'Risky Business' to Big Business: Tom Cruise's Net Worth After 'Top Gun: Maverick'

Jessica Sager

March 13, 2023 at 7:41 AM·12 min read

The success of 'Top Gun: Maverick' means Tom Cruise's net worth is beyond mile-high levels.

Top Gun: Maverick star Tom Cruise's net worth is the result of being a marquee name for nearly four decades.

Born Thomas Cruise Mapother IV, Cruise came from humble beginnings: His family moved frequently, his father was abusive and he struggled with dyslexia growing up. Cruise's parents divorced and he lived with his mother, who remarried and worked hard to give him and his siblings a better life. Seeing her overcome those obstacles inspired Cruise to pursue his dreams—which once included joining the priesthood (he attended a seminary for several years), but also included performing onstage in his Glen Ridge, New Jersey, high school production of Guys and Dolls, which gave him the acting bug.

"People can create their own lives. I saw how my mother created hers and so made it possible for us to survive. My mother was the one who rose to the occasion. She held three jobs. She said, ‘We’re going to get through this,’" Cruise once recalled to Parade. “And I decided that I’m going to create, for myself, who I am, not what other people say I should be. I’m entitled to that.”

That inherent sense of self-worth and savvy led Cruise to superstardom, but he admits it isn't without its caveats: He was very wary of the "more money, more problems" adage long before it inspired a hip-hop classic.

“When success happened for me, people in the industry changed: All of a sudden I was being offered tremendous amounts of money," Cruise said. "I went, ‘Uh, oh, be careful.’ You realize that there are people you can’t trust. I knew from being around my father, who hurt people, that not everyone really means me well.”

Cruise's hard work and keen business sense have made him one of the wealthiest stars in Hollywood history. Just how rich is he? Well, Tom Cruise's net worth will blow your mind.

What is Tom Cruise's net worth in 2023?

Tom Cruise's net worth in 2023 is estimated at a whopping $600 million.

How did Tom Cruise become famous?

After high school, Cruise moved to New York City, where he worked as a busboy while auditioning for acting roles in the Big Apple and Los Angeles. His first onscreen gig came in 1981 with a small part in Endless Love, followed by a supporting role in the Timothy Hutton-starring military academy drama Taps the same year; Cruise reportedly earned $50,000 for the latter.

He then appeared in 1983's heartthrob ensemble The Outsiders and played Woody in Losin' It. Risky Business came next and was a surprise and breakout hit for Cruise.

From there, Cruise was able to command higher salaries for subsequent projects. The 1985 fantasy film Legend, for example, was a box office bomb, bringing in just $15.5 million on a $24 million budget, but Cruise made $500,000 for his heroic role of Jack in the Ridley Scott film, which went on to be a cult favorite.

How much did Tom Cruise get paid for Risky Business?

Cruise's breakout role in 1983's Risky Business, complete with the sock-and-shirt dance (and that steamy subway scene with co-star Rebecca De Mornay!) put Cruise on the map. Cruise was reportedly paid $75,000 to play the star-making role of Joel, while the film went on to gross $63.5 million on a $6.2 million budget. He made the same amount for All the Right Moves, also released in 1983.

How much does Tom Cruise make per movie?

Cruise's movie salaries have increased over time, but they still vary from film to film. For certain projects, Cruise forgoes an upfront salary altogether and gets paid a percentage of the film's profits (more on that later). Generally, though, he makes an average of at least $20 million to $25 million upfront to topline a film.

What movie made Tom Cruise the most money?

Thanks to savvy negotiations (big props to Cruise's agent!), Cruise reportedly made a whopping $100 million for War of the Worlds in 2005. While his most recent paydays aren't publicly known, if he keeps up with getting percentages of box office profits in addition to upfront salaries on movies, it's possible that Mission: Impossible — Fallout may have been his biggest moneymaker.

How much did Tom Cruise make for Top Gun?

