tom cruise interview with graham norton

The Graham Norton Show

• TV chat show
• BBC One / BBC Two
• 2007 - 2024
• 494 episodes (31 series)

Comic chat show presented by Graham Norton . The biggest names in showbiz join the host on his sofa.

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Series 28, episode 25 - tom cruise, jennifer connelly, miles teller, felicity jones, wunmi mosaku, john bishop, years & years.

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Tom Cruise joins Graham in the studio - for the first time outside his film bubble - to chat about his new film Top Gun: Maverick .

Asked why after 35 years he is reprising the role of Maverick, he says, "For years the studios and audiences wanted me to do it and then Jerry Bruckheimer wanted to do it, so we talked and came up with some good ideas. It was just that moment when I thought, 'if I'm going to do this, now's the time.'"

Talking about not using a green screen and doing all his own stunts, he says, "I am a very physical actor and I love doing them. I study and train and take a lot of time figuring it all out. I have broken a lot of bones! The first time of any stunt is nerve wracking but it also exhilarating. I have been told a few times during shooting a stunt to stop smiling!"

Asked what he has been doing during lockdown, he says, "Being here is the first time I have been out of the film bubble - this is just incredible.

"From the moment we were in lockdown I have been working seven days a week almost around the clock because we were finishing Top Gun and prepping Mission Impossible . They shut down Mission and said we wouldn't film for another year, so I had to figure it out. We worked with governments, doctors and our crew to keep everyone working - I haven't had that banana bread moment yet!"

Tom's Top Gun co-stars Jennifer Connelly and Miles Teller join Graham for a chat from New York and LA respectively.

Jennifer, talking about working with Tom, and asked if it was a dream or if there was added pressure, says, "Both actually. It was extraordinary and such a privilege. I had such a great time and did things I have never done before. But I wanted to get everything right - I didn't want to be that person that dropped the ball.

"I was actually afraid to tell Tom at the time that I had only just recently talked myself out of a crippling fear of flying. When I signed on for the movie there was no flying for my character. I then found myself taxiing on a runway in a tiny plane with Tom and he said, 'Have you been a plane like this before? Have you ever done any aerobatic flying before? I started to get very nervous when he said, 'It will be very graceful and very elegant,' and that's how I found out I would be up in the P51 with Tom flying it!"

Miles, who wasn't born when the first Top Gun film came out, jokes, "I told Tom he had been waiting my entire life to work with me!"

Talking about his character - Goose's son - he says, "The storyline taking place 35 years after last film is really wonderful because my character is a man now and there is a lot of history with Maverick. The film is phenomenal."

Asked if he knew there would be no green screen and that he would be doing his own stunts, Miles teases Tom and says, "I think that was in the fine print somewhere." Adding, "I did know, but underestimated the training that was needed to withstand the g-force. It is no joke to get in those jets. It was intense. You don't need green screen when you've got Tom - it was a real pleasure working with him."

Felicity Jones , talking about her character in the new romantic drama The Last Letter From Your Lover , says, "I played her as though she has a permanent hangover, she's drinking too much, and she's lost a bit of hope and perspective. It's a bit like living through COVID times."

Asked about being a producer on the film, she says, "You get to a point when It's so nice to be involved as early on as possible and have a little more input. Traditionally, as an actor you come in at the last minute and it's much nicer to have bit more of a say in what you are making."

Talking about what she did during lockdown, she says, "I made banana bread three times and burnt it each time." Adding, "I had a baby in the first one. It seems ages ago now in the really scary lockdown when we were all advised to wash our groceries and we didn't know what was going to happen. It was pretty intense, but having kids is intense anyway. The pandemic just added a little extra."

Wunmi Mosaku joins Graham from LA to chat about her BAFTA-nominated role in horror thriller His House .

Asked if she likes horror TV and movies, she says, "I don't like being scared just for the sake of it. I don't get it and it's not my cup of tea. I don't know why I find myself in them. I much prefer love stories and musicals. I did forget it was a horror because there is so much heart and humanity in it."

Talking about the BAFTA awards ceremony, she says, "I won't be going, it will be by Zoom, which I don't mind. I'm not a fan of high heels so it's great that I can just be glammed up from the waist up in my slippers. I love it!"

Asked about her upcoming role in Marvel's Loki , she says, "I show up at the beginning of the series, and I don't think I can tell you who I play. Actually, I don't think I can tell you anything! You know what it is like with Marvel. I am terrified!"

John Bishop , talking about his upcoming tour Right Here, Right Now , he says, "It's the tour I was doing it before lockdown. We've moved everything to September to allow time for people to be allowed back in. What was meant to happen was me going to the States, Scandinavia, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Now, I think I might get to Scotland!"

Asked about his role in Doctor Who , he says, "That was my lockdown experience. I am the new companion to the Doctor. I'm allowed to say that, but that's about it!"

