At 91 and with more than 70 years(!) in the industry, Michael Caine has obviously come across some of the most powerful talents to ever hit the screen. But one that stood out even at the start of his career was Tom Cruise, who Michael Caine remembers as a dynamic, eager up-and-comer who wanted to make a name in Hollywood.
Speaking with The Sunday Times, Michael Caine recalled the first time he met Tom Cruise. “I’ve known Tom for more than 40 years. We were doing a big event for Educating Rita (1983) and I turned around and there was this young actor, very polite, asking questions about how not to be just a flash in the pan. That was Tom, probably around the time of Risky Business.” Keep in mind that Cruise was just now trying to get his movie stardom going, with 1983 being his real breakout year after supporting roles in films like Taps and Endless Love.
While Michael Caine doesn’t remember the specifics of that conversation, Tom Cruise stood out in a significant way, setting himself up as one of the greatest lovers of cinema in our time. “I can’t remember what I said, but it obviously didn’t do him any harm! There was something special about him. He had a great attitude, this sense of poise. What interests me is that he is really one of the last true stars in movies. People will go to see a film just because he’s in it. Brad Pitt is a star, Morgan Freeman has some of that quality too. There are so few nowadays — not like John Wayne or Humphrey Bogart or Cary Grant.”
Notably, Michael Caine and Tom Cruise have never shared the screen in a meaningful way, although Cruise did cameo in Austin Powers in Goldmember (as himself, starring in Austinpussy), in which Caine played the real Austin’s father Nigel. Even still, Cruise and Caine have remained tight enough for Cruise to turn up at Caine’s 90th birthday party last year.
We could imagine Michael Caine and Tom Cruise making a great team on the silver screen, but unfortunately, that will never happen. For starters, Cruise is too busy hanging off of airplanes and chilling out on skyscrapers, which don’t exactly seem up Caine’s alley; further, Caine has officially retired, with his final role having been last year’s The Great Escaper.