Show me the money! Down-and-out star bounces back in new role as studio boss

Cruise to take control of legendary United Artists. Comeback for actor who's career was written off

The Guardian/November 3, 2006
By Dan Glaister

In a move that had Hollywood insiders scratching their heads in bemusement, it was announced yesterday that the actor Tom Cruise is to take over the dormant United Artists film studio.

United Artists was started in 1919 by four of the biggest figures in film: Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and DW Griffith. As the name suggests, it was an attempt to wrest creative control of film-making from the financiers and deliver it to the artists themselves.

Now Cruise and his producing partner Paula Wagner have been put in charge of the studio by its owners, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which is owned by Sony. Wagner will serve as chief executive while Cruise will produce and star in the studio's films.

"Tom and Paula are the modern versions of the iconic founders of United Artists," MGM chairman, Harry Sloan, said in a statement. "Our partnership with them reaffirms our commitment to providing creative talent with a comfortable home at United Artists. [It] is once again the haven for independent film-makers."

The announcement represents a remarkable turnaround for Cruise, who months ago had been dismissed as a spent force in Hollywood following controversy surrounding his relationship with the actor Katie Holmes, his role as a prominent Scientologist and the disappointing box office performance of several of his recent films, including Mission: Impossible 3 and The War of the Worlds.

In a statement, Cruise said: "Paula and I are very respectful of the rich history and tradition of United Artists. And we welcome the opportunity to contribute to that legacy by providing a wide range of releases that appeal to all audiences. It's our desire to create an environment where film-makers can thrive and see their visions realised."

Cruise last worked with United Artists on the 1988 hit Rain Man, which won an Oscar for best picture. The deal between Cruise/Wagner Productions, which describes the two as having "substantial ownership" in United Artists, will give them control over production, from development to the "greenlighting" of films. United Artists plans to begin by making four films a year.

The announcement by MGM made a point of saying that the move was designed to give control of the production process to what it described as creative talent. The arrangement, a statement said, "will return the studio to its former roots by recognising what made UA great in the first place - studio management by creative talent who can best encourage and support other creative talent. The talent-friendly studio will be reborn as a place where producers, writers, directors and actors can thrive in a creative environment, developing and producing entertaining film projects. The plan would allow artists throughout the community to pursue their creative visions outside of the traditional studio system".

Many will take the bold declaration of artistic freedom with a fair dose of cynicism. When United Artists was formed, a rival studio head, Richard Rowland of Metro Pictures, declared: "The lunatics are taking over the asylum." The collaboration between the stars of the day became mired in confusion and disagreement. By the 1960s, UA, long bought from the original quartet, found a niche by releasing several successful franchises, including the Bond and Pink Panther films and Sergio Leone's spaghetti westerns.

But United Artists was finally undone by the excesses of "creative talent". The studio bankrolled Michael Cimino's 1980 film Heaven's Gate, a colossal commercial flop, although it subsequently enjoyed a critical renaissance.

United Artists has had a range of owners, from the French bank Credit Lyonnais to the business mogul Kirk Kekorian. In recent years it has acted as a speciality studio, releasing Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine and Hotel Rwanda.

The announcement of a new artistic guard at United Artists comes a little more than two months after Cruise's career appeared to be in tatters. In August the actor parted ways with Paramount Pictures after 14 years. The studio's boss cited Cruise's erratic "personal conduct", including the infamous sofa-bouncing appearance on Oprah Winfrey's television programme to tell the world that he was in love with Holmes.

The controversy and subterfuge surrounding their relationship and the subsequent birth of their daughter led to allegations that Cruise was an ailing force in Hollywood and had become too separated from reality. His role as a prominent Scientologist also harmed his commercial relationships and possibly his box office appeal.

Several in the industry determined that Cruise had damaged the commercial prospects for Mission: Impossible 3 and his other films by insisting on promoting his relationship and Scientology when he was supposed to be selling movies. Steven Spielberg is understood to have been annoyed by Cruise's promotion of Scientology during the publicity tour for War of the Worlds. Many have been angered by Cruise's attacks on the use of prescription drugs such as Ritalin to address hyperactivity among children, a practice opposed by Scientology.

Cruise also attracted criticism for suggesting that the actor Brooke Shields should not have taken antidepressants for her postpartum depression. He recommended vitamins and exercise. Shields responded that he "should stick to saving the world from aliens".

Undies to action hero

Cruise's career took off the moment he slid across the floor in his underwear lip-synching to Bob Seger's Old Time Rock and Roll in Risky Business. It was 1983, his first leading role, and it propelled him into film history as arguably the biggest movie star of his generation.

Three years on and he was Maverick in Top Gun, which secured his place in the masculine psyche and the feminine heart. But popularity was not enough and he pined for industry recognition. He went on to star in and produce the first Mission:Impossible film which grossed $456m worldwide, but an Oscar has always eluded him.

Things began to unravel when Cruise's nine-year love affair with Nicole Kidman came to an end. He began a shortlived relationship with Penélope Cruz, before becoming engaged to Katie Holmes in April 2005.

Cruise began appearing out of control in public and his increasingly odd behaviour, coupled with his irate spouting of beliefs on Scientology caused a serious blow to his credibility.