Years & Years performs Starstruck live in the studio, before Oli Alexander joins Graham for a chat. Confirming that Years & Years is now just him, Oli says, "Nothing bad happened. We just decided to go our separate ways. It surprised some people, but for us it was a long time coming."

Talking about the phenomenal success of It's A Sin , he says, "It's amazing and I am so blown away. I had no idea how the audience was going to respond to such a sensitive topic. I loved doing it so much and I am so overwhelmed by the reaction and the conversations it has started."

Asked if will be doing more acting, he says, "It's music for the time being and there will be an album sometime this year. I've written a lot of songs."

The episode was originally scheduled to air at 10:45pm on Friday 9th April, but was postponed due to the death of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip.

Broadcast details

Cast & crew, paul newman's valuable acting lesson to tom cruise.

Tom Cruise on the valuable acting lesson he learnt from the late Paul Newman .

Featuring: Graham Norton & Tom Cruise .

Tom Cruise's insane training for Top Gun

Tom Cruise on training for the first Top Gun .

John Bishop beat Tom Cruise's Top Gear speed

John Bishop set a record on Top Gear .

Featuring: Graham Norton , John Bishop & Tom Cruise .

John Bishop broke Doctor Who's cardinal rule

John Bishop reveals that his new Doctor Who character is - spoiler alert - from Liverpool.

Featuring: Graham Norton & John Bishop .

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Tom Cruise’s Top 5 Memorable Moments on The Graham Norton Show

Posted by Joan Luis-Rita | May 25, 2022 | 0

It’s no secret that Tom Cruise is a Hollywood legend. Over the years, he has starred in countless blockbuster films and has become a household name. But it’s not just his movies that have made him a fan favorite. Tom Cruise ‘s appearances on talk shows, specifically The Graham Norton Show , have provided us with some truly memorable moments.

During one of his appearances on The Graham Norton Show , Tom was asked about the moment fame hit him. He shared that after films like Risky Business and Top Gun, his life changed drastically. He recalled the feeling of realizing that he could no longer go out and meet friends without being recognized. It was a turning point in his career that marked the beginning of his journey as a Hollywood superstar.

Another interesting tidbit that came to light during the interview was the interaction Tom has with his fans. With such an extensive filmography, it’s no surprise that people want to hear him say iconic lines from his movies. From “You complete me” in Jerry Maguire to “Help me, help you” in Jerry Maguire, fans often shout out catchphrases, leaving Tom amused and sometimes even a little startled.

Tom has never been one to shy away from doing his own stunts, and he spoke about this on the show. He shared his experiences of filming the Mission Impossible series and the extensive training he underwent to pull off some jaw-dropping stunts. He even revealed that during the filming of a scene underwater, he had to train himself to hold his breath for a remarkable 6 and a half minutes. Now that’s commitment!

But it’s not just the action-packed stunts that make Tom Cruise ‘s moments on The Graham Norton Show memorable. He also showcased his fun and light-hearted side. During one episode, he engaged in a hilarious chat with fellow guest Jude Law about their experiences filming dangerous stunts. They bantered back and forth, with Tom sharing that he had gotten his helicopter license for a sequence in a film. Jude, on the other hand, humorously pointed out that he hadn’t flown helicopters without a license previously.

One of the standout moments from Tom’s appearances on the show was when he volunteered members of the audience to reenact his famous running-from-an-explosion scenes. The lucky volunteers were instructed to run towards a green screen while imitating the fear and determination seen in Tom’s iconic action sequences. The resulting footage was both entertaining and exhilarating.

Tom Cruise ‘s moments on The Graham Norton Show are always filled with excitement, laughter, and an appreciation for his talent and dedication. Whether it’s discussing his experiences in the film industry or engaging in playful banter with other guests, Tom always brings his A-game and leaves viewers entertained.

So, the next time you tune in to The Graham Norton Show and spot Tom Cruise as a guest, get ready for an unforgettable interview filled with hilarious anecdotes, impressive stunts, and glimpses into the life of a Hollywood icon.

About The Author

Joan Luis-Rita

Based in Madrid, I'm an up-and-coming entertainment journalist with a fresh lens on the world of cinema. Fresh out of university and after a year of exploring the globe, I'm blending my passions for movies, writing, and tech to bring you insightful commentary. Ready to dive into the latest in film and tech with me? 🎬📝🔧

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From hanging from the wing of a plane (during takeoff!) to scaling the Burj Khalifa in Dubai to holding his breath underwater for over six minutes, Tom Cruise is not one to shy away from stunts that others in his profession wouldn’t dream of tackling. In a recent interview on  The Graham Norton Show , the actor revealed that he's taken quite a few hits and kept on ticking, even through several broken bones.