In 1986, Cruise commanded $2 million for Top Gun. It was a worthwhile investment: The movie made $357 million on a $15 million budget and is regarded as an '80s-action classic. The same year, he made $1 million for The Color of Money, a sequel to 1961's The Hustler co-starring Paul Newman.

In 1988, Cruise channeled his intoxicating charm in Cocktail, pocketing a cool $3 million. The film was a hit, grossing $171.5 million on a $20 million budget.

How much did Tom Cruise get paid for Tropic Thunder?

Cruise's payday for his hilarious Tropic Thunder turn isn't known, but he really loved the work as Les Grossman. He told BBC Radio 1 in 2017, “I read the script, and [Ben Stiller] had all of the characters, but the studio wasn’t there. There was a structural compression missing down on those characters, you know, that keeps the pressure on these guys that really drives the story. I was like, ‘You need the studio.’”

He continued, “So he came back, like a few weeks later, and I started reading. I read this character and I went, ‘Okay.’ I said, ‘This is fun,’ I said, ‘Do you mind Ben? I want to play this character. I said, ‘I want to have fat hands, and I’m gonna dance.’ And he looked at me, he was like, ‘What?’ … He said, ‘Look, are you sure you can’t just be you? Like, look like you and do it?’” Cruise recalled. “I said, ‘No, no, no man, I’m sorry, I don’t know how else to play this character.’ So then I did the makeup test, we’ve tested the fat hands, you know, and the whole look, and so we’re doing the wardrobe and there was no music playing … I said, ‘Look, let me just—I wanna do some moves for you.’ You know, so I just started working, you know, on less, you know just kind of moving like that.”

Cruise began doing his signature Grossman dance, then noted, “[Stiller] just called me, and it was—he was laughing … he picked the music out, he edited this thing together, he was just pissing himself. And he sent it to me, he’s like, ‘OK, I get it, I get it.’”

**How much did Tom Cruise make for Rain Man?**

Also in 1988, Cruise negotiated a $3 million salary for the acclaimed drama Rain Man, but it wasn't a flat $3 million: He based his salary on a percentage of grosses from the film, and when it made $354 million on a $20 million budget, that amounted to a sweet check for Cruise. He made a similar deal for 1989's Born on the Fourth of July.

How much did Tom Cruise make for War of the Worlds?

Cruise made a seriously shrewd negotiation for War of the Worlds. The 2005 hit, based on the Orson Welles classic, had a $132 million budget, but Cruise's normal upfront salary would have been an obstacle to getting the film produced. Cruise reportedly skipped out on his upfront pay and instead opted to take 20% of the movie's profits. His faith in the project paid off big time: The movie grossed $604 million worldwide, earning him a payday of close to $100 million.

How much did Tom Cruise make for The Last Samurai?

The Last Samurai made Cruise a killing. He stars as a Civil War veteran who trains samurai warriors in Japan and gets embroiled in a conflict between the samurai and the emperor. Cruise reportedly took home a total of about $25 million from salary and profit percentage points from the 2003 hit. The film had a $140 million total budget and grossed $455 million worldwide.

How much did Tom Cruise make for Days of Thunder?

For 1990's Days of Thunder, Cruise gave himself a big raise, reportedly earning $9 million. For almost every other movie he made during that decade, Cruise's take-home pay only grew—thanks to not just his acting salary, but also for the box office "points" he earned on the backend of total grosses:

Far And Away: $13 million ($60 million total budget, $137.7 million total gross)
A Few Good Men: $12.5 million ($41 million total budget, $243.2 million total gross)
The Firm: $12 million ($42 total million budget, $270.2 million total gross)
Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles: $15 million ($60 million total budget, $223.6 million total gross)
Mission: Impossible: $70 million from salary and profit percentage points ($80 million total budget, $457.7 million total gross)
Jerry Maguire: $20 million ($50 million total budget, $273.5 million total gross)
Eyes Wide Shut: $20 million ($65 million total budget, $162.2 million total gross)

The only real low paycheck for Cruise in the 1990s was by choice: He made just $100,000 for director Paul Thomas Anderson's indie passion project Magnolia in 1999. That project paid off in another big way for Cruise: He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, although he got beat out by Michael Caine, who won for his performance in The Cider House Rules. Funny enough (and fitting enough), Caine joked in his acceptance speech that Cruise shouldn't want to get used to a supporting actor's salary.

