“ Who else is synonymous with military action and an American hoagie ? When we got Tom , I felt like the whole thing would work … ”
If you watched the Olympics closing ceremony on Sunday, you’ll know that the show concluded with a taste of Hollywood.
In anticipation of the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles,Tom Cruisedropped in — literally — to help deliver the Olympic flag from Paris to the US.
In classicTom Cruise style, he began on the roof of the Stade de France, where he flashed a casual look at the camera —and took a selfie — before leaping right into the stadium, where the live closing ceremony was already taking place.
Thank you , Paris ! Now off to LA.pic.twitter.com/MxlAb0hZbT
At this point , the program transitioned into a pre - recorded section tracking Tom ’s stunt - filled journey to LA with the Olympic flag , which involved drive through the street of Paris and jumpstart out of an aircraft — presumably just a casual Sunday for theMission : Impossiblestar .
Arriving in LA, the 62-year-old did his signature movie-star run all the way up to the Hollywood sign, where he got to work giving the legendary landmark an Olympic makeover.
Needless to say, Tom’s cameo was one of the most memorable moments of the ceremony — and certainly did well to get fans excited about welcoming the Summer Games to LA in four years.
Now, having completed the mission, the mastermind behind the segment has lifted the lid on how it all came together over the course of many months.
Speaking withthe Hollywood Reporter, Ben Winston — the creative director and executive producer of the LA handover portion of the closing ceremony — revealed that the idea to get Tom involved came to him very early on in the planning process.
Funnily enough, Ben revealed that the idea to follow Tom’s journey from Paris to LA was actually inspired by a 2009 talk show bitstarring Conan O’Brien.
For most people, pitching such a big idea to a major movie star would be pretty daunting. But, luckily for Ben, he and Tom already had an established relationship. They worked together onvarioussegmentsforThe Late Late Showwith James Corden, which Ben executive produced for the entirety of its run on CBS.
Recalling the details of his pitch to Tom, Ben revealed that he initially suggested that they use a stand-in to jump from the roof of the stadium in Paris. But, as you might have guessed, theTop Gunstar was adamant that he’d do the job himself.
With their star on board, another big hurdle was how they would pre-film the segment months in advance without people catching on about Tom’s involvement in the Olympics. Notably, one of the ways they tried to prevent leaks was by using a plain white flag for the motorcycle portion of the shoot and adding the Olympic rings later.
Despite their best efforts, word eventually got out that Tom would have a starring role in the handover segment, with insiders speaking out about thepre-recorded shoot. Discussing this, Ben said he was “disappointed” by the leaks in the lead-up to the big day.
Well, leaks or no leaks, they certainly didn’t diminish the spectacle. All that’s left to say is bring on LA28!