However, Cruise explained that he enjoys the adrenaline rush, sharing, "I am a very physical actor and I love doing them. I study and train and take a lot of time figuring it all out. I have broken a lot of bones!" Three years ago, coincidentally, he made an appearance on the same show (alongside fellow  Mission: Impossible cast members  Rebecca Ferguson ,  Henry Cavill and  Simon Pegg ) to reveal footage of breaking his ankle very visibly while performing a stunt on the set of 2018's  Mission: Impossible – Fallout  — an injury that was actually kept in the finished film.

RELATED: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Pushed Back to November; ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ Delayed to 2022

Though Cruise has shattered bones all in the name of cinema, his passion for stunt work has not diminished one bit. In fact, he has such a good time filming such superhuman feats that he sometimes can’t stop a big smile from coming across his face. It appears that even Cruise must be reminded to maintain a fear-struck expression when hanging onto a building thousands of feet in the air. As Cruise shared with host Graham Norton , “The first time of any stunt is nerve-wracking, but it’s also exhilarating. I have been told a few times during shooting a stunt to stop smiling.”

Cruise is now approaching 60, and he is showing no signs of taking it easy in the action department. As of now, Cruise’s upcoming films Top Gun and Mission: Impossible 7 have been delayed until November 19 and May 22, 2022, respectively. Meanwhile, Mission: Impossible 8 has been pushed back to July 7, 2023. Thus, viewers will have to wait a little longer to see what the adrenaline junkie has planned. What’s next, almost getting decapitated? Wait, that happened in The Last Samurai .

KEEP READING: ‘Mission: Impossible 7’: Christopher McQuarrie Shares First Look at Kittridge’s Return to the Franchise

• Mission: Impossible

• Cast & crew

Tom Cruise/Jennifer Connelly/Miles Teller/Felicity Jones/Wunmi Mosaku/John Bishop/Years & Years

• Episode aired Apr 16, 2021

Joining Graham tonight: Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise, reprising one of his greatest roles in Top Gun: Maverick (2022); his Top Gun co-stars, Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly and Whiplash (20... Read all Joining Graham tonight: Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise, reprising one of his greatest roles in Top Gun: Maverick (2022); his Top Gun co-stars, Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly and Whiplash (2014) star Miles Teller; Oscar-nominated Brit Felicity Jones, talking about her romantic dra... Read all Joining Graham tonight: Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise, reprising one of his greatest roles in Top Gun: Maverick (2022); his Top Gun co-stars, Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly and Whiplash (2014) star Miles Teller; Oscar-nominated Brit Felicity Jones, talking about her romantic drama The Last Letter from Your Lover (2021); Wunmi Mosaku, Bafta-nominated for her role in h... Read all

• Graham Norton
• Jennifer Connelly

• Self - Host

• Self - Guest

• Self - Musical Guest

• (as Years & Years)
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia With this episode, the show reverted to its usual format of Graham introducing and bringing onstage the guests one by one, instead of simply opening with everyone already seated. However, there was still no studio audience.
• Connections Features His House (2020)

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• April 16, 2021 (United States)
• United Kingdom
• The London Studios, Upper Ground, South Bank, Lambeth, London, England, UK (Studio)
• So Television
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

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• Runtime 50 minutes

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Tom Cruise Might Be Great At Stunts, But He Didn't Read The Room Well With Graham Norton

Tom Cruise has mellowed in his interviews over the years. But when it came to being on 'The Graham Norton Show,' Cruise could have done better.

• Tom Cruise, known for his commitment to doing his own stunts, doesn't enjoy repeating catchphrases from his movies outside of the set.
• Cruise is not particularly comfortable interacting with audience members during talk show segments, even when it involves recreating stunt scenes.
• Cruise refused to give away details about a stunt scene he performed in "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," highlighting his unwillingness to discuss certain topics.

It has been said that Tom Cruise may be the "last great movie star." This is because, in a world of CGI and stunt actors, Cruise refuses to let anyone do the work he is paid to do on a film. As such, Cruise goes above and beyond to learn how to ride motorcycles, fly helicopters, hold his breath for ungodly minutes at a time, and run away from explosions all in the name of getting the shot for the film. Cruise truly has no equal when it comes to his combination of acting ability and stunt work, going so far as to fire stunt coordinators who do not allow Cruise to do the stunts he wants to do , in the arena of acting today.

While he is an A-list actor and can put many stuntpeople to shame, those professional qualities do not translate to the ability to be personable on talk shows. Most will remember the interaction between Cruise and Matt Lauer on Today years ago . Or, perhaps, the jumping on the couch incident that was over the top on Oprah. There are other times though when Cruise is charismatic with talk show hosts. More often than not, this is because they stick to speaking only of the film being worked on and nothing more.

RELATED: The Uncredited Role That Put Tom Cruise Back On The Map

One talk show that Cruise has become a regular on is The Graham Norton Show. Over the years, the Top Gun: Maverick star and Norton have built up a rapport. However, this rapport does not always mean that the episode will go off without a hitch, clearly showing that Cruise may be great at stunts, but he does not always read the room well with Norton.