How much did Tom Cruise make for Mission: Impossible?

From the early 2000s through 2010, Cruise mostly continued making blockbuster paychecks for blockbuster films, particularly in the Mission: Impossible franchise and especially for War of the Worlds. Here are his known paydays from that period:

Mission: Impossible II: $75 million from salary and profit percentage points ($125 million total budget, $546 million total gross)
Vanilla Sky: $20 million from salary and 30% of profits ($68 million total budget, $203 million total gross)
Minority Report: $25 million ($102 million total budget, $358 million total gross)
Mission: Impossible III: $75 million from salary and profit percentage points ($150 million total budget, $398 million total gross)
Valkyrie: $20 million from salary and profit percentage points ($75 million total budget, $202 million total gross)
Knight And Day: $11 million from salary and profit percentage points ($117 million total budget, $262 million total gross)

Cruise's salaries from 2011 on are, for the most part, unreported, and his box office returns have been somewhat mixed:

Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol: $145 million total budget, $695 million total gross
Rock of Ages: $75 million total budget, $59 million total gross
Jack Reacher: $60 million total budget, $218 million total gross
Oblivion: $120 million total budget, $286 million total gross
Edge of Tomorrow: $178 million total budget, $371 million total gross
Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation: $150 million total budget, $683 million total gross
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back: $60 million total budget, $162 million total gross
The Mummy: $125 million total budget, $135 million total gross
American Made: $50 million total budget, $135 million total gross

How much did Tom Cruise get paid for Top Gun 2?

More than 30 years after the original smash, Variety reported that Cruise pocketed between $12 million and $14 million for Top Gun: Maverick, which finally swooped into theaters on May 27, 2022. As Cruise famously earns back-end points on his movies' profits, Top Gun: Maverick being one of the biggest box office blockbusters ever means he likely made a ton of cash from this.

How much did Tom Cruise make for Mission Impossible: Fallout?

Cruise's exact pay for Mission: Impossible — Fallout isn't known, but it's safe to say it was a sweet check. The film had a $178 million total budget and made a massive $792 million total gross. If Cruise got paid in box office points plus his rumored $28 million upfront salary, it's quite possible he earned $100 million for the critically-acclaimed 2018 smash.

Tom Cruise earns big bucks as a producer

In addition to being a major movie star, Cruise also pockets cash as a producer on numerous projects, including:

Mission: Impossible
Without Limits
Mission: Impossible II
The Others
Vanilla Sky
Hitting It Hard
Narc
Shattered Glass
The Last Samurai
Suspect Zero
Elizabethtown
Ask the Dust
Mission: Impossible III
Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol
Jack Reacher
Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
Mission: Impossible — Fallout
Top Gun: Maverick
Mission: Impossible 7
Mission: Impossible 8
Luna Park
Adventurer's Club

Tom Cruise has a stellar real estate portfolio

According to Variety, Cruise's primary residence is a Beverly Hills home he purchased in 2007. In 2013, Cruise listed both of his New York City homes, an East Village condo and a Greenwich Village townhouse for a respective $3 million and $28 million. He also listed a Hollywood Hills compound for $12.995 million in March 2015.

In July 2015, Cruise listed a 14.2-acre estate just outside London for $7.385 million.

Cruise sold his massive Telluride, Colorado estate in May 2021 for its full $39.5 million asking price. The property features a 10,000-square-foot mansion with a gym, rec room, library, eat-in kitchen, two fireplaces, and a three-bedroom guest house.

Next, Mission: Impossible — Fallout Director Christopher McQuarrie Opens Up About Working With Tom Cruise!

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