Tom Cruise finally claimed an Oscar at age 63, receiving an honorary award at the Academy’s Governors Awards on Sunday night in Los Angeles.
The action star, nominated four times but never a winner, appeared emotional while accepting the lifetime achievement honor. The recognition caps over 40 years of box office dominance for Hollywood’s most bankable star. His commitment to theatrical releases over streaming has made him a champion of traditional moviegoing.
“Making movies is not what I do, it’s who I am,” Cruise told the star-studded audience at the Ray Dolby Ballroom, per the Associated Press.
The actor promised to continue supporting cinema, adding, “Hopefully without too many more broken bones.”
The crowd gave him a two-minute standing ovation.
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu presented Cruise’s award after collaborating with him on an upcoming film set for release in 2026.
“This may be his first Oscar,” Iñárritu said, per AP, “but from what I have seen and experienced, this will not be the last.”
A montage showcased Cruise’s death-defying stunts from 1981’s “Taps” through this year’s “Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning.”
Production designer Wynn Thomas and choreographer Debbie Allen also received honorary Oscars. Country music legend Dolly Parton was awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for her charitable work, but was unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts.
Allen, 75, received her award from Cynthia Erivo for decades of work, including “Fame” and seven Oscar ceremony choreography stints. Looking at her statuette, she joked it felt like she and Oscar “got married. Sorry, Norman!” referring to her husband, Norm Nixon.
Thomas was honored for his visual contributions to films, such as “A Beautiful Mind,” and for his collaborations with Spike Lee.
“My journey to storytelling began as a poor black kid in one of the worst slums in Philadelphia,” Thomas said after accepting from Octavia Spencer, AP reported. “The local gangs looked down on me and called me sissy. But that sissy grew up to work with some great filmmakers.”
Lily Tomlin presented Parton’s humanitarian award, praising her “9 to 5” co-star as “the most authentic person I have ever known.” The song became “an anthem for our times,” Tomlin noted.
Cruise praised each fellow honoree from the stage with characteristic preparation.
Allen returned the gesture, recalling his iconic “Risky Business” scene: “Honey, we loved when you slid out in those tighty-whiteys.”
The untelevised ceremony attracted potential Oscar contenders, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Ariana Grande, and Sydney Sweeney. The gathering suggests that awards season campaigning has quietly begun.