Tom Cruise Did Not Want To Amuse The Crowd With Catchphrases

Cruise has been in 48 movies over the course of his career. He could have been in more but for distrust in directors . Many of these films have gained cult status as a result of the classic lines Cruise says in them.

Further still, the lines have become part of popular culture as well. But that does not mean that the Mission: Impossible star has any desire to repeat those lines outside of the movie set, as proven by his interaction with Norton during an appearance on the talk show.

"Do people want you to do lines from movies?" Norton asks. "Do they do catchphrases? Is there any particular catchphrase they always want to hear?"

"Well, there's different ones from different films," Cruise answers. "There's sometimes they'll ask or, they'll actually kind of shout it at me sometimes."

Norton asks, "Is there one that's at the top of the list?"

"There's not like one, no," Cruise states.

It became clear that if Cruise was not going to give catchphrases, Norton was going to have to spell out that that was what he was looking for Cruise to do.

"Basically, I'm asking you to do some," Norton says. "Ok, ok, ok," Cruise answers.

"Amuse us with some catchphrases," Norton says with a laugh. "I'm a little slow but I'll catch on," Cruise replies, laughing.

RELATED: Tom Cruise's Security Team Isn't Thrilled When The Actor Decides To Take Public Transportation

The Jack Reacher star then begins to say particular catchphrases from his movies, such as, "You complete me." "You had me at hello," "Help me, help you," "I want the truth," and "I feel the need for speed."

However, when he is saying these lines, none of which came from Risky Business, a film that almost killed Cruise's career before it was released , it is not with any energy or gusto.

It is clear that he wants this part of the talk show to end, which it does shortly thereafter. But with The Graham Norton Show known for its interaction with the audience, that is not a portion of the show that Cruise really enjoys either.

Interacting With Audience Members To Recreate Scenes Was Not Tom Cruise's Strong Suit

Cruise is known for being gracious with his fans in public when it comes to taking photos or signing autographs. That does not mean that he is necessarily comfortable when interacting with fans when it comes to activities outside this though, as seen when Norton had audience members recreate stunt scenes Cruise has done with explosives in some of his action films.

Norton explains to Cruise that audience members are going to run a short distance and jump, landing on mats. With a green screen behind them, there will be an appearance of an explosion that it looks like they are running from.

"What's the best way to get height?" Norton asks Cruise. "Are they going to land on the mats?" Cruise asks. Norton replies, "Yeah. That's the idea."

"First of all, watch your ankle on the mat," Cruise says with a laugh. When the audience members volunteered to do the stunt, Cruise was asked what type of facial expressions should be done.

"Just do whatever feels natural," Cruise explained. "The important thing is to not get blown up."

RELATED: Brad Pitt Had This To Say About Tom Cruise's Penchant For Dangerous Stunts

While Cruise did speak to the audience members with these tips, he did not leave the area in front of his chair. He did not head to the area where the fans were to get involved with the silly portion of the show like some other celebrities may have.

One of which, was Simon Pegg who was on the show as well, who appeared to have more interaction with the audience members than Cruise did.

Fortunately, the way Cruise interacted with fans did not appear to offend anyone who participated. But when it came to giving away details of how a stunt was done, Cruise was clear that he was not going to give his secrets away no matter how many different ways Norton asked.

Tom Cruise Refused To Give Away Details Of A Stunt Scene

Norton had stills of stunts displayed on a large monitor behind him that Cruise performed on Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Two of those stills were of a stunt in a helicopter, of which Cruise was piloting.

When asked about the stunt, a topic that Cruise generally loves to talk about, Nortion simply asked whether the pictures were in order. But instead of answering the simple question, the Days of Thunder star refused.

"We've got some pictures here... Is that the end of the sequence or the beginning?" Norton asked. "I feel like we've got them the wrong way around."

"It's... I can't tell you that right now," Cruise stated.

"That must be after this next bit because in this next picture, you're on the outside," Norton pressed. "So someone must be flying the helicopter. Please tell me you don't get out of the helicopter when it's going."

While Cruise had a smile on his face, he would not reveal anything about the stunt. As such, Norton was forced to help others on the couch, which included Pegg and Henry Cavill , to help explain their portion of the stunt instead.

Over the years, Cruise has learned to interact better with talk show hosts to promote his movies. But, there are certain topics that Cruise still is not open to talking about or feels comfortable with, which was highlighted on The Graham Norton Show.

Graham Norton Gets Real About The More Competitive A-Listers He's Had On His Famous Sofa

Entertainment Editor

Graham Norton has revealed the secret to getting so many A-listers to fess up to embarrassing stories on his talk show – and it’s actually got nothing to do with his interview technique.

On Thursday, Graham was a guest on Seth Meyers ’ US talk show, where the Irish host was asked about his own show’s unique approach to interviewing multiple star guests at a time.

Asked whether he gets “nervous about that part of it”, Graham claimed this was actually added a competitive element to his interviews, which helped him get more alarming stories from the celebs on the couch.

