Hollywood has been filled with stars, but very few have seen the mammoth success that Will Smith and Tom Cruise achieved in their careers. The commercial superstars made their debuts a few years apart, but they gained quick recognition and easily became the most bankable stars in the fraternity. Another similar characteristic in both of their careers is that they have been a part of some of the highest-grossing franchises.
Tom Cruise has earned global recognition, wealth, and stardom due to the ‘Mission Impossible’ series. The sequel to ‘Top Gun’ revived the box office post-pandemic. Will Smith has starred in several franchises like ‘Men In Black,’The Boys,’ and others. Recently, various media outlets confirmed that the actor will be back for the sequel to the 2007 sci-fi film, ‘I Am Legend.’ But the sequel would see the light of day only because Tom Cruise saved the first film from being a debacle.
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Tom Cruise Sent Will Smith Four Hours Of Notes On ‘I Am Legend’
Will Smith’s ‘I Am Legend’ established the fact that the actor can shoulder a film by himself and earned him another million dollars for a franchise. The post-apocalyptic film takes us on a journey with Dr. Robert Neville, who is the sole surviving person in New York after the plague kills the citizens. He goes on a journey to find a cure for it. The film earned $585.4 million at the box office.
In an interview, Will Smith credited Tom Cruise with saving the film by sending constructive feedback. Smith said, “When I did I Am Legend, I sent him the script, and he sent me back four hours of notes and changes. He did more work on I Am Legend than I did. Now we’re looking at some projects to work on together because we have that basic understanding of each other.”
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Will Smith Was Keeping Track Of Cruise’s Phenomenal Promotional Activities
There is a lot of business mind behind that beautiful face! Over the years, Tom Cruise has evolved into this humongous brand that, to date, remains untouched! With ‘Mission Impossible,’ he kept pushing the envelope by mounting stunts and raising the stakes with each film in the franchise. In December 2022, he thanked the audience for coming out in huge numbers and making ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ a huge hit while jumping off a plane in South Africa.
In 2021, Will Smith praised Tom Cruise’s arduous promotional activities in his memoir. He wrote, “I started quietly monitoring all of Tom’s global promotional activities. When I arrived in a country to promote my movie, I would ask the local movie executives to give me Tom’s promotional schedule. And I vowed to do two hours more than whatever he did in every country.”
Smith continued, “Unfortunately, Tom Cruise is either a cyborg or there are six of him. I was receiving reports of four-and-a-half-hour stretches on red carpets in Paris, London, Tokyo… In Berlin, Tom literally signed every single autograph until there was no one else who wanted one. Tom Cruise’s global promotions were the individual best in Hollywood.”
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