The actress had to film an intimate scene with Cruise for the action film shortly after her 2005 wedding to husband Peter White
Michelle Monaghan married her husband Peter White — but spent her honeymoon in the arms of Tom Cruise.
The Made of Honor star, 47, recently recounted a hilarious story about how she had to film an intimate scene with Cruise, 61, for Mission Impossible: III right after her 2005 wedding to White.
The subject came up when Monaghan was asked during a Collider interview which of her acting roles made her the most nervous to film. “Mission: Impossible III, for sure. For sure,” she told the outlet. “It was J.J. Abrams. It was just such a big film.”
To accommodate the production schedule, Monaghan was forced to scrap her honeymoon plans and report to set immediately after getting married. “I remember going to work, and Tom and I had kind of an intimate scene, and of course that was the first scene,” she recalled.
While she was incredibly nervous about shooting the sultry scene with Cruise, her husband was supportive and unbothered by it all, she said.
“[He] was like, ‘Don’t worry, you’re gonna follow his lead. You’re gonna have a great time. It’s going to be wonderful.’ “
When she returned to her hotel room later that day, White was waiting to hear all about it. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, it was amazing. He was so nice. It was great.”
“And [my husband] goes, ‘How cool is it that you were making out with Tom Cruise on our honeymoon?’ Because we’re just such fans,” Monaghan continued with a laugh.
At this point in her story, the actress was interrupted by her The Family Plan costar, Mark Wahlberg, who joked, “What the heck?”
Monaghan explained that she thought her husband’s easy-going reaction to the situation was “sweet” and a “testament to the man that I married, who has just been totally supportive and is excited and jazzed for the opportunities.”
When Wahlberg, 52, asked if White was jealous, she replied, “No, he was just so proud,” recalling how the couple — who went on to welcome two kids together, daughter Willow, 15, and son Tommy, 10 — shared in the excitement of her landing the major movie role.
“I worked hard to get that role, and it was just one of those things. We just got married and really discovered our careers in New York together, and so that was really special,” she explained.
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Back in 2021, Monaghan celebrated the 15th anniversary of Mission Impossible: III, sharing a series of still photos from the action film on Instagram — including one capturing her and Cruise getting ready to lock lips.
“I mean, WOW. 15 years since the release of #MissionImpossible III! 😍🔥 ,” she wrote in her caption. “This franchise brings back so many amazing memories and I’m so grateful to have been along for the ride. Happy anni @tomcruise, forever the Ethan to my Julia.”