“I think what’s good about actors is sometimes they don’t care about the audience, but they do care about each other,” he explained.

“So if an actor tells a funny story, you can see someone seething. Kind of like, ‘I have a funny story! I shit myself!’. And so, the stakes get higher and higher. And sometimes we do get terrible stories – kind of like, ‘don’t tell that on television’.”

In fact, Graham had one such incident just a few months ago, when Kate Winslet spilled about a moment she feared she’d “totally shit myself” on stage during the early years of her career.

“When I think of famous people and the most embarrassing story they’ve told on a chat show, it’s always on your show,” Seth said.

“But I think that is because of the other guests,” Graham then insisted. “They’re trying to outdo each other.

“And also, it is funny to say something really rude in front of Dame Judi Dench or something.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Graham shared that after a while, he stopped becoming star-struck by his guests – with one notable exception.

“Once they come through the door and they sit down, pretty quickly, it’s just a man in a jacket or some woman in a frock and that’s the end of it,” Graham explained. “[But] Tom Cruise, I never get past the fact that he’s Tom Cruise. He remains Tom Cruise throughout the interview.

“And an audience likes that, I enjoy that, and also the other guests, you can tell, they’re a bit starry about him. And there aren’t many people like that, that old ‘star system’ has kind of gone.”

Over the years, Graham has lifted the lid on what goes into making his talk show on a number of occasions – and made no secret of the fact that he was not a big fan of its lockdown incarnation.

He also claimed in October 2020 that he has a tendency to zone out during stars’ less exciting anecdotes, admitting: “You zone back in and they’re still talking and you think: ‘I wonder if I’ve missed anything?’ But, you probably haven’t.

“That’s the trick. It’s just yakkety yak. If I’m on it, I’m listening. I’m still bored.”

More In Entertainment

15 biggest talk-show clashes: ‘I’m not your slave and you’re not my master’

W e can’t all get along as well as Hollywood star Ryan Gosling and British comedian Greg Davies did on The Graham Norton Show . (If you haven’t seen the footage of Gosling getting the giggles so badly he struggled to breathe during one of Davies’ anecdotes – treat yourself.)

While those two appeared to be a chat-show match made in heaven, there have been plenty of excruciating encounters over the years. Whether it was Tom Cruise giving Matt Lauer the death stare and calling him “glib”, or Miriam Margolyes wanting to “teach” Lily Allen “how to behave” , there is a long history of talk-show disasters.

Here are 15 of the biggest clashes to date…

Tom Cruise vs Matt Lauer

We can only assume that by the time Tom Cruise sat down with Matt Lauer on Today in June 2005, he was already feeling a little, er, tense. In April, he’d gone very public with his relationship with Katie Holmes, snogging the actor in front of paps in Rome. In a notorious interview in May, he declared his love for Holmes and jumped up and down on Oprah Winfrey’s sofa. He was ridiculed. Then at the start of June, Brooke Shields and Cruise clashed after he branded her “irresponsible” for using antidepressants to treat postpartum depression.

So when Cruise arrived in the Today studio, and Lauer started to ask him about his relationship with Holmes, his affiliation with Scientology, and the Shields row, Cruise was not impressed. “Matt. Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt. You’re glib,” said Cruise, fixing the host with a hard stare and defending Scientology’s stance against anti-psychotic drugs. “You don’t even know what Ritalin is.”

Years later, Lauer donned a wig and recreated the awkward interview on Watch What Happens Live , and Lauer said that he and Cruise are now friends. “We have a good friendship. It was just one little moment, OK?”

Miriam Margolyes vs Lily Allen

Miriam Margolyes does not mince her words when it comes to celebrities who grind her gears. At Hay Festival last month, she slagged off John Cleese (“a***hole”) and Bill Oddie (“not a nice man”). And that was all in one day.

During the same interview, Margolyes also revealed that she is not a fan of Lily Allen, who she met when they both appeared on The Graham Norton Show in 2014. “She thought when she was on the programme that it was all about her,” Margolyes said. “She thought, ‘Who is this woman? Miriam who?’”

Margolyes added of the singer-turned-actor: “She wasn’t friendly and I didn’t like that and so I showed my dislike, which wasn’t very nice of me because she was much younger than me and I should have just taught her how to behave.”

Dakota Johnson vs Ellen DeGeneres

Oooh it gives me shivers just thinking about it. Excruciating. In 2019, an interview with  Dakota Johnson  on  Ellen DeGeneres ’s show went viral after an awkward conversation about birthday parties between the two stars.

Shortly after Johnson sat down, DeGeneres raised the fact that the actor had just turned 30, and claimed she had not been invited to the party. Johnson frostily replied: “Actually, no, that’s not the truth, Ellen, you were invited. No, last time I was on the show, last year, you gave me a bunch of s*** about not inviting you, but I didn’t even know you wanted to be invited.”

