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)

6. Knife-to-the-Eye Fight – Mission: Impossible II (2000)

Mission: Impossible II (Image via Paramount Pictures)

Most actors would use camera tricks or CGI for a knife fight this intense. Tom Cruise refused. He wanted a real knife inches from his eye. His co-star, Dougray Scott, pressed the blade toward him while a cable measured the exact stopping point—just millimeters from his cornea. One slip or miscalculation could have blinded him. Cruise insisted on absolute realism because a fake-looking fight would have ruined the scene’s intensity. The close-up became one of the most nerve-wracking moments in the film, proving how far he was willing to go for authenticity.