Tom Cruise

[Fletch F. Fletch]

While I'm not surprised that Paramount is cutting its ties with Cruise, I'm shocked that Redstone himself is so upfront about the whole thing. I would have thought this would be done quietly on a Friday afternoon with a nice PR-vetted statement of an amicable parting. Cruise must have really pissed everyone off for the head of Viacom himself to unceremoniously burn a big, fat, money-making bridge like this. Of 2006 movies, MI:III is the fifth-highest grossing. Better than Cars and Superman Returns. That ain't bad.

And to add insult to injury, Trey Parker and Matt Stone just signed a two-film deal with Paramount. Looks like they triumphed over Cruise/Scientology after all!

[The Invunche]

I could care less...

So you do care.

...if he gets naked and ran around Times Square with women's underwear on his head screaming, "The aliens are coming! The aliens are coming!" Why do you think he was in War of the Worlds? It was a dry run for him to combat the coming alien invasion.

Valid point, but tell me, please, what was shitting all over people who suffer from depression a dry run for?

[Barmy]

I have to agree with "Roger" (Tom , is that you?).

His recent career is FAR more interesting than any other actor in the $20 million club. I can't understand the extreme antagonism toward him, although a lot of it, I believe, is "homophobic". The only thing he has done that is really beyond the pale is dissing Brooke Shields in public. I don't give a sh*t about her, but still.

[Antoine Doinel]

While I'm not surprised that Paramount is cutting its ties with Cruise, I'm shocked that Redstone himself is so upfront about the whole thing. I would have thought this would be done quietly on a Friday afternoon with a nice PR-vetted statement of an amicable parting. Cruise must have really pissed everyone off for the head of Viacom himself to unceremoniously burn a big, fat, money-making bridge like this. Of 2006 movies, MI:III is the fifth-highest grossing. Better than Cars and Superman Returns. That ain't bad.

Yeah, I'm surprised by Redstone's bluntness myself. But I think a big part of Paramount's decision was that Wagner/Cruise offices annual operating costs were very expensive and I believe they were requesting even more. I recall reading that it was in the realm of $10 million annually.

[The Invunche]

I can't understand the extreme antagonism toward him, although a lot of it, I believe, is "homophobic".

Say what?

[Roger_Thornhill]

I could care less...

So you do care.

Smart ass. ':lol:'

...if he gets naked and ran around Times Square with women's underwear on his head screaming, "The aliens are coming! The aliens are coming!" Why do you think he was in War of the Worlds? It was a dry run for him to combat the coming alien invasion.

Valid point, but tell me, please, what was shitting all over people who suffer from depression a dry run for?

Preparing for his upcoming role as the rebellious psychiatrist in Ordinary People 2: Depression Is Bollocks.

Honestly though, I have no idea why Cruise would say things like that besides his membership in a bizzare cult. And please, lighten up a bit, it's only a Tom Cruise thread.

[colinr0380]

Cruise must have really pissed everyone off for the head of Viacom himself to unceremoniously burn a big, fat, money-making bridge like this. Of 2006 movies, MI:III is the fifth-highest grossing. Better than Cars and Superman Returns. That ain't bad.

I think that Paramount are to be commended for keeping Cruise on for so long. It must have been very difficult to cope with his behaviour with only massive financial remuneration to compensate. Just think of how they had to suffer while waiting for him to finish War of the Worlds and the third Mission: Impossible. No company should have to go through that.

Oh by the way I was being sarcastic! (in the words of Homer Simpson!)

The big question is: does Paramount have any other non-Tom Cruise films around? I haven't been looking.

[Antoine Doinel]

Cruise must have really pissed everyone off for the head of Viacom himself to unceremoniously burn a big, fat, money-making bridge like this. Of 2006 movies, MI:III is the fifth-highest grossing. Better than Cars and Superman Returns. That ain't bad.

The big question is: does Paramount have any other non-Tom Cruise films around? I haven't been looking.

Their fall 2006 lineup is pretty heavyweight in terms of box office potential - and this doesn't include their Paramount Classics division releases for fall: http://www.themoviemark.com/movieminuti ... ll2006.asp

[tryavna]

But Paula Wagner, Cruise's partner, disputed Redstone's assertions, according to the report. She told the paper that Cruise/Wagner Productions had decided to set up its own independent operation, backed by two unnamed hedge funds.

So Tom's going to be making his own movies, just like fellow nut-case Mel Gibson?

