Why was Tom Cruise honored at the 2024 Olympics Closing Ceremony?

If there was an Olympic medal for performance as a complicated celebrity who is likable yet has a strange personal life, Tom Cruise would win every single one. He also deserves some major credit for being the talk of the end of the 2024 Olympics.

While of course everyone wants to celebrate the achievements of the athletes, the 2024 Olympics opening and closing ceremonies are always highlights. 2024’s featured a bunch of awesome performances from The Red Hot Chili Peppers, H.E.R., Phoenix, Yseult, and Billie Eilish. But how was the Mission Impossible and Top Gun actor included, and why was he there?

Why was Tom Cruise at the 2024 Olympics closing ceremony?

Cruise did an amazing stunt at the 2024 Olympics closing ceremony to represent the fact that the 2028 Olympics will be in Los Angeles, according to BBC. Cruise rappelled from high above into the Stade de France in Paris. After looking happy that he pulled it off (that must have been stressful!), he walked into the massive crowd with the Olympic flag in his hands, which he took from the hands of GOAT Simone Biles and Karen Bass, mayor of Los Angeles.

Cruise’s stunt was some real risky business, but after rappelling himself into the vanilla sky, he had all the right moves and it was clear that even with eyes wide shut, spectators could tell he was going to be just fine.(Sorry, I’ll stop now). The second part of Cruise’s 2024 Olympics closing ceremony appearance involved a video of him skydiving near the Hollywood sign. He also got on a motorcycle and then a plane to show he was leaving Paris and going to the U.S. It was definitely cool to watch, and a smart and memorable way to end what was one of the most thrilling Olympics ever. Cruise was like a real-life Iron Man (nevermind, he didn’t get that part).

The actor is a pro, and likely put a lot of hard work into his Olympics stunt, just like he does for every movie he appears in. Simon Pegg told CBS News back in ‘23 that it was wild watching one particular stunt that Cruise did for Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One. Pegg said Cruise “trains hard” and “It’s a well-oiled machine” but “it’s nerve-wracking.”

According to USA Today, people first heard about Cruise’s stunt about a week ago. Many people who watched it live (or saw a clip afterward… it’s okay, everyone is busy!) was definitely impressed.

Well, maybe not everyone. Since no one can agree on anything, some people thought this was awesome and others said it was “predictable,” according to The Independent. It’s true that if movie fans thought of an actor who would do a stunt at the closing ceremony, they would likely think of Cruise. But since most would agree that it’s better to watch Cruise do stunts than to hear about his creepy Scientology beliefs, he can swing from the sky anytime. Chances are that even those who didn’t enjoy this viral moment will still rush to the theater when Top Gun 3 is released.