“Well, who wouldn’t want to be invited to a party?” DeGeneres responded. “But I didn’t even know you liked me,” Johnson protested, to which DeGeneres insisted Johnson had to have known she liked her because she had appeared on her show numerous times.

It didn’t stop there. We all wish it did, but it didn’t. What followed was an agonising back and forth that only ended when DeGeneres’s producer was asked to settle the row once and for all. He told DeGeneres: “You were out of town.” “Oh yeah, I had that thing,” she said.

More awkwardly still, “that thing” was watching football with former US president  George W Bush  in Texas. Nice.

Paris Hilton vs David Letterman

Paris Hilton felt “humiliated” during her 2007 interview with David Letterman, who later sent her a crate of wine to apologise for how he treated her on his show.

In footage that resurfaced in 2021, Letterman can be seen interrogating the socialite about her 23 days behind bars for parole violation. “How did you like being in jail?” he asked her. Hilton tried to brush off the questions, telling him she “didn’t really want to talk about” the “very traumatic experience”.

Hilton later called Letterman’s behaviour “very cruel and very mean”. Then along came the crate of wine, plus a big apology when she returned to his show. “I found out afterwards I had offended you,” Letterman said. “I felt horrible about it because I’m not here to make enemies, honestly. So I called you, and you took the call, which I thought was very nice of you, and now you’re back and thank God, and I’m terribly sorry.”

Loose Women vs Ringo Starr

This Beatle was a little bitter when he went on Loose Women in 2012. Recalling the encounter, panelist Sherrie Hewson later said: “He just sat down, said, ‘OK then, girls, what are we doing here? Shall we just get Paul McCartney out of the way?’ This was live, by the way. Anyway, he carries on, ‘Let’s get Paul McCartney out the way. You want to talk about Paul McCartney?’ I said, ‘Well, no, you’re here.’ And he said, ‘No, you don’t. You want to talk about Paul McCartney.’”

She continued: “He was so angry. It was just so weird, I thought why? Why, why, why? And then, he said to the audience, ‘Can I tell you all, if anyone wants an autograph, you can’t have one, because I don’t do things like that.’ At the end of it, one of the producers came up with one of her little children, who was only four, and said that she knew he didn’t do autographs, but told him that her daughter was only four, and she really loves The Beatles. He just said, ‘Really?’ And then he said, ‘Did you not hear what I just said? I don’t sign autographs.’” Such a sweet guy.

Lorraine Kelly vs Kevin Spacey

When queen of ITV Lorraine Kelly was asked to name her worst guest, she didn’t hesitate: Kevin Spacey. “He was horrible,” she said. “Very arrogant, I didn’t like him at all.”

She said she interviewed the actor before any allegations of sexual misconduct – which he has denied – emerged. “The interview was about his series House of Cards, which I loved,” she revealed. “Isn’t it disappointing when you meet someone you really admire and think, ‘Isn’t he an a***hole?’ He didn’t want to be there. One word answers. Snapping at people.”

Kelly added: “He was rude and dismissive not just to me, but to everybody in the room.

He was very entitled and I was disappointed in him.” Not even mad, just disappointed. Ouch.

Piers Morgan vs Alex Beresford

The clash with the anchor and the weatherman was one of the biggest news stories of the year in 2021.

Alex Beresford accused Piers Morgan of being eager to “trash” Markle, prompting Morgan to storm off the set in a move that Beresford called “diabolical”. Later that day, it was confirmed that Morgan was exiting the ITV morning show after six years.

In a 2023 interview with The Independent , Beresford recalled the trolling he experienced after the clash. “When you share your experience, or give your opinion on something – and I’ve become very aware of this – someone’s always going to have something to say,” Beresford said. “If people disagree with you, that’s absolutely OK; everyone is entitled to their opinion. But throughout social media, you are susceptible to being trolled, racially abused. You’re accessible.”

John Cleese and Michael Palin vs Malcolm Muggeridge and the Bishop of Southwark, Mervyn Stockwood

Before the phrase “cancel culture” had even been invented, Cleese was fighting against it. In 1979, the comedian sat beside his fellow Monty Python star Michael Palin on the BBC’s  Friday Night, Saturday Morning , and the pair of them eloquently defended  The Life of Brian  from attacks by satirist Malcolm Muggeridge and the Bishop of Southwark, Mervyn Stockwood.

The two creatives had made a subversive and hilarious piece of art targeting conformity, and the establishment didn’t like it. Cleese still rails against cancel culture, but it’s much harder to listen to than it was back then.

Preston vs Simon Amstell

In a moment that’s gone down in TV folklore, Preston from The Ordinary Boys stormed off Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

The anarchic music quiz show reached peak chaos in 2007 when the musician got angry with host Simon Amstell for reading out excerpts from his then-wife and fellow Celebrity Big Brother contestant Chantelle Houghton’s autobiography.