In May 2006, a USA/Today poll showed his public approval rating had slipped to 35 percent. Many of those polled cited his blunt criticism of actress Brooke Shield's treatment for depression and of psychiatry in general.

At least his approval rating is still higher than Bush's....

[Jeff]

While I'm not surprised that Paramount is cutting its ties with Cruise, I'm shocked that Redstone himself is so upfront about the whole thing.

If I were 83 and had more money than most third-world countries, I'd tell Cruise to fuck off too.

[exte]

Criticism of Tom Cruise stirs Hollywood debate

By Arthur Spiegelman 32 minutes ago

A day after one of Hollywood's most powerful men publicly scolded actor Tom Cruise, the film capital began to think cost-conscious studios may finally be fed up with giving stars the star treatment.

But some industry insiders believe Viacom Inc. Chairman Sumner Redstone's rebuke of Cruise was more a sign that a great money-making career was on the wane.

In few other places on Earth are stars pampered the way they are in Hollywood. Jewelers want to loan them diamonds, developers want to give them houses, and studios want to cater to their every whim.

Few actors besides Cruise have been held in such high regard in Hollywood. But his last film, "Mission: Impossible III," while raking in close to $400 million worldwide, did not do as well as hoped. And, in Hollywood, you are often only as good as your last picture.

Redstone said a key reason Viacom's film studio, Paramount Pictures, did not renew its deal with the actor was his off-screen behavior.

Redstone told the Wall Street Journal: "He's a terrific actor. But we don't think someone who effectuates creative suicide and costs the company revenue should be on the lot."

Cruise raised eyebrows with several publicity gaffes in the past year, including his couch-hopping appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," his outspoken espousal of Scientology and denunciations of psychiatry.

To some, Redstone's comments signal a major change in Hollywood.

"There is a definitive, palpable change in climate," one source at a major Hollywood talent agency said.

"Stars' demands have gotten so over-the-top, and they've gotten so petulant. And the studios, because they're part of publicly traded companies, have to maintain quarterly results, I do think they are less intimidated by the stars," he said.

WILLING TO SAY NO NOW

A high-ranking studio executive who declined to be identified, said, "I think we're more willing to say 'no' now. ... We're finding the more we pay, the less our profit margin is and the less people appreciate the risk that we're taking."

Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer, whose credits include the Disney blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," agreed that the demand for talent had become a kind of buyer's market.

"I think the studios are certainly being much more conscious of the bottom line, and they're being much more careful on how they structure their gross deals," he told Reuters. "They just are tightening the screws as far as what's good business for them and the (movie) community."

Nevertheless, the biggest stars, like Cruise and Tom Hanks, remain in demand, Bruckheimer said.

"If you want Tom Hanks for a picture, he's got a price. You either want him for the picture and pay his price, or you go to somebody else," he said, adding that mid-level performers are the ones who get squeezed.

In one high-profile example of Hollywood executives losing patience with their stars, the head of a major film production company sent a letter to actress Lindsay Lohan saying she was acting like "a spoiled child" on the set of "Georgia Rules."

Film historian David Thomson said he thought Cruise was having career troubles based on his age and the loss of his boyish screen charm.

And with Cruise gone, Viacom could sign younger stars at a cheaper rate, he said.

"The crucial thing was that 'Mission: Impossible III" did significantly worse than the first two films in the series. I think Paramount judged that as a sign of Cruise's waning appeal."

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

While I'm not surprised that Paramount is cutting its ties with Cruise, I'm shocked that Redstone himself is so upfront about the whole thing. I would have thought this would be done quietly on a Friday afternoon with a nice PR-vetted statement of an amicable parting. Cruise must have really pissed everyone off for the head of Viacom himself to unceremoniously burn a big, fat, money-making bridge like this. Of 2006 movies, MI:III is the fifth-highest grossing. Better than Cars and Superman Returns. That ain't bad.

Yeah, I'm surprised by Redstone's bluntness myself. But I think a big part of Paramount's decision was that Wagner/Cruise offices annual operating costs were very expensive and I believe they were requesting even more. I recall reading that it was in the realm of $10 million annually.

I've heard the $10 million figure is a vast exaggeration, but it's still a pretty reasonable assumption that Paramount couldn't get as favorable a deal as they wanted (MI3's underperformance probably wouldn't have been an issue if not for the fact that a fair chunk of the profits will go straight into Tom's pocket) and Redstone's bizarre outburst is just sour grapes. They were in negotiations with Cruise/Wagner for months before parting ways for good, so it's not as if Cruise's behavior was ever a deal-breaker before.

