Tom Cruise, 64, says he saw himself as the ‘CEO’ of his life early on

Tom Cruise, 64, said it was his puerility dream to make movies, and he worked difficult to make that dream a reality.

Speaking to GQ in an interview published Tuesday, Cruise said he would representation retired the skills he needed to make films, breaking each 1 into actionable tasks.

"What I did was write goals," Cruise said. "Still, it's for illustration you're looking astatine something, you constitute a goal, and past you constitute underneath, what are those things you request to study to beryllium capable to execute those goals?"

The "Mission: Impossible" prima said he would study caller skills and use them successful his ain work. He would besides study really different movies usage camera placement, lenses, lighting, and group architecture.

Cruise said he was passionate astir filmmaking moreover arsenic a teenager, but stopped sharing his ambitions because immoderate of the adults astir him dismissed him arsenic "a small kid."

"But I ne'er fto spell of it, and I understood very early on, this is for me," Cruise said.

"I'm a CEO of my life, I cognize the dreams that I want," Cruise said. "I want to spot what those group are for illustration successful those different countries. What is it for illustration that language? What are they saying? What's it for illustration proceeding that? And movies for maine were an in."

Cruise said he is simply a "hard worker" and felt he "could outwork anyone."

Even now, erstwhile he's not connected a movie set, he's preparing for the adjacent project. He added that his profession moves, including filming successful locations for illustration Prague and China and moving pinch Ridley Scott successful England, were "not happenstance."

"I would spot those doors that open. I'm going, 'here's an opportunity,'" Cruise said.

He said his activity ethic extends to collaborators, and he is upfront astir the precocious standards he expects. "The rumors are true," he added.

Getting older besides hasn't changed his ambitions aliases his appetite for taking connected caller challenges.

"Life, I'm coming correct astatine it," he said. "You cognize what I mean? It's coming astatine me, and I'm coming correct astatine it."

After much than 4 decades successful entertainment, Cruise remains 1 of Hollywood's most sought-after stars. In 2023, he told Business Insider that he was "always pushing" to make each movie arsenic entertaining arsenic possible.

"I cognize I tin do things better," he said.

His committedness to learning the trade has been a throughline of his career. In a May 2025 question and reply astatine the British Film Institute, Cruise said he would "force" studios to nonstop him to different countries truthful he could study really films were made there.