“Come on Preston, we’re having fun,” Amstell cried, as Preston exited the stage. Bill Bailey was forced to go into the audience and grab a random, unsuspecting man called Ed to fill Preston’s empty chair.

Tyra Banks vs Naomi Campbell

You could cut the tension with a knife during this 2005 interview between Tyra Banks and Naomi Campbell.

The two women were pitted against each other by the fashion industry, which confected a rivalry between them, and it worked to depressing effect.

In a clip from the show, Banks can be seen reminding Campbell of an encounter they had where Campbell “turned”. Banks said: “You went from being the sweetest woman who was giving me vitamins to someone who terrified me on that trip.”

The whole time, Campbell’s face is arranged into a strained smile. When Banks is finished with her really fun anecdote, Campbell simply says: “Understandable.”

Gary Neville vs Ian Hislop

The schadenfreude feelings were strong with this one. Ian Hislop  was praised for his “bang on” comments to  Gary Neville  on  Have I Got News For You in 2022, when he called out the retired footballer over his plans to commentate at the World Cup in Qatar. It had been a controversial move due to the country’s human rights record.

Neville had asked Hislop if “it’s coming home”, to which Hislop replied: “What, your reputation?”

He continued: “The others have been very gentle with you, Gary, but the elephant in the room is still there. You’re commentating there, aren’t you?” When Neville replied in the affirmative, Hislop asked him what his “defence” was, to which he said: “Well, you’ve got a choice, I think, haven’t you?” Hislop fired back: “What, going or not going?”

Neville defended his decision, stating: “My view always has been, you either highlight the issues and challenges in these countries, and speak about them, or you basically don’t say anything and stay back home, and don’t go.”

However, Hislop was not finished. He told Neville: “There’s another option: you stay at home and highlight the abuses. You don’t have to go and take the Qataris’ money.”

Neville looked pretty stunned. It was all very awkward – but very satisfying.

S Club 7’s publicist vs Claudia Winkleman

This absolutely perfect slice of Noughties chaos resurfaced in 2023 when S Club 7 announced their reunion.

A year before she joined Strictly , and before the full fringe arrived, Claudia Winkleman was interviewing the band on BBC Three’s  Liquid News  in 2003, when she brought up the issue of money. “Let’s talk cash... please don’t look at me like you are angry,” she said. “Mr Simon Fuller [the music mogul who brought the group together] has £90m in the bank. There are rumours that you guys are grumpy because you guys haven’t made mint...”

When the band tried to joke away the question, Winkleman persisted: “Are you not grumpy about it at all?” Lead vocalist Jo O’Meara then replied: “I think we are all really, really lucky to be where we are today at our age and have the bank balances that we do have.”

Following this, the band’s then-publicist dramatically charged into the studio, halting the interview. “Can you not ask this question please... I’m not having it,” she told Winkleman, adding: “I’ve tried to stop this and I’ve had to walk in here... we are going.” In a gift to us all, the BBC aired the interview in full – sudden ending and all.

Robert Downey Jr vs Krishnan Guru-Murthy

In 2015, Robert Downey Jr walked out of an interview with Channel 4 journalist Krishnan Guru-Murthy after he was asked about his past addiction to drugs and his relationship with his father.

He made it crystal clear what he thought of Guru-Murthy when he went on a radio show a week later. Speaking to US radio host Howard Stern, he said he did not regret the incident, and said he just wished he’d “left sooner”.

Downey Jr then went on to call  Guru-Murthy  a “bottom-feeding muckraker” after pointing out his history of run-ins with interviewees including director Quentin Tarantino (which we will get to in a moment). He said: “There’s an assumption that… because you’ve sat down there you’re going to be scrutinised like a kiddie fiddler who’s running for mayor.” He accused Guru-Murthy of having a “creepy dark agenda”.

Quentin Tarantino vs Krishnan Guru-Murthy

Guru-Murthy is the one lucky person to feature twice on this list. He also upset Quentin Tarantino when he interviewed him in 2013.

The director clashed with the Channel 4 News presenter Krishnan in an uncomfortable interview ahead of the London premiere of his film, Django Unchained. Tarantino repeatedly declined to discuss the link between onscreen violence and real-life violence, telling Guru-Murthy: "I’m shutting your butt down."

For context, the line of questioning came in the wake of a mass school shooting in Newtowm, Connecticut. Django Unchained , a slavery film that features characters being shot in the face and attacked with hammers, had its US premiere cancelled in the wake of the attack.

In the interview, Tarantino said: “It’s a movie, it’s a fantasy. It’s not real life.” On the question about the connection between violence on screen and in reality, he barked: “I’m not answering your question. I’m not your slave and you’re not my master… It’s none of your damn business what I think about that.”

Following the Channel 4 interview, Guru-Murthy tweeted that Tarantino had “slightly lost it”.

Meg Ryan vs Michael Parkinson

Michael Parkinson has previous when it comes to condescending his female guests. In the Seventies, his notorious interview with Helen Mirren saw him ask her: “You are – in quotes – ‘a serious actress’... do you find that what could be best described as your ‘equipment’ in fact hinders you in that pursuit?”

