Stars Who Have Publicly Slammed Tom Cruise

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Tom Cruise is synonymous with Hollywood, for better or worse. When he's not starring in big action-adventure gems such as the "Mission Impossible" series or "Top Gun," he's playing a variety of different characters, from a vampire to a sports agent to a musician named Stacee Jaxx. But after spending decades in the film industry, Cruise has rubbed plenty of people the wrong way, especially when he became heavily involved with Scientology.

Though he's a box office success, his personal life is less than picturesque. He's a twice-divorced father of three, and has been estranged from his youngest child, Suri Cruise, who he shares with Katie Holmes, since 2012. When asked by a reporter about what his perfect Father's Day would look like, he gave the strangest non-answer: "Hey, just having fun, man. Making movies, big adventure, having a great time," he said (via YouTube). While Cruise may have fun making movies, many of his co-stars and fellow actors didn't feel the same way when they were doing it with him.

Back in 1994, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise brought Anne Rice's gothic novel to life with "Interview with the Vampire." The two heartthrobs seemed to have had a nice time working together, based on their chats with Entertainment Tonight at the time, but everything may not have been as rosy between them as they seemed. In an interview with Premiere, Pitt shared (via Gold Derby), "You gotta understand, Tom and I are ... we walk in different directions. He's North Pole. I'm South."

The father of six explained how Cruise may hit you with a handshake while he may bump you — which is pretty much what happened at the premiere of Pitt's film, "F1: The Movie." Cruise crashed the event and offered a handshake while Pitt went in for a hug. It was an awkward exchange, with many people feeling like Cruise upstaged Pitt at his own premiere.

Pitt also told Premiere, "I always thought there was this underlying competition that got in the way of any real conversation. It wasn't nasty by any means, not at all. But it was just there and it bugged me a bit." While the duo had great chemistry on screen, it didn't stick when the cameras stopped rolling. A source told Closer that "it's no secret they can't stand each other," citing that there's a reason Pitt and Cruise haven't worked together since the '90s.

Lisa Marie Presley made a name for herself the day she was born as the only child of Elvis Presley. But later in life, she made headlines for other reasons, namely relating to her involvement with Scientology. Though she did eventually leave the organization, it wasn't before she met higher-up member Tom Cruise — who she did not like whatsoever. Lisa Marie made her feelings about Cruise crystal clear, telling The Underground Bunker, "I f***ing hate Tom. I met him 20 years ago. I said I never want to be in a room with him again." Though Lisa Marie didn't elaborate in the interview about why she despised Cruise, it was obvious her vitriol was still raw and passionate.

There was no love lost between Lisa Marie and Scientology when she finally left after nearly four decades. She joined at 9 years old, along with her mother, Priscilla Presley, after her father died — Elvis had turned down the church's requests to join. "At 25, after I got the inheritance, they started grooming me to be this person who would go out and get everyone else in," Lisa Marie told The Underground Bunker. The organization really wanted Michael Jackson to join, who Lisa Marie was briefly married to from 1994-1996. She credited Scientology for breaking up her marriage.

Leah Remini was a major celebrity in Scientology for more than three decades until she left the organization in 2013. "There are good days and bad days, but in general, it's been worth it," she told Us Weekly in 2025 about exiting the church she'd known since she was 13. "My heart has opened up so much." Since she spent so much time as a Scientologist, she had strong ties with Tom Cruise, who she has since publicly spoken about despising. In 2022, Remini tweeted that Cruise knew all about the abuse allegations taking place within the church, yet he did nothing. "Tom Cruise knows exactly what goes on in Scientology," she posted on X. "Don't let the movie star charm fool you."

Moreover, Remini also said how Cruise and Katie Holmes had ditched daughter Suri before their wedding day. The "King of Queens" star documented the moment in her book, "Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology." Suri was reportedly bawling her eyes out, but her parents couldn't be bothered to care (via New York Daily News).

Cruise apparently doesn't like Remini, either. She went on "Larry King Now" in 2016 and when host Larry King asked what Cruise would tell her about her condemnation of Scientology, her answer was somewhat surprising. "He wouldn't say anything to me, because he thinks I'm the devil." She elaborated, explaining how Scientologists are taught that people who criticize the church, like Remini, are actually evil and want to hurt them.

Tom Cruise isn't the only male Hollywood celeb who is big in the church. John Travolta joined Scientology in 1975 when he was 21 — for reference, "Grease" came out in 1978, which means greaser Danny Zuko was a Scientologist. Cruise reportedly didn't join the group until 1986, so Travolta was the big man on campus for a little over a decade before the "Top Gun" star enlisted. Unsurprisingly, that ultimately caused some tension between the two mega stars.

Brendan Tighe, who defected from Scientology, spilled the tea on the celebs' relationship within the church. "Cruise is the only celeb with a direct line to [David] Miscavige [leader of Scientology]. Travolta and Kirstie [Alley] don't have that," Tighe told Daily Mail. "Travolta doesn't get anything free, no one is giving him absurd gifts like an airplane hangar, custom-made bikes, or over-the-top favors." Because Travolta seemed pushed aside by Miscavige to make room for Cruise, Tighe claimed everyone knew the two Hollywood stars didn't like each other. Moreover, Cruise received the Freedom Medal of Valor, a major honor in Scientology, in 2008, and Tighe said Travolta was unbelievably envious.

Richard Harris, aka the OG Albus Dumbledore in the first two "Harry Potter" films, was not a fan of Tom Cruise. In 2001, Harris made it clear he didn't like the modern-day stars, claiming they were spoiled with all their fancy private jets and multiple staff members on-call. He was quoted in Showbiz Ireland as saying, "Tom Cruise is a midget, and he has eight bodyguards, all [6 feet, 10 inches], which makes him even more diminutive. It's an absolute joke. Actors are unimportant" (via ABC News). Cruise is reportedly 5 feet, 7 inches tall. Healthline reports that the average height for men in the U.S. is 5 feet, 9 inches, so Cruise is only slightly below average.

Harris also considered Cruise pretentious, noting how at a movie premiere, Harris would be drinking vodka while Cruise would have Evian water (via YouTube). Both actors have been major stars, but clearly Harris disagreed with the way Cruise carried his fame.