Film opinion: Tom Cruise has made an early launch in his 2027 Oscars bid
Legendary Hollywood action hero Tom Cruise received an honorary Oscar last Sunday at the 16th Annual Governors Awards.
A career spent in filmmaking was recognised by the Academy for an “incredible commitment to our film-making community, to the theatrical experience, and to the stunts community".
But Film News Blitz’s Dan Lawrence believes this is the start of a long run-up to an outright Oscar in 2027.
Tom Cruise’s first Oscar
Cruise has become renowned for his death-defying commitment to the action genre and his dedication to giving cinema audiences a good time.
From Top Gun: Maverick’s ability to re-energise the box office in a post-COVID world, to his pushing of the envelope in terms of thrills with the Mission: Impossible franchise, Cruise and action are intertwined.
This relentless pursuit of cinematic excellence is in part why Cruise has persevered throughout a 45-year film career, one that is hardly worn in his seemingly ageless face.
It is why, for the most part, the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences gave him a golden shiny prize.
However, another half-life ago, Cruise was making a name for himself in drama, in Eyes Wide Shut, Vanilla Sky, Jerry Maguire, Rain Man, A Few Good Men and more.
It’s a world he’s returning to, with none other than Oscar-winning director Alejandro González Iñárritu.
Herein lie the clues to Cruise’s early Oscars campaign.
Alejandro González Iñárritu is on the Cruise Oscars train
In a long, impactful, and at times comedic speech ahead of presenting Cruise his honorary Oscar, Iñárritu chose not to focus on the recipient’s action chops.
Instead, the Mexican auteur focused on the dramatic roles Cruise has performed over the years, and also his experience working with the legendary actor on their new film.
In October 2026, Cruise will lead Iñárritu’s next cinematic adventure, which wrapped production in May.
The film’s title and plot are being kept firmly under wraps, but reports suggest the story follows "the most powerful man in the world, who embarks on a frantic mission to prove he is humanity's saviour before the disaster he's unleashed destroys everything."
Dramatic indeed, and as Iñárritu closed his remarks at the 16th Annual Governors Awards, he said, “This may be his first Oscar, but from what I have seen and experienced, it won’t be the last.”
This award, this moment in Cruise’s career, is without question the starting gun for his race to collect an Academy Award.
There’s simply no other reason he has partnered with a filmmaker like Iñárritu, with the material they have had to work with, and been presented with such an award by the very same man, other than for Cruise to end his long-awaited bid for an Oscar.
Like this honorary award, the Oscars themselves are fond of handing out long overdue prizes, see Leonardo DiCaprio for reference.
DiCaprio’s long-awaited prize came after taking the lead in Iñárritu’s The Revenant.
Coincidence? Maybe, but probably not.
Cruise: ‘Making films is who I am’
A humble Cruise was met with raucous applause and a standing ovation when he collected his Governors Award, and his words were equally impactful.
"Making films is not what I do, it is who I am," he said.
"The cinema, it takes me around the world.
"It helps me to appreciate and respect differences. It shows me also our shared humanity, how alike we are in so, so many ways.
"And no matter where we come from, in that theatre, we laugh together, we feel together, we hope together, we dream together. And that is the power of this art form.
"And that is why it matters, that is why it matters to me. So making films is not what I do, it is who I am.
"I want you to know that I will always do everything I can to help this art form, to support and champion new voices, to protect what makes cinema powerful - hopefully without too many more broken bones."
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