We’ve all seen behind-the-scenes videos for movies and television shows, but how about a 30 second promo?

Jimmy Kimmel escaped from a burning home with Tom Cruise for the spot, which debuted during Sunday night’s Oscars. He took the bit further by showing his Jimmy Kimmel Live audience a spoof video that features the stars talking about how the spot came to fruition.

The video features the actual promo at the 5:15 mark:

(Source: TVGuide)
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Best ABC promo that aired during Oscars night was Tom Cruise, in a spot for “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” who sent the late-night host into a burning home to rescue a cat that wasn’t there.

At least five suitors want actor to say yes

When Tom Cruise became attached last week to play a Russian spy in the David Cronenberg-directed adaptation of the Robert Ludlum thriller “The Matarese Circle,” the MGM pic became just one of several films vying for his next slot.

With his career now steered by a team headed by CAA’s Kevin Huvane, Cruise has been more proactive and aggressive than in past years about meeting studio execs and showing interest in a flurry of projects.

There are at least five suitors trying to get Cruise to say yes.

The concerted courtship of Cruise comes at a time when studios are thinking long and hard about which actors deserve to be paid superstar gross deals.

After a couple of rough years that threatened to knock him from that payday perch, Cruise has changed things. And execs have said their enthusiasm for the actor returned after “Valkyrie” did better than expected around the world, and that no major star except Will Smith tubthumps a movie as hard as Cruise.

The top three candidates for Cruise’s next slot appear to be:
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here’s a totally cute photo of Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, Suri and yes, even Connor Cruise at Walt Disney World in Florida.
While I do think Suri looks completely adorable in her princess dress.

(source:ivillage)

Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes Won’t Be At Oscars

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes will not be in attendance at the 81st Academy Awards on Sunday, Access Hollywood has learned.

A source tells Access that Tom will be out of town. It’s the second year in a row the star has missed the ceremony – in 2008, he spent the day with his son, Connor, at the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Auto Club 500 racing event.

Though he won’t be attending, Tom has someone to root for on Sunday – “Tropic Thunder” co-star Robert Downey Jr., who is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for the ensemble comedy.

Both Cruise and Downey were nominated for Golden Globes for the film.

(Source: Access Hollywood)

ET has a video of Tom’s day at Daytona 500! Watch Tom drive the pace car and also his “Days of Thunder” race car!

It’s been 18 years since Tom Cruise posed as a racing car driver for Hollywood hit Days Of Thunder.
But the actor had no problems reprising the role to help kickstart pre-race celebrations at the Daytona 500 International Speedway.
But this time, Cruise painted a slightly different picture to the young hotshot he first portrayed, preferring instead to play the family man.

Cruise brought his father-in-law and adopted son Connor along for company as he got behind the wheel of the same vehicle used in the 1990 film.

Sporting a pair of sunglasses and leather jacket, the star appears to have aged well, looking younger than his 46 years.

There was no sign of ex-wife Nicole Kidman though, who he met on the set of the film and subsequently married. Kidman’s current husband however, country music star Keith Urban, attended the event to perform a surprise two-song set for reporters. Urban took brief questions from reporters and laughed awkwardly when asked what his favourite racing film was. “Uhhhhh … Cars?” he stammered, choosing the animated movie over the more obvious Days Of Thunder that featured his wife as Tom’s love interest.

Later, Urban and Cruise both attended the pre-race driver meeting. The two were seated on opposite ends, but Cruise heartily applauded Urban when the singer was introduced.

Cruise appeared in good spirits, despite his new film Valkyries being panned by critics.*

However, he could be set for a comeback as he is reportedly pairing up with Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington to star in The Matarese Circle, a spy thriller directed by David Cronenberg.

(Source: Mail Online)

*Note: Although the story says “Valkyrie was panned by critics”, the opposite is true: Valkyrie received a lot of praise and scored very well at the box office, despite major competition from block busters like “The curious case of Benjamin Button”, “Marley and Me” and others. Click here to read the most important reviews and here to see the box office numbers.

Pics of the whole event will be online soon!!

Daytona Beach, FL (AHN) – The Daytona 500 annually brings its share of celebrities to town and this Sunday will be no different as film star Tom Cruise will be here to drive the Chevrolet Camaro pace car at the start of the race.

Cruise played NASCAR driver Cole Trickle 19 years ago in the movie “Days of Thunder,’ a portion of which was filmed here at Daytona International Speedway.

“It all came together pretty quickly,” said Speedway president Robin Braig. “We’re not really sure how it happened, but we’re pleased that Rick Hendrick got involved, and that Chevy and NASCAR agreed to let him drive the pace car.” (…)

NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick, who 19 years ago supplied the race cars used in the film, had Cruise as a guest in December in New York City at the annual NASCAR awards banquet.

