Tom Cruise Shocks With Adrenaline-Fueled Stunts at Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony
Tom Cruise caused many fans’ jaws to drop after they watched the action-packed stunts he pulled off during the 2024 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in Paris, France.
After officially kicking off on July 26, the Summer Games ended on Sunday, Aug. 11. Much like the opening ceremony, which saw performances by Lady Gaga and Celine Dion, among many others, the Sunday celebration was packed with star appearances.
Cruise, who memorably made Today co-host Hoda Kotb’s dreams come true by posing for a photo with her during the opening ceremony, appeared more than two hours into Sunday’s celebration. His moment to shine came shortly after Paris’ mayor handed the Olympic flag over to the mayor of Los Angeles, Calif., the city that will host the next Summer Games in 2028.
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Following a performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” by H.E.R., the cameras panned up to the roof of the Stade de France, where Cruise, 62, was perching on the top of the stadium with a harness strapped to his body. After a moment of anticipation, he stepped off the edge and propelled himself to the stadium floor.
Once he landed, the Top Gun actor jogged through the crowds of athletes, shaking hands as he made his way to the stage. He then shook hands with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles, who was holding the Olympic flag on behalf of Team USA, before taking the flag from them to begin its journey.
From there, Cruise jogged back off the stage to where a motorcycle was waiting. He planted the flag in the back, hopped onboard and drove out of the stadium to the cheers of the athletes and spectators.
A pre-recorded video followed that showed Cruise appearing to drive through the streets of Paris and onto a plane. The montage later showed him seeming to skydive out of the plane and land in Los Angeles, where he handed off the flag and outfitted the Hollywood Sign with colorful Olympic-styled rings.
NBC’s official Olympics and Paralympics account on X, formerly Twitter, shared a video clip of the first portion of Cruise’s stunt on the social media platform. “IT'S A BIRD. IT'S A PLANE. IT'S TOM CRUISE! ??,” the tweet said.
Cruise also shared a selfie of himself before his leap into the stadium on X. “Thank you, Paris! Now off to LA,” he wrote.
Fans raved over the performance online, with many expecting no less from the actor known for his preference to execute his own stunts in his films.
“That was a brilliant entry. Very exciting,” one fan tweeted.
“A real legend right there!” another fan wrote.
“My man really be doing his own stunts. Wild,” one X user praised while another declared it was “Mission impossible in real life!”
“He’s been having a great time at these Olympics,” another fan observed.
Before his grand stadium entry on Sunday, Cruise was spotted spectating at several Olympic competitions over the last couple of weeks. He cheered on gymnasts and swimmers during the first week of competition and was also seen rooting for Team USA during the women’s soccer final on Saturday, August 10. It was at that game that the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team won its first gold medal in 12 years.
In addition to enjoying Olympic competitions over the last couple of weeks, the Jerry Maguire actor has spent time abroad for work lately as filming for Mission: Impossible 8 moved forward in Europe, according to Variety.
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