Tom Cruise received an honorary Oscar. Producer Alejandro González Iñárritu presented the award to him at the 16th Governors Awards ceremony in California last Sunday night. This is one of Tom Cruise’s biggest achievements in his 40-year career. Tom has been nominated 4 times but has never won a competitive Oscar. Choreographer and actress Debbie Allen and production designer Wynn Thomas also received the honor this year. Apart from this, musician and human rights activist Dolly Parton received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. However, he could not attend the event due to health reasons.
Tom Cruise talks about how he has developed a deep connection with audiences around the world after accepting an Oscar. The 63-year-old star became emotional at one stage. Tom Cruise thanked those who worked tirelessly in front of and behind the screen to make the movie.
He said, ‘Cinema has taken me around the world. It taught me to respect different cultures and differences. No matter where we come from, we laugh, cry, and hope together inside the theatre. And that is the strength of the movie. That’s why it’s so important to me. Making movies is not just my profession, it is my identity.
Then Tom Cruise returned to his childhood. He spoke about how cinema surprised him at a very young age and gave him fresh food for thought. He said, ‘I fell in love with cinema at a very young age. When the projector’s light exploded onto the screen in the dark, it felt like another vast world was opening beyond the familiar one. Different culture, life, nature – everything was eye-opening. That light awakens in me curiosity, hunger for adventure, interest in learning, the urge to understand humanity, and the desire to tell stories.’ Finally, he added, ‘The line of light seen on the screen in my childhood showed me that you can go beyond your own boundaries. I have been following that light ever since.’
The red carpet at the Governors Awards was crowded with big stars. Appeared Jennifer Lawrence, Michael B. Jordan, Sydney Sweeney, Leonardo DiCaprio, Dwayne Johnson, Emma Stone – including many. Tom Cruise is currently shooting an untitled movie with Alejandro González Iñárritu.
