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Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia features one of the best ensembles in modern cinema history… which is why it says a lot that Tom Cruise is unquestionably the highlight of the film. His performance as the hardcore Frank T.J. Mackey – from his hyper-masculine motivational speaking to his emotional breakdown at the side of his dying father’s bed – is wholly remarkable to behold. The collaboration between Cruise and Anderson yielded incredible cinema magic, and the story behind how the character was crafted is both surprising and awesome.
Cruise recently did a career retrospective at the British Film Institute in London, and per Entertainment Weekly, he told a story about he completely changed not only the whole vibe of his Magnolia character but also rewrote his monologue teaching his paying customers to seduce women and “respect the cock.” Cruise told the crowd that he wasn’t a fan of Mackey’s motivational speaking when he first started working on the role, and he invited Paul Thomas Anderson to his place for a showcase of his thoughts:
The whole monologue wasn’t there at the beginning. That wasn’t there — there was a couple sentences, and I remember I was worried… I said, ‘Look, just come over to my place, let’s do the wardrobe fitting.’ And I remember he wanted me in IZOD shirts and khakis. I was like, ‘I don’t think that’s this guy. Let me show you my instincts on this.’
It’s pretty bold for an actor to tell an acclaimed filmmaker that he has plans to totally upend their creative vision for a specific role… but I suppose that just speaks to the power of Tom Cruise.
When the two men had their meeting he Top Gun: Maverick star didn’t just sit down with Paul Thomas Anderson and explain to him what he had in mind. Instead, he followed one of the golden rules of filmmaking: show, don’t tell. Cruise took the stage in his personal screening room (because of course Tom Cruise has a personal screening room with a stage), and he managed to successfully blow the writer/director’s mind with material that he had personally written. Said Cruise,
I said, ‘Just sit down right here in my screening room.’ I lit it, and I had the whole music, and I basically wrote the opening monologue, my version. I was like, ‘Let me just show you what I’m gonna do,’ and he was literally right here sitting, and I had a stage, and I had lit, and I had the big speakers, and as I was doing it, I could just see his face, he’s like, ‘What the f—?!’
It’s very easy to relate to Paul Thomas Anderson in this situation, as “What the fuck” can be described as my own reaction when I first saw Magnolia and witnessed Tom Cruise’s extreme performance. Clearly the filmmaker knew that gold had been struck, and they proceeded to work together and craft the role that ultimately earned Cruise what was at the time his third Academy Award nomination.
Also starring Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John C. Reilly, Philip Baker Hall, William H. Macy and many more, Magnolia is a modern classic and one of Paul Thomas Anderson’s many masterpieces. While it’s not presently available to stream on any subscription services, it can be found for digital rental/purchase from major retailers. And if you’re looking for a newer Tom Cruise joint, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, featuring the star’s last turn as super spy Ethan Hunt, is now playing in theaters everywhere.