Millie Bobby Brown has opened up about her close friendship with Tom Cruise, and it turns out the Hollywood star has a surprising goal in mind for her. That is, to fly a plane.
But according to the actress, Cruise has good reason to believe she can handle the challenge, thanks to one memorable experience they shared together.
Millie Bobby Brown Reveals The Surprising Stunt Experience She Shared With Tom Cruise
Brown revealed this during a live taping at the 92nd Street Y on Wednesday. The actress was discussing her move into action films when Horowitz brought up her earlier comparison to Tom Cruise, after she famously called herself the “female Tom Cruise” in 2024 for her love of doing her own stunts.
Related: Millie Bobby Brown Tried To Fix Every Friendship After The ‘Stranger Things’ Finale
When Horowitz asked whether the two actually knew each other, Brown smiled and confirmed that they had built a close friendship over the years. “He’s a dear friend,” the Stranger Things star said. “He’s a wonderful man, and I’m very lucky to call him my friend.”
Brown then revealed the unexpected experience that came from that friendship. Laughing, she said, “Tom does the craziest stuff. I think he’s trying to get me to somehow fly a plane at some point,” before sharing that she has actually “flown his helicopter before.”
Cruise is famous for performing many of his own stunts and became a licensed helicopter pilot while preparing for 2018’s ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout‘. Brown admitted that flying one of his helicopters was exciting, but it also convinced her not to try it again. “I was like, ‘This is the last time I ever fly any of his equipment,'” she joked.
Even so, Brown said she still enjoys taking on challenging action scenes herself. “I really want young girls to think they can, you know? You’ll always hear an older actor say, ‘Don’t do your own stunts,’ and I get that. But back in the day, they might have been throwing you against a wall. And now, if you get a really great stunt coordinator and you learn how to land and you learn the whole technique of it, we as actors should know how to do certain things.”
She also admitted that she pushes to do as much as possible on set. “I try to do 90% and the 10% is probably, you know, in my contract that I’m not allowed, even though I beg.”
In case you missed it: The ‘Enola Holmes’ Escape Scene Millie Bobby Brown Had Imagined Since Childhood
Millie Bobby Brown Opens Up About The Tough Reality Behind Her Stunts
Brown may enjoy doing her own stunts, but she has previously admitted that the experience is far from easy. The actress has been filming action scenes since she was just 12 years old. It is especially after landing the role of Eleven in ‘Stranger Things‘. Since then, projects like ‘Enola Holmes‘ and ‘Damsel‘ have kept her performing physically demanding sequences.
Speaking to The Sun, Brown revealed that stunt work often leaves her feeling sick because she struggles with motion sickness. “I don’t like climbing, and falling makes me feel sick. I’m really bad at motion sickness. On ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘Damsel’, if I do it one too many times I am outside [being sick]. And everybody’s like, ‘Oh God, Millie.’ I’m a nightmare.”
The actress also shared behind-the-scenes footage from ‘Damsel‘, in which she spent long hours flying through the air on wires. At one point, she even admitted, “I will vomit.” Brown later described the fantasy film as “a hard shoot,” saying she expected it to be intense but “not probably to the extent of what it actually was.” She added that the demanding schedule left her “aching” almost every day.
Despite the challenges, Brown has continued to embrace action roles throughout her career. She said the experience helped her discover her “inner bad-ass“.
You might also like to read: Millie Bobby Brown Fires Back At Critics Questioning Jake Bongiovi’s Role As A Husband And Father
