Tom Cruise accepts honorary Oscar at Governors’ Awards: “Making films is not what I do, it is who I am”
Tom Cruise has accepted an honorary Oscar at the Governors’ Awards, making a poignant speech in which he proclaimed: “Making films is not what I do, it is who I am”.
The actor attended the ceremony, hosted on November 16th in Los Angeles by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, to accept his prize for his contributions to blockbuster cinema over the course of decades.
He was presented the award by Alejandro G Iñárritu, who is set to direct him in an as-yet untitled action movie, set to be released in October next year.
During his speech, Cruise emotionally reflected on the power of the film medium and those who have helped him along his journey, saying (via Variety): “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.”
He added: “No matter where we come from, in that theatre, we laugh together, we feel together, we hope 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.”
Going on to explain how from his earliest memories of cinema, his life was forever changed, Cruise said: “It sparked a hunger for adventure, a hunger for knowledge, a hunger to understand humanity, to create characters, to tell a story, to see the world. It opened my eyes.”
The honorary award marks Cruise’s first official Oscar win, having previously been nominated four times over the span of his career – twice for ‘Best Actor’ for his roles in Born on the Fourth of July and Jerry Maguire, once for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for Magnolia, and once for ‘Best Picture’ for Top Gun: Maverick.
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