Tom Cruise’s return to the big screen after a four-year hiatus with become Cruise’s greatest financial success and shows little signs of slowing down. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is certain to continue the actor’s purple patch in 2023.
Mission: Impossible entries to one-off films like War of the Worlds that leave no doubt of Cruise’s status as a superstar. It's interesting to see which films Box Office Mojo has tracked to be considered among the actor's biggest successes.
Mission: Impossible III (2006) - $398.5 Million
Tom Cruise’s third outing as Ethan Hunt didn’t create as much of a buzz, perhaps because of the low-stakes plot. Mission: Impossible III is primarily a personal story for Ethan, as he has to rescue his wife and investigate the mysterious Rabbit’s Foot weapon.
Made on a budget of $150 million, Mission: Impossible III was still a hit, making around $398.5 million at the box office, according to Box Office Mojo. The film made the majority of its earnings at the international level where Cruise’s star power refuses to wane, with the final tally enough to justify a further sequel.
The Mummy (2017) - $409.2 Million
Although it’s never included The Mummy is pretty impressive by box office standards. According to Box Office Mojo, it ended up grossing around $409 million, which would have made it a hit anywhere else but its hefty budget - ranging from $120-190 million - turned it into a flop instead.
The Mummy received a critical lashing as well, with reviewers unimpressed by Cruise’s Nick Morton and his nonsensical merging with the Set to fight a different Mummy. The main reason for its failure was the poor U.S. box office returns of $80 million since its overseas tally of $329 million was actually quite a successful run.
The Last Samurai (2003) - $454.6 Million
Critics generally appreciated Cruise’s efforts in The Last Samurai, where he played an American veteran who embraces the Samurai culture after he’s tasked with training the Imperial Japanese Army. The Last Samurai’s gross of $454 million helped it recoup its $140 million budget (via Box Office Mojo).
It did good business in the U.S., grossing $111 million, but Cruise’s superstar status worldwide again did the trick by pulling in a $343 million business from overseas markets. The Last Samurai also ended up as among the highest-grossing films of 2003.
Mission: Impossible (1996) - $457.7 Million
An easy pick for the list of top-ranked Tom Cruise movies, the actor made it big with Mission: Impossible. Cruise was already a bona fide box office draw by then, but Mission: Impossible solidified him as an action icon, raking in a big $457 million gross by the end of its run, according to Box Office Mojo.
Its story of Ethan Hunt attempting to clear his name of the false charges of killing his IMF teammates brought fans of the thriller and action genre to cinemas. The film spawned the franchise that Cruise is best known for and has continued to age very well, with its box office tally still considered impressive.
Mission: Impossible 2 (2000) - $546.4 Million
While Mission: Impossible 2 is the only entry that didn’t receive significant critical acclaim, it was a blockbuster without question. The action-heavy plot sees Ethan Hunt looking for the source of the Chimera virus and mowing through the villain’s forces to save his love interest.
Mission: Impossible 2 was the highest-grossing film of 2000, grossing more than $546 million (via Box Office Mojo) and generally pleasing audiences. The movie was released at the time when simply attaching Cruise’s name to a project turned it into box office gold, with Mission: Impossible 2’s success proving this claim.
War Of The Worlds (2005) - $603.9 Million
Playing the hero is something that War of the Worlds has him lead his family away from invading aliens and fighting many himself. Audiences loved this outline, with the film raking in $603 million at the box office to become one of the year’s biggest hits, as reported by Box Office Mojo.
Its returns easily recouped the $132 million budget multiple times over, as Cruise enjoyed a successful collaboration with director Steven Spielberg. While international audiences naturally loved Cruise once more, the domestic haul of $234 million was mighty impressive as well.
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) - $682.7 Million
The fifth entry in the Mission: Impossible series nearly became Cruise’s highest-grossing release, although fell short by just a hair. It continued Ethan Hunt’s adventures as he tried to expose the existence of the Syndicate. The film received both huge critical acclaim and audience approval for Cruise’s daring stunts and action sequences.
Its final gross of $682 million (via Box Office Mojo) was heavily influenced by the $487 million business the film did worldwide, as Cruise’s star power had risen far beyond the U.S. box office. The eventual gross ultimately made the $150 million budget seem minuscule in comparison, as audiences established they would check out Ethan Hunt's missions time and again.
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011) - $694.7 Million
The return of Mission: Impossible after a five-year gap built up massive hype for the fourth film’s release, which went on to become the highest-grossing movie of Cruise’s career at the time. Fans and reviewers were impressed by Cruise upping the ante with daring stunts like climbing the Burj Khalifa and taking Ethan Hunt on a globetrotting mission to stop an impending disaster.
The Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol marking a great increase from the third film’s returns and boosting the appeal of Cruise as well. The fourth entry remained the actor’s most successful film for seven years until another sequel displaced it.
Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018) - $791.1 Million
The reviews for Mission: Impossible – Fallout were the best-ever for the series and contributed to the anticipation for its release. Ethan Hunt’s mission to find the leader of the Apostles was a straightforward affair, one that pulled in audiences worldwide - it helped that there were incredible stunts like Cruise free-falling through the sky.
Fallout outgrossed the fourth film by a significant amount to end its run at $791 million and as Cruise’s highest-grossing effort (per Box Office Mojo). Moreover, its incredible tally of $571 million at the international box office reconfirmed Cruise’s A-list status with worldwide moviegoers, as the upward trend of his movies’ performances continued.
Top Gun: Maverick (2022) - $915 Million+
Fans hadn’t seen Tom Cruise for four years on the big screen and it was a given that his return would be big. easily outperformed the original’s box office run and has continued to do so. As of writing, Box Office Mojo reports the film has grossed more than $915 million, with estimates for it to reach the $1 billion mark.
The story of Top Gun: Maverick sees the titular character training a new team of fliers to infiltrate and destroy an enemy’s uranium enrichment plant. While it’s been an international hit like all of Cruise’s films, Top Gun: Maverick has surprisingly been a bigger success at the U.S. box office, claiming more than 50% of its gross from the domestic market.