It was gobsmacking, and when Meg Ryan appeared on Parkinson’s BBC show in 2003 to promote her badly reviewed erotic thriller  In the Cut , it also turned into one of the most memorable interviews (for the wrong reasons) of all time.

In the frosty 17-minute chat, Parkinson questioned the believability of Ryan’s character becoming involved with a “foul-mouthed New York cop”, and asked her how well she knew her co-star Mark Ruffalo before filming scenes in which “he kisses your backside”. “Jane [Campion, the director] treats eroticism in an incredibly artful way,” Ryan responded. “I disagree with you that it’s graphic.” Parkinson then feigned bafflement, and raised his voice when Ryan said that many of the film’s most sexual scenes were more “suggestive” than explicit. “You see the lot!” he cried.

Parkinson later said he wished he hadn’t “lost my temper” with Ryan and had dealt with the situation “in a more courteous manner”. “I was quite obviously angry with her and it’s not my business to be angry towards the guests. I came across as kind of pompous,” he said.

Ryan, meanwhile, described Parkinson as a “nut” and criticised him for speaking to her “like a disapproving dad”. She said she felt like he had been “berating” her for “being naked in the movie”.

From then on, an unfair narrative was perpetuated of Ryan as an unfriendly, cold American star being rude to a British national treasure, and it tarnished her career for years afterwards.

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Glen Powell Recalled Being Sent To An Empty Theater To Watch Tom Cruise’s Six-Hour “Film School” Explaining Everything He’s Ever Learned About Moviemaking

“The funniest part is on flying… He would literally go, ‘OK, this is what a plane is. Here’s how things fly. Here’s how air pressure works.’”

BuzzFeed Staff

Working on Top Gun: Maverick , Glen Powell accumulated some pretty incredible Tom Cruise stories. And now, in a new interview with GQ UK , we’re getting to hear some of them.

Firstly, it’s thanks to Tom that Glen was in Top Gun: Maverick at all. For context, he initially auditioned for the part of Rooster but lost out to Miles Teller . However, Tom — who starred in and produced the 2022 sequel — liked Glen so much that he decided to find another part for him, which is how he wound up playing Hangman.

After missing out on Rooster, Glen was initially reluctant to accept the part of Hangman because he had reservations about the character’s overall purpose in the story. But once again, Tom stepped in, heard him out, and ultimately had the script changed to better suit what Glen had in mind.

Now, talking about Tom with GQ , Glen was filled with praise for his costar-turned-mentor, saying: “Tom’s a listener. He listens to the crew members, he listens to his collaborators, and he hears people.”

Though it didn’t come out until 2022 due to COVID-19 delays, Top Gun: Maverick started shooting in 2018 . And later, when the cast was called in for reshoots in the UK, Glen had become close enough with Tom that he was able to hitch a ride back to London with Maverick himself.

But, of course, Tom is widely known for his love of stunts — and this journey was no exception. While flying them back from the reshoots, Glen recalled that Tom pranked him by pretending to lose control of their helicopter.

“Tom goes ‘oh no, oh no,’ and he starts dropping the helicopter over London,” Glen recalled of their frightening journey from Pinewood Studios to the capital city. “I was like, ‘Am I about to be the unnamed guy that dies with Tom in a smoking hole in the middle of London?’”

Notably, Glen also has a pilot’s license, which he obtained in 2021 after Tom bought him flying lessons as a Christmas present — and that’s not the only thing the Mission: Impossible star has gifted him.

Glen revealed that Tom once sent him alone to an empty theater in LA to watch a six-hour “film school” video that he’d put together himself. In the profile, GQ reports that Tom speaks directly to the camera during the footage, “breaking down everything he’s learned about filmmaking over the years.”

“He said, ‘This is just for my friends,’” Glen recalled, noting that the footage will probably never be seen by the public. “[In the video, Tom] is like: ‘Do we all agree that this is what a camera is? This is the difference between a film camera and a digital camera…’”

“The funniest part is on flying,” he continued. “It was like he put together this entire flight school. So he would literally go, ‘OK, this is what a plane is. Here’s how things fly. Here’s how air pressure works.’”

Away from the absurdity of it all, Glen made it clear that he deeply appreciates his friendship with Tom, saying that movies are their shared “love language.”

“The one thing I feel we’re kindred spirits in is he’s obsessed with movies,” he said, remembering their time together on  Top Gun: Maverick . “I got to watch a guy who knew every department. He was able to clearly interface with everyone, and be so friendly and respectful and be able to communicate that vision.”

So, between all that and the infamous coconut cakes , Tom certainly remains Hollywood’s most generous (and mysterious) superstar. You can read Glen’s full GQ UK cover interview here.

Topics in this article.

• Glen Powell
• Top Gun: Maverick