Are Tom Cruise and Chris McQuarrie holding each other back?

However, when his path crossed with Christopher McQuarrie for the first time in 2008, something seemed to change. From that moment on, the two were practically inseparable professionally. The Oscar-winning author of The usual suspects He has been involved in almost every A-list celebrity project of the last decade and a half.

Since the release of their first joint film on The usual suspects dramatic thriller about the Second World War by director Bryan Singer ValkyrieCruise has appeared in 14 other films, including the upcoming eighth installment of his Impossible mission Franchise. Wherever he goes, McQuarrie usually doesn’t follow too far.

McQuarrie directed Cruise in Jack Reacher And Impossible mission Sequels Rogue Nation, Stand out, Dead reckoningand whatever the next one will be called, making him the first filmmaker to ever direct more than one of these globe-trotting spy adventures.

He produced the Jack Reacher Consequence Never go backand received screenwriting rights for the science fiction epic Edge of Tomorrowembarrassing failure The Mummyand spectacular successor Top Shooter: Maverick. This means that, based on Cruise’s credits listed above since 2008, the only ones without McQuarrie were Knight and Day, Rock of Eternity, oblivionAnd Made in America.

McQuarrie hasn’t made a film that didn’t involve Cruise since his underrated debut. The path of the weapon in 2000, and the only films he has worked on since then that did not involve his new best friend were Singer’s Jack the Giant Killer and frothy romantic capriols The tourist with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie.

They clearly have a shortcut that benefits both of them, but could they be hindering each other? It’s been a long time since Cruise has tried to prove himself as a dramatic actor, having focused for so long on his daredevil blockbuster performances, but so far there’s no sign of McQuarrie settling into his tantalizing-sounding partnership with Alejandro González Iñárritu.

It has now been nearly a quarter of a century since McQuarrie made a film that did not star Cruise, and someone as talented and ambitious as he is surely has plans to step out of that comfort zone. After all, he has experienced the razor-sharp thrills of The usual suspects and be Impossible mission He’s demonstrated an impeccable command of high-octane thrills during his tenure, so he certainly has a desire to branch out and do something that doesn’t feature his most famous collaborator.

I’m not suggesting he’s a trailblazer or anything, but Cruise’s reluctance to do anything that doesn’t fit his established personality has nevertheless coincided almost entirely with the McQuarrie years. It’s not that they’re producing a string of flops and duds, but that they’ve proven themselves many times over independently. They’re in danger of becoming a single unit that comes as a package and imposes limitations on each of them by slapping them together.

Cruise has a lot more to offer than just playing the death-defying action man with the wide grin, just as McQuarrie has more to offer than jaw-dropping scenes and twisted mysteries. Perhaps it would be in the best interests of both to take a little break, if only to recharge the creative batteries and see if their life together isn’t the co-dependency it increasingly seems to be.

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