[flyonthewall2983]

From imdb.com:

Tom Cruise's producing partner Paula Wagner is furious with the treatment the pair have received from Paramount Pictures and insists they were the ones who turned their back on the studio after failing to reach an agreement regarding their contract. The studio announced on Monday it was severing ties with the pair after 14 years, citing Cruise's "unacceptable" offscreen behavior, which included promoting his relationship with Katie Holmes and his beliefs in Scientology. Wagner says, "We had ceased negotiations. I'm not sure why this happened. You need to respect your artists. I don't understand why this would be turned into a personal attack. Because that's what it is." Wagner says the pair were planning to strike out on their own and have raised a revolving fund of $100 million from two hedge funds to establish an independent production company. Cruise had been a lucrative asset for the studio in the past with his films grossing more than $2.5 billion for Paramount. According to sources close to Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone, who owns Paramount, the studio estimated that Cruise's uncensored off-screen antics were thought to have cost the studio $150 million in lost box office receipts for Mission: Impossible III. Top Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who has made several movies with Cruise including Top Gun and Days Of Thunder, has come to the star's defense. He says, "He's as viable an actor as he always was. He's a worldwide star and a lot of people want to work with him, including me."

Top Talent Agency May Boycott Paramount

The head of Hollywood's leading talent agency has condemned Viacom chief Sumner Redstone's castigating comments about Tom Cruise and has suggested that the agency may now refuse to do business with Viacom's Paramount studios. In an interview with today's (Thursday) Wall Street Journal, Richard Lovett, president of Creative Artists Agency, which represents Cruise, said, "Paramount has no credibility right now. ... It is not clear who is running the studio and who is making the decisions." Cruise's partner, Paula Wagner, is a onetime CAA agent and is married to Cruise's current representative at CAA, Rick Nicita. On Tuesday Redstone told the newspaper that Paramount was cutting its ties with Cruise's production company because the actor's behavior over the past year was "not acceptable to Paramount." As the newspaper pointed out, under ordinary circumstances such an announcement would have come from Paramount Chairman Brad Grey or Viacom CEO Tom Freston. "For such talk to come out of the blue, from Mr. Redstone himself, and then be followed by two days of silence from both Mr. Grey and Mr. Freston, stunned Hollywood's power elite," the Journal observed. For his part, Redstone told today's Los Angeles Times: "Tom Freston should have made the announcement, but it was apparent to me he didn't want to, and I understand why: Because he's in the talent business." Redstone, in his interview with the Wall Street Journal, also said that he had received "congratulatory calls" from DreamWorks co-founder David Geffen -- who reportedly engineered the sale of the studio to Paramount -- and Imagine Entertainment founder Brian Grazer. "It is about time that the industry started dealing with these stars in a different manner and let them know that they are not going to get big money and act in a way that is inappropriate and embarrasses the studios," Redstone said.

Wall Street Sides With Redstone

Wall Street appeared to judge the Tom Cruise/Paramount schism less harshly than Hollywood. Entertainment analyst Hal Vogel of Vogel Capital Management told today's (Thursday) Hollywood Reporter that the movie industry may be coming around to the conclusion that "you can't have [film stars] walking away with the lion's share of the profit and the studio that risks the capital ... [getting] less payment than the guy who didn't risk any capital." (Viacom shares rose slightly on Wednesday but had given up most of their gains by midday today.) Other analysts expected that the Cruise/Wagner company would have little difficulty raising funds to finance its own movies. In an interview with the Associated Press, Simon Franks, chairman of Redbus Group, a private equity group, indicated he would have no reluctance to invest in a Cruise/Wagner production: "Most actors are overvalued, but Cruise is one of the few who is undervalued," Franks said. "He's never had a failure, so you'll get a high return on average investment."

[exte]

Cruise Not a Popularity Contest Winner

By Sarah HallThu Aug 24, 11:25 PM ET

It seems Sumner Redstone is not alone in his distaste for Tom Cruise's couch-jumping conduct.

On the heels of Paramount Pictures' decision not to renew Cruise's production deal comes word that the Mission: Impossible star's popularity ratings are down. Way down.

According to Marketing Evaluations Incorporated, the company that calculates the Q scores which measure a given celebrity's likeability factor, the public's positive perception of Cruise has fallen by 40 percent, while the negative perception of the actor has jumped a whopping 100 percent.

How did this happen? Let's revisit some of Cruise's most memorable moments over the last year and a half.