Hendrick will ship two of his “Days of Thunder” cars to Daytona, which will be on display during Sunday’s pre-race hours.

In recent years, the Daytona 500 pace car has been driven by baseball half-of-famer Cal Ripken Jr., talk-show host Jay Leno, and racing legend Junior Johnson.

(Source: All headlines)

Tom Cruise has been working on his Valentine’s Day plans for wife Katie Holmes for quite some time.

The star hinted at the London premiere of Valkyrie — more than three weeks before the holiday — that he already had something sweet in store.
He declared: “I’ve got surprises!”
But he remained tight-lipped on what she’ll be getting from her husband of two years: “I’m not gonna share it with you because that would ruin it.”
This won’t be the first time Cruise has made an effort to surprise his wife.
For her birthday in December, the actor revealed that he arranged that Holmes be presented with a specially made birthday cake as the curtain fell on her Broadway show, All My Sons.
He said at the Valkyrie premiere: “I set up the whole thing. The cast came out with a huge cake. The audience sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to her. It was really nice. You know, I plan it out. I think ahead.”
He added that he had “a lot of surprises for her throughout the day.”
Cruise gushed to the British press that he enjoys “doing romantic things, such as bringing flowers and surprising her with things. I love candlelit evenings with nice music. I feel lucky to have Kate as my wife. She’s an extraordinary woman. She is funny and smart and she likes the same things that I do.”

(source:fashion.ie)

There are big-screen pairings and then there are Big-Screen Pairings. Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington definitely fall into the latter.

The Hollywood heavyweights will join their considerable forces for an action-packed adaptation of The Matarese Circle, a spy-vs.-spy thriller based on the novel by Robert “Bourne Identity” Ludlum.

According to both the Hollywood Reporter and Variety, Cruise is in final negotiations to join Washington in the would-be blockbuster, which David Cronenberg will direct. Should all go according to box-office plan, the film may develop into a franchise.

The story follows Russian spy Vasili Taleniekov (Cruise; let’s hope no accents are required) and American intelligence agent Brandon Scofield (Washington), two mortal enemies who have spent decades attempting to off each other. The distrustful duo are eventually forced to team up after they find themselves deep into the crosshairs of a political conspiracy devised by a shadowy group known as the Matarese.

Washington has been attached to the globe-trotting action flick since last spring, and production is expected to begin later this year.

MGM is looking to release the film sometime in 2010

(source:eonline)

New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) Despite directing actors like Sir Ian McKellen, Kevin Spacey, Hugh Jackman and Brandon Routh in his previous films, Hollywood director Bryan Singer is all praise for superstar Tom Cruise, who stars in his latest film “Valkyrie”.

Cruise stars in the lead as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg in “Valkyrie” that is a historical thriller depicting the July 20, 1944, plot by German army officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

“Until now, I was working only with actors and not stars but with this movie (’Valkyrie’), I got to work with a mega star like Tom Cruise. He is down to earth, gets into the story and doesn’t let you feel uncomfortable at all because of his status or anything. I loved working with him,” Singer told IANS over phone from Seoul, South Korea.

The film has also been in the news across the world for multiple controversies apart from speculations for Cruise’s performance as the Nazi officer.

The director and the actors are on a promotional tour for the assassination thriller across Asia, Europe and America. It is releasing in India Feb 20.

(Source: thaindian)

While searching for videos I also found this older video of the ‘Valkyrie’ press conference in Moscow.
Enjoy!

The Friday, Feb. 6, edition of ESPN2’s “NASCAR Now” will include an interview with actor Tom Cruise, the sports network says.

Scheduled to run at 5 p.m. Eastern time, Cruise discusses his interest in stock car racing and recalls driving at Daytona during filming of the 1990 movie “Days of Thunder.” Cruise played Cole Trickle, a rookie looking for success in NASCAR’s premiere division. Robert Duval was the Trickle team’s crew chief in the film and Randy Quaid played the car owner. Nicole Kidman portrayed a doctor who was Trickle’s love interest.

The plot was loosely based – some fans and critics might say several rounds too loose – on some key NASCAR figures of the time: Cruise as Tim Richmond, Duval as Harry Hyde and Quaid as Rick Hendrick.

Then-NASCAR drivers Greg Sacks, Tommy Ellis, Bobby Hamilton and Hut Stricklin, among others, assisted in filming race scenes, while a number of other drivers, media and racing personalities of the time made appearances.

Cruise lays claim to a lifelong passion for racing and speaks with ESPN2 about racing and movies as the season-opening Daytona 500 nears. Some excerpts:

“You just see our history through time, our love affair with the automobile.

“Having that opportunity to drive those cars on the track, meet those drivers that I got to meet. Making movies, I love it because I get to enter into a world and you meet these people. And the generosity that I’ve been extended by these people – whether it’s NASCAR or “Jerry McGuire” – it’s a great life because I’m interested in life and in engaging in life, and to have those experiences I feel very privileged.”

