Tom Cruise rejected Donald Trump’s offer of Kennedy Center Honor
Hollywood star Tom Cruise reportedly rejected the opportunity to be part of the Kennedy Center Honors list for 2025.
On August 13th, Trump revealed that action star Sylvester Stallone, musician George Strait, British actor and comedian Michael Crawford, singer Gloria Gaynor and hair metal icons Kiss would be inducted later this year.
The annual ceremony traditionally occurs in December in Washington, DC, and usually airs on CBS. However, as of writing, no specific date or broadcaster has been revealed for this year’s event.
Trump is also making himself the star of the show. After he confirmed his plans to be the master of ceremonies, the Kennedy Centre Honours will be hosted by a president for the first time in its history.
Now, according to The Washington Post (per Consequence), Cruise turned down the opportunity because of “scheduling conflicts”.
The Washington Post states their report is “according to several current and former Kennedy Center employees who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss event plans”.
Cruise does have several projects on the horizon, which makes “scheduling conflicts” a reasonable explanation for his refusal.
The Top Gun star tends to keep his political beliefs private. In May, Cruise expertly avoided a question about Trump’s tariff plans for Hollywood while promoting Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, by responding, “We’d rather answer questions about the movie. Thank you.”
Kiss have responded with joy to the news of their inclusion on the honours list. The band’s Gene Simmons proudly told TMZ: “Kiss is the embodiment of the American dream. We are deeply honoured to receive the Kennedy Center Honor.”
Trump previously labelled Kiss “one of the greatest rock bands of all time” and said the retired rockers are “going to do something very special” for the occasion.
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