The Oscar-nominated actor opened up to GQ about the action star’s advice after the first installment of the science fiction franchise: “The email was really like a war cry”
Timothée Chalamet is grateful for Tom Cruise‘s guidance and support.
The Oscar-nominated actor, 27, opened up to GQ magazine on Tuesday about the “wonderfully inspiring email” he received from the Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One star after wrapping up the first installment of Dune.
“After I met Tom Cruise, right after finishing the first Dune, he sent me the most wonderfully inspiring email,” Chalamet told the outlet, which included a list of trainers he could contact for motorcycle and helicopter stunts. “He basically said, in Old Hollywood, you would be getting dance training and fight training, and nobody is going to hold you to that standard today. So it’s up to you. The email was really like a war cry.”
Chalamet said he watched Top Gun: Maverick eight times while shooting Dune: Part Two, renting a cinema in Budapest for the cast and crew at 2 dollars a seat.
“Top Gun was just hugely inspiring to me last summer when we were making Dune,” he told the outlet. “Some of the crew were kind of scoffing at going, but I just thought it was one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen.”
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According to Variety, Top Gun: Maverick raked in $124 million at the US box office upon its release, setting a record for Cruise’s opening weekend. The movie star also achieved his first film launch above $100 million.
At the Cannes Film Festival in 2022, the 61-year-old actor said he “never” considered doing a streaming release for the Top Gun sequel, which was delayed due to the pandemic.
“That was never going to happen. Ever,” said Cruise at the time. “I make movies for the big screen.”
“I’m gonna take this all in; I’m never gonna forget this evening and I feel very grateful and very blessed,” he told the audience before the film’s screening at the Cannes premiere. “Thank you all for being here. Thank you for this time. We’re here for you — I make these movies for all of you, and I feel very blessed to be able to do what I do.”