Tom Cruise’s Days of Thunder co-star Cary Elwes was impressed by his dedication while filming the 1990 action/sport film.
Cruise – who met ex-wife Nicole Kidman on the set – and Elwes, both 63, did the majority of their own stunts as they portrayed race car drivers in the Tony Scott-directed movie.
And Elwes recently shared with Entertainment Tonight (ET) that Cruise crashed his car into a wall on the first day, and his last words before impact were, ‘Hello, wall.’
‘Tom put a car in the wall, actually, on his first day of driving, and these things are not cheap,’ he recalled. ‘And he was so funny on film.’
Elwes also praised the Hollywood icon’s professionalism.
‘He’s a terrific guy. He really is so fun to work with, so, so professional and so supportive of everybody,’ he gushed.
Tom Cruise’s Days of Thunder co-star Cary Elwes, 63, was impressed by his dedication while filming the 1990 action/sport film; Cruise pictured in April
Cruise, 63, did the majority of his own stunts as he portrayed a race car driver in the Tony Scott-directed movie; Pictured with ex-wife Nicole Kidman on set
In addition to Elwes and Cruise, the feature film starred Kidman, Don Simpson, Michael Rooker, John C. Reilly and Randy Quaid.
Kidman and Cruise fell in love on set and married that year. They divorced in 2001 after adopting two children – daughter Isabella, 33, and son Connor, 31.
Last year Cruise said today that the secret to performing all his own stunts is that he feels ‘no fear.’
‘How do I feel about fear? Oh that’s exciting. I like the feeling. It’s not paralyzing it doesn’t bother me, I enjoy it. In any endeavor people can be afraid, I don’t mind confronting it and going in. I wanted an interesting life that’s very dynamic,’ he said at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
‘People say be careful. I say be competent strive towards being capable and look for know that you can apply and when you apply it gets you the results that you want. It’s a constant study.’
Cruise famously shattered his ankle leaping between two skyscrapers while filming Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018).
Last year he laid bare the trickiest stunt he’s ever attempted – and succeeded – in one of his many actions films.
The actor revealed in an interview with The Project that his hardest stunt to date took place while filming Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning (2023).
In the film, Tom was submerged in a water tank which turned on command, imitating a sinking submarine.
‘Was that one of the hardest stunt sequences that you’ve ever done?’ The Project’s host asked.
‘Without a question,’ the actor replied.
Elwes recently shared that Cruise crashed his car into a wall on the first day, and his last words before impact were, ‘Hello, wall’; Elwes seen in a still from the film
Cruise pictured right with producer Jerry Bruckheimer on set in 1990
Cruise – who’s known for doing his own stunts – famously shattered his ankle leaping between two skyscrapers while filming Mission: Impossible – Fallout; Seen in a still from the film
Last year he revealed that his hardest stunt to date took place while filming Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning (2023), when he was submerged in a water tank
Elsewhere in his chat with ET, Elwes said he learned ‘how to drive NASCAR’ for the movie.
‘The great Tony Scott, who directed the picture – a lovely, awesome man – came up to me on my first day, and he said, “Okay, here’s what you need to do when you get up to speed.
‘I want you to take the wheel with your knees, and then I want you to flip on each of the cameras, grab the wheel again, and then when they’re switched on, take the wheel with your knees again, and then clap each camera.”‘
‘And I said, “You’re joking, right?” He goes, “No, no, no, that’s what we’re gonna do.” And I thought, “This is nuts.”‘
Ultimately, Elwes said, ‘Of course, I did it.’
He admitted it turned out to be ‘great fun’ and said they ‘had such a great time.’
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