Simon Pegg worked with first Tom Cruise on Mission: Impossible 3 in 2006. Since then, the pair have collaborated on several others MI movies, but have also become friends outside of their film work. On a recent appearance on BBC Radio’s Desert Island discsPegg revealed that despite their friendship, he never felt the need to discuss the actor’s well-documented Scientology beliefs and instead makes fun of the Hollywood action star for his ability to get pretty much anything he wants.
Pegg reappears next to Cruise Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning part one, which will hit theaters this summer. That means the pair once again traveled the world to film some of the movie’s epic action sequences, and, as Pegg revealed, have some “Tom Cruise” days at the same time. He explained:
“We joke about it. I mean, I always make fun of him for, you know, about the things he has access to. We were recently in South Africa filming on this mountain and then he decided he wanted to swim with sharks. He flew us in a helicopter to this stretch of coast and we dived with sharks. At the end of the day, we said, “That was a real Tom Cruise day.” He sometimes appreciates the ridiculousness of it.
Pegg went on to say that he’s not really jealous of his co-star’s mega-fame as it’s not something he’d really want, but at the same time, he said Cruise is “spurred on” by the buzz he’s been getting. constantly surrounds. He added:
“My relationship with him is just very simple and lovable. It’s always been a very easy relationship. I think you realize that when you meet the person instead of the thicket of mythology that has built up around them, it’s a different experience. I mean he loves [the fame] and he really enjoys it, that’s all he knows. It gives him energy and spurs him on. I don’t think I would particularly appreciate that. I would find it very stressful and overwhelming and I would want to withdraw. I am happy where I am.”
Will Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning feature the franchise’s biggest stunts?
It seems like every Mission Impossible movie involves bigger and more breathtaking stunts that must become insurmountable at some point. However, the next movie always finds Tom Cruise in even more elaborate and unbelievable situations. Steering the films with practical effects has ensured that none of the scenes go too far in terms of excess, but they certainly push the boundaries of what can be achieved. Director Christopher McQuarrie recently commented that he probably would have thought twice about some of the epic stunts they filmed had he known how difficult they would be to pull off.
“We’re making a movie with sequences that they practically don’t shoot anymore, and haven’t for a very, very long time. The series we are recording now is no exception. And like most things on Mission: Impossible, if we’d known what the challenges were when we started, we never would have done it.