(Source: ThatsRacin.com, Feb. 05, 2009)

Tom Cruise still feels the need for speed.

The actor, 46, shares his love of NASCAR and racing in a new interview set to air on Feb. 6 on ESPN2.

“For me as a kid growing up, I always wanted to race cars,” says Cruise, who starred in the 1990 racing film Days of Thunder. NASCAR, he says, “is a very unique kind of racing that feels very American.”

Filming Days of Thunder at the Daytona International Speedway was especially thrilling. “My personal Daytona memory is getting up close to 200 m.p.h., personally driving on that track in the car,” he says in the interview, which was filmed in December at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Banquet in New York City. “Having that opportunity to drive those cars on the track, meet those drivers that I got to meet.”

The NASCAR season begins this weekend at Daytona International Speedway.

Check out the video on People.com!

Tom Cruise, is that you? Ab-solutely! The “Valkyrie” star was photographed in Rio de Janerio flashing his pecs and lean abs!

Cruise told our Terri Seymour he has tried different workouts for different films, but he has never resorted to anything “extreme.” Rumor is the 46-year-old actor was inspired by pal David Beckham, and that the L.A. Galaxy star created a diet regimen for his bud.

It’s also rumored Cruise is bulking up for the physically challenging stunts in “Mission: Impossible IV.”

(Source: Extra)

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Tom Cruise may sometimes confuse his countries, but he’s winning fans among Brazil’s press corps.

A news conference to promote his movie “Valkyrie” turned into something of a fan club meeting when a journalist said he promised his niece he would get a photo with Cruise. The actor immediately obliged.

That prompted another journalist to squeeze under a barrier for a photo. Guards stopped other reporters from doing the same.

Cruise says he’s enjoying his five-day Brazil trip, but sometimes stumbled over differences between Latin American nations

He thanked one questioner with the Spanish “gracias” — though Brazilians speak Portuguese. And he said he enjoys the tango — the traditional dance of neighboring Argentina.

(Source: The Associated Press)

MGM/UA’s Valkyrie held on to the mantle of top Hollywood film overseas thanks to an estimated $18.6m haul from approximately 3,900 screens in 26 markets that boosted the running total through Fox International to $38.9m.

The three-day weekend was led by a quartet of number one launches that delivered $2.8m from 400 in Spain, $1.6m from 300 through a non-Fox release in France, $495,000 from 70 in Belgium and $449,000 from 70 in Sweden.

The thriller about a historical plot to assassinate Hitler debuted in second place in Russia on $1.9m from 520 behind local title Samyi Luchshiy Film and, in a non-Fox release, also launched in second place behind local comedy Verdone in Italy, where $1.9m from 250 provided solid assurance of the ongoing appeal of Tom Cruise.

Second weekend holdover highlights came from Germany, where $2.3m from 400 raised the tally to $7.3m, the UK with $1.9m from 455 for $5.9m and South Korea with $1.1m from 360 for $6.3m. Valkyrie ranks second in all three markets and in the case of the UK sits behind chart topper Slumdog Millionaire.

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“Valkyrie,” starring Tom Cruise as a rebellious Nazi officer, emerged at No. 1 on the international circuit for a second consecutive weekend, grossing an estimated $18.6 million from 3,900 screens in 26 markets and raising its overseas cumulative total to $38.9 million.

The MGM/UA production, handled overseas by 20th Century Fox and other local distributors, opened in 15 markets, finishing on top in at least five, including France and Spain.

In Germany, where “Valkyrie” was filmed, its second weekend produced $2.3 million from 400 locations, lifting its market total to $7.3 million, the largest for any overseas territory the film has played.

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More pictures of Tom, Katie & Suri in Rio de Janeiro:

- Rio de Janeiro – January 31st, 2009 – “Leblon Restaurant”
- Rio de Janeiro – February 1st, 2009 – “Angra dos Reis”

A video from Tom leaving the hotel and taking an helicopter to go to Angra dos Reis. Pictures later tonight or tomorrow morning.

Tom, Katie and Suri went to the beach, “Praia da Urca”

Here is a video of Tom leaving the hotel:

Pictures from Tom, Katie and Suri arriving and at the hotel “Copacabana Palace”, on friday, January 30rd, 2009

A little late, but here they come:

Valkyrie – Amsterdan – January 22nd, 2009
Valkyrie – Madrid Photocall – January 27th, 2009
Valkyrie – Madrid – January 26th, 2009
Valkyrie – Moscow Photocall – January 26th, 2009
Valkyrie – Moscow – January 26th, 2009
Valkyrie – Rome Photocall – January 28th, 2009
Valkyrie – Rome – January 28th, 2009