The birth of TomKat, April 2005: Cruise jets to Italy to pick up a lifetime achievement award; much to the world's collective confusion, Katie Holmes accompanies him and the two engage in plenty of public canoodling.

The passion of TomKat, May 2005: Cruise uses Oprah Winfrey's couch as a platform from which to trumpet his love for Holmes.

The wrath of TomKat, May 2005: Cruise criticizes Brooke Shields for her "irresponsible" use of antidepressants to treat her postpartum depression.

The wrath of TomKat, part 2, June 2005: Cruise calls Matt Lauer "glib" for suggesting that drugs such as Paxil and Ritalin might be beneficial in some cases, and calls the TV host out on his lack of knowledge about psychiatry, a subject in which Cruise claims to be well-versed.

The engagement of TomKat, June 2005: Cruise jets to Paris with Holmes in tow; they scale the Eiffel Tower, where he pops the question; Cruise then announces momentous event at press conference.

The aftermath of the wrath of TomKat, July 2005: Shields rebuts Cruise's remarks by penning an op-ed in the New York Times slamming his "ridiculous rant" against psychiatry.

The reproduction of TomKat, October 2005: The betrothed couple announce that they have conceived an offspring.

The OB/GYN skills of TomKat, November 2005: Cruise tells Barbara Walters he has purchased a sonogram machine to perform at-home ultrasounds on Holmes. The American College of Radiology objects and a California lawmaker is inspired to author a bill banning the use of such machines by anyone except trained professionals.

The birth of TomKitten, April 2006: Cruise and Holmes announce the birth of their daughter, Suri, whose name supposedly means "princess" in Hebrew and "red rose" in Persian. Not to mention "pickpocket" in Japanese.

The box-office effect of TomKat, May 2006: Mission: Impossible III opens below industry expectations, though still going on to gross a respectable $393 million worldwide.

The power of TomKat, June 2006: Forbes magazine touts Cruise as the world's most powerful famous person.

The privacy of TomKat, July 2006: Some four months after her birth, Suri has yet to make her public debut, though an elite few can claim to have laid eyes on her.

The downsizing of TomKat, August 2006: Paramount Pictures decides not to renew its production deal with Cruise and producing partner Paula Wagner. Viacom head honcho Sumner Redstone tells the Wall Street Journal that Cruise's "recent conduct has not been acceptable to Paramount."

So, what's not to like? Nothing, according to Cruise's attorney, Bert Fields.

"What was his personal conduct?" Fields asked in an interview with the New York Post. "Jumping on a couch on Oprah Winfrey because he's in love with Katie Holmes? That really deserves the death penalty?

"Or speaking out against mood-altering drugs for children? That's a real reason for the [Viacom] shareholders to be deprived of billions of dollars?"

Perhaps not, but it does provide insight into how Cruise could have become less appealing in the eyes of the general public.

Meanwhile, Wagner has also spoken out in defense of her business crony (whom she likes, anyway), calling Redstone's remarks "graceless," "undignified," and "not businesslike."

"I ask, what is his real agenda? What is he trying to do? Is this how you treat artists?" Wagner raged to the Los Angeles Times. "If I were another actor or filmmaker, would I work at a studio that takes one of their greatest assets and publicly does this?"

Cruise has yet to speak up on his own behalf. However, Wagner stated that the producing partners would be just fine without Paramount and had already secured $100 million in independent financing from two hedge funds.

Even so, the question remains of what will happen to the projects Cruise/Wagner Productions had already developed for Paramount.

The producing partners had stockpiled a number of scripts for the studio, many as potential starring vehicles for Cruise. Negotiations over the projects could get tricky, given Paramount's relatively new conditions for pictures put into turn-around, including the requirement that the studio be fully reimbursed and receive coproduction rights.

According to Daily Variety, some of the most promising projects brought to Paramount by C/W include One Shot, a mystery about a homicide investigator; The War Magician, a true-life drama about a British magician who used illusions to mystify the Germans and protect British troops in North Africa; and The Few, a drama about American fighter pilots who fought for the British in World War II.

"We have not discussed what will happen with the projects," a C/W spokesperson told Daily Variety. "They all have separate contracts and agreements, and I'm sure they will be honored."

Copyright © 2006 E! Online, Inc.

[Zumpano]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/a ... ge_id=1773

Cruise firing triggered by studio head's trophy wife
By RICHARD SIMPSON Last updated at 14:14pm on 25th August 2006

Paula Fortunato, 43, the wife of 83-year-old Sumner Redstone, the Viacom chairman who sacked Cruise, took a dislike to the actor after he publicly criticised the actress Brooke Shields for using post-natal anti-depressants.

