Tom Cruise’s advice to young actors is numbing, says Mission: Impossible co-star.

Last Updated on 06/01/2023 by てんしょく飯

Pom Klementieff co-stars with Tom Cruise for the first time in the film Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One, which opens in the US on Friday 14 July. Pom, who confronts Tom as a villain, reveals her memories of meeting Tom for the first time, how great he is as a worker and the best Tom-like advice he gave her.

Pom Klementieff reveals what Tom ‘pushed’ her to do when they first met.

French actress Pom Klementieff first met Tom Cruise during a screen test for Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One. Pom was playing the role of a mysterious villain in her first film, and Pom laughs that their first encounter began with Tom’s “insistence” that she play the role.

Pom laughs: “We were doing a scene with dialogue together, and suddenly Tom said, ‘Can you try it in French for now? I did it in French. So I did it in French, but it was terrible French because I was improvising and translating the English lines I had memorised into French (laughs). In my head I was thinking, ‘Oh my God, what am I doing? If the French see this moment, they’ll laugh at me’, but I was doing it with a straight face and a lot of confidence, to keep the character’s character.”

Tom is a producer who remembers everyone’s name and job, and gives them all a “spark”.

After the screen test, Pom continued to discuss the character with Tom and Christopher McCurry, who directed, wrote and produced Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One. In the process, he was impressed by Tom’s unique vision.

‘He told me, “We decide on an actor first, and then we build the character based on what that actor can do and what that actor can add to the film.” I thought that was a very interesting approach. One of the many great things about Tom is that he really wants everyone involved in the production to shine in their own way. That’s why you see each character shine in Mission: Impossible.”

Pom, who said that Tom’s respect for each artist makes the series interesting, also mentioned how Tom is on set.

Tom is always giving advice. He is very generous, dependable and inspirational. I have nothing but good words to say about him. I admire his professionalism, his ability to commit and give everything at such a high level. He remembers everyone’s name on set and knows what everyone is there to do. He really is one-of-a-kind.”

We asked Pom, who says she has ‘learnt a lot’ from Tom, about the most memorable advice he has given her. Pom began to recall a number of pieces of advice, saying, “There’s so much great advice…” It’s as if Tom has so much great advice that he’s in trouble.

The most memorable advice she got from Tom Cruise

Pom Klementieff chose “Don’t stay in the safe zone, be competent” as her favourite piece of memorable advice from Tom Cruise.

“In scenes where other people would say, ‘Be careful’, Tom would always say, ‘Don’t stay in the safe zone, be competent’. It’s about being a competent person who can do the job. I think that’s right. When I’m training, when I’m skydiving, when I’m training on my motorbike, I think of those words. If you train properly, get the ability to do it right, and focus on the moment, you can do it. I was inspired by these words in many ways. It pushes me to push my limits and push me to overcome my fears.”

Tom has shown some of the most dangerous action of his career in Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One, including a precipitous motorbike jump. People around him are on edge, but Tom may be saying that he is becoming a person who can handle it, so it’s not a problem for him.

Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One opens in the US on Friday 14 July.