Leave it to Tom Cruise to accomplish any mission — even the Olympics! The 62-year-old movie star and professional stuntman performed a few stunts during the 2024 Paris Olympics closing ceremony, while also participating in the handoff to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Following a heart-stopping ensemble performance of the legendary Golden Voyager on Sunday, August 11, Tom appeared atop the Stade de France. Upon glancing at the camera, the Mission Impossible actor jumped off the ledge and into the stadium. The stunt, as many movie fans witnessed, was reminiscent of his bigger stunts in his action franchise.
Surrounding athletes couldn’t resist high-fiving Tom while he rushed toward the stage. A few were even seen trying to snap selfies with him. After reaching the stage, Tom was handed the Olympic flag by Simone Biles and the L.A. Mayor Karen Bass. He then jumped on his motorcycle to ride away, while countless Olympians made a path for him to dash off.
IT'S A BIRD. IT'S A PLANE. IT'S TOM CRUISE! 🤯#ParisOlympics | #ClosingCeremony pic.twitter.com/5v4j8pOwBF
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 11, 2024
Cameras then captured the actor cruising through Paris outside in a pre-recorded film. After getting through some traffic, Tom rode all the way to a large aircraft in order to skydive over L.A. While staying in character for the action movie theme, Tom landed in an open field then ran off toward the Hollywood sign, where he assembled the iconic Olympic rings across the two “Os” in the city’s landmark.
Tom was one of the many celebrities who attended this year’s Olympic Games. Over the past few weeks, he was spotted cheering on Team USA in the stands.
The A Few Good Men star’s closing ceremony stunt certainly wasn’t his first. Tom is known for performing almost all of his own stunts in his Mission Impossible and Top Gun films. While filming Mission Impossible 7 — Dead Reckoning Part One, the Hollywood living legend accomplished one of the most dangerous feats ever seen: riding a motorcycle off of a cliff and parachuting down to safety. The single stunt required hundreds of hours of skydiving training in addition to more than 10,000 motorcycle jumps.