2025 13:16 ET

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (Image via Paramount Pictures) — Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (Image via YouTube/Skydance)

1. Hanging Off the Side of a Plane – Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015)

Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (Image via Paramount Pictures)

Tom Cruise didn’t just fake this scene with CGI or green screens. He strapped himself to the side of an Airbus A400M as it took off. The plane reached 1,000 feet in the air while he hung on with only a safety harness. Wind speeds hit over 250 mph, and debris could have blinded him. He did eight takes of this stunt, knowing a single misstep could be fatal. No other actor would even attempt this, but for Cruise, realism was everything. The scene instantly became one of the most memorable moments in Mission: Impossible history, proving that practical stunts still matter.