An 'incensed' Fortunato advised her ageing husband that the comments Cruise made live on television, which are in line with his Scientology beliefs, had forever turned female fans off him.

On Wednesday of this week Paramount Pictures - the film division of Viacom - dropped the 44-year-old actor, calling an abrupt end to one of the most lucrative partnerships in film history.

Redstone made the extraordinary move of speaking out publicly to blame Cruise's 'unacceptable conduct' off-set for his decision.

Redstone said: "As much as we like him personally, we thought it was wrong to renew his deal. His recent conduct has not been acceptable to Paramount."

Redstone estimated that Cruise's off-screen behaviour cost his latest movie, Mission: Impossible III, between £50 and £75 million in lost box office revenues even though the film was, he said, 'the best of the three movies' in the action series.

It had been understood that the 'recent conduct' Redstone had been referring covered the past year, which had been a public relations fiasco for Cruise.

Cruise's obsessive devotion to Scientology has seen him demand that his young fiancee Katie Holmes should go through the agonising process of childbirth in silence.

There followed speculation that Miss Holmes's conversion to Scientology at Cruise's request has caused her estrangement from her own family, while wildly varying reports have questioned the very existence of their four-month-old daughter Suri since to this day she is yet to be seen in public.

His allegiance to the cult has itself stirred controversy, it being based on the belief that humans are an exiled race from outer space called Thetans.

Cruise's behaviour in public in recent months has also become increasingly erratic. He became the butt of jokes after declaring his love for Miss Holmes in his infamous couch-hopping appearance on America's Oprah Winfrey Show.

But Hollywood insiders have now made the intriguing discovery that Redstone's decision was linked almost entirely to the feelings of his wife - who is 40 years his junior, who 'had his ear' and, he believed, was the best barometer of how the female public felt about the actor.

According to an insider, Fortunato, was 'incensed' by Cruise's criticism of Brooke Shields, who wrote about how prescription drugs relieved her postnatal depression.

"Here is a woman - and I care about Brooke Shields because she is an incredibly talented woman - where has her career gone?" Cruise ranted on national television. "These drugs are dangerous. I have actually helped people come off them. When you talk about postnatal depression, you can take people today, women, and what you do is, you use vitamins."

Sources say Fortunato told her powerful husband, "I never want to see another Tom Cruise movie again".

Viacom spokesman Carl Folta confirmed the story last night, telling a New York newspaper: "It is true that Mrs. Redstone disagrees with Tom Cruise's views, but she and Mr. Redstone see every Paramount film."

Cruise is understood to be incensed that his entire career risks crashing around him due to the whisperings of Miss Fortunato, who until recently was an unknown New York primary school teacher. Miss Fortunato met Redstone while he was still married to his first wife of 55 years, Phyllis Gloria Raphael, and married him three years later in April 2003.

[The Invunche]

"I never want to see another Tom Cruise movie again"

I've felt like that for years.

[Polybius]

"I never want to see another Tom Cruise movie again"

I've felt like that for years.

Indeed

No matter what directors you seek out, no matter who you surround yourself with in a cast, no matter how much money you spend, if you're a no talent little weasel, you'll likely stay a no talent little weasel.

[kinjitsu]

This thread is teetering on the edge of destruction, much like Mr. Cruise's career...

[The Invunche]

Restraint is an important quality of a newly appointed moderator.

[Polybius]

Okay, does anybody look on this as one of those watershed moments in studio cost cutting and control grabbing, like when they made a scapegoat out of Michael Cimino after Heaven's Gate? Or is this incident Suri generis?


(I defy anyone to make a worse pun.)

[kinjitsu]

Restraint is an important quality of a newly appointed moderator.

](*,)

[David Ehrenstein]

Viacom stock jumped in the wake of the firing. Everybody's happy -- except dumbasses like Nikki Finke.

Stick a fork in the bitch -- he's done.

And for your further edification:

http://www.ehrensteinland.com/htmls/lib ... ters.shtml

[The Invunche]

Mr. Cruise is not homosexual, has never had a homosexual experience, and is completely heterosexual.

Methinks the lady protests too much.

[Lino]

Mr. Cruise is not homosexual, has never had a homosexual experience, and is completely heterosexual.

Methinks the lady protests too much.

No wonder...

[David Ehrenstein]

Doth she ever!