Exclusive | Tom Cruise didn’t want to ask Donald Trump for a favor to get his outer space movie off ground: source
Tom Cruise didn’t want to ask Donald Trump for a favor to help his ambitious outer space movie blast off, sources tell Page Six.
It’s perhaps the latest instance of how Trump can get movies made these days, and how Cruise is allegedly reluctant to court the commander-in-chief.
Back in 2020, Deadline reported that the “Mission: Impossible” star was aiming to shoot a film in outer space with his “Edge of Tomorrow” director Doug Liman, and cooperation from Space X and NASA.
Five years later, an insider familiar with the filmmakers told Page Six of the ambitious project: “From what I understand, they would need NASA coordination to do the movie, and supposedly Tom Cruise did not want to ask Donald Trump for a favor. You’d need permission from the federal government.”
Tom Cruise has been aiming to shoot a film in outer space. Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images
Cruise is known for his death-defying film stunts. ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection
The source added, “Tom didn’t want to ask for political reasons.”
Cruise has stayed largely apolitical over the years, and the source said he did not want to alienate fans by starting now. The Washington Post reported earlier this year that Cruise turned down a recent 2025 Kennedy Center honor from Trump, citing “scheduling conflicts.”
A Trump-appointed NASA head previously expressed support for the Cruise space project, even indicating via tweet it could shoot on the International Space Station.
The star was allegedly reluctant to ask Donald Trump for a favor to help get the movie off the ground. AP
Trump recently revived the “Rush Hour” franchise at Paramount for Brett Ratner. AP
But the NASA official and the tweet are long gone, and space insiders tell Page Six there have never been any further discussions inside the space agency about the film.
Trump-appointed NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine confirmed the project would involve the ISS at the time of Deadline’s initial report, tweeting, “NASA is excited to work with @TomCruise on a film aboard the @Space_Station! We need popular media to inspire a new generation of engineers and scientists to make @NASA’s ambitious plans a reality.”
Bridenstine’s tweet has been deleted, and the onetime GOP Oklahoma congressman is now a consultant for firms like Voyager Space Holdings. (But his previous plans at NASA had ambitions fit for Hollywood: In 2016, he said Mars should be NASA’s “main human spaceflight priority,” as well as, “commercializing low Earth orbit endeavors, including the creation of a pilot program for commercial habitats.”)
Cruise would be reteaming with director Doug Liman for the space project. Getty Images
Liman (right) has directed Cruise in films including “Edge of Tomorrow.” WireImage
Universal was reportedly interested in boarding Cruise’s space project. But logistics for the shoot-for-the-moon movie seemed tricky at best, as it was unclear if Cruise, 63, and company could even get insured for a a space-set feature.
The star is known for being in great shape and doing his own death-defying stunts.
Page Six also heard rumors that the space film hit a snag when Liman failed a physical to launch. But another source said that Liman, 60, is in great shape.
The star is juggling a busy schedule for 2026. ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection
Cruise reportedly turned down a Kennedy Center award from Trump due to scheduling conflicts. AFP via Getty Images
SpaceX — headed by Trump booster-turned-enemy Elon Musk — has never commented on being involved in the project. The company’s launches are approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Reps for Cruise, as well as NASA, did not comment.
Then again, the film wasn’t exactly imminent as Liman and Cruise have been tied up with other projects, Deadline reported.
Liman launched his career with the ’90s cult classic “Swingers.” WireImage
Trump’s NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine tweeted about the project, but has since left the space agency. Getty Images
Liman told the outlet of the space movie: “I’m more excited about going to space, not less… but our goal is to make something great. A lot of people are trying to do gimmicky things like, ‘Oh, it’s in space.’ I’m not interested in doing something that’s a just promotional gimmick. I want to make a film that people watch in a hundred years when maybe there’s hundreds of movies shot in outer space and there’s nothing special about it being in outer space. That’s the goal of everything I do.”
Cruise released his latest “Mission: Impossible” movie, “The Final Reckoning,” earlier this year, and is working on several projects for 2026.
Three weeks ago, Trump reportedly took a dig at Cruise’s height at the McDonald’s Impact Summit by saying of the bomber pilots who attacked Iran’s enrichment facilities: “They looked like Tom Cruise. They really do,” he said. “I don’t want to be a wise guy and say ‘But taller.’ I’m not gonna say that. No.”
The “Minority Report” starred in “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” earlier this year. CBS via Getty Images
In a surreal twist, Trump’s approval has become a vehicle to greenlight films in Hollywood.
The prez reportedly pushed his billionaire buddy Larry Ellison to revive Brett Ratner’s “Rush Hour” franchise starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. (The movie will reportedly be distributed by Paramount, headed by the tech moguls’ son, David Ellison, who was in the hunt to buy the movie series’ license holder Warner Bros. Discovery.)
Ratner, who also directed “X-Men: The Last Stand,” was shunned from Hollywood after six women accused him of sexual misconduct in 2017. But he’s managed to claw his way back into the film biz, by making First Lady Melania Trump’s $40 million Amazon documentary.
