ben stiller tom cruise laugh

The Best Thing Mission: Impossible 2 Gave Us Was Ben Stiller As Tom Cruise's Stunt Double

A champion of the theatrical experience and one of the most daring stunt performers of all time,  Tom Cruise is a movie star from another stratosphere. Before some of his sillier roles in films like "Tropic Thunder" and "Rock of Ages," Cruise was mainly known for his intense drama and action movies. He rarely poked fun at himself or his reputation. That's why his "Mission Impossible 2" sketch with Ben Stiller from the 2003 MTV Movie Awards is such a gem.

In "Mission: Improbable," Ben Stiller plays Tom Crooze, a devoted but dim-witted stuntman who follows Tom Cruise around like a lost puppy. He believes they are BFFs and tries to emulate him in every single way — from his floppy hair, sleek sunglasses, and aggressive nodding. The juxtaposition between Crooze's obsessive dedication and Tom Cruise's apathetic acceptance of him is what makes this short so hilarious. Crooze takes his job super seriously, wanting to "become one with Tom" by overanalyzing every move he makes or anticipating everything he's going to say. Crooze never lets himself contradict Cruise, often changing what he says to agree with him. 

We also learn that Crooze was even Tom Cruise's stunt double for non-action scenes, like the sales pitch in "Magnolia," the famous "Risky Business" dance, or mixing the drinks in "Cocktail." It's funny because it's so ridiculous; Cruise is famous for doing his own stunts and they get riskier as the years go on. In the upcoming "Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning – Part One,"  he literally drives his bike off a cliff . The parody culminates in the best way when Stiller perfectly matches Cruise's trademark laugh — boisterous and energetic, maybe a bit too much — and finishes his sentences. Ben Stiller's overall impression of Tom Cruise is eerily on point. 

The blueprint for Tropic Thunder

According to MTV Movie Awards producer Joel Gallen , this entertaining sketch almost never happened due to scheduling conflicts. Ben Stiller was on his honeymoon with Christine Taylor during the only time Tom Cruise was available. However, Cruise refused to do the short film with anyone else. After a pleading email from Joel Gallen, Ben Stiller agreed to cut his honeymoon short, boarded a 15-hour flight, and returned to shoot what would become one of the funniest MTV Movie Award skits ever. 

Looking back at it now, "Mission: Improbable" feels like the blueprint for  Ben Stiller's Hollywood satire "Tropic Thunder,"  released five years later. Both mock self-important performers who take their craft too seriously. Stiller plays Tugg Speedman, a dumbed-down, Tom Cruise-esque action star looking for a comeback as a serious actor in his own version of "Born on the Fourth of July," a Vietnam War drama based on a bestselling memoir. As Speedman, Stiller brings the same over-the-top cluelessness and macho posturing as he did playing Tom Crooze.  

The real Tom Cruise was actually up for the role of Tugg Speedman. While it would have been really interesting to see Tom Cruise parody himself, his unexpected turn as Les Grossman is even better. Cruise completely transforms himself into a sleazy, bald Hollywood producer who dances to Flo Rida's "Low" and is willing to let Speedman die for a huge insurance payout. We rarely, if ever, see Cruise in such a repulsive role. According to an oral history of the character , Tom Cruise came up with Grossman himself. "Mission: Improbable" laid the groundwork for Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller as a dynamic comedy duo.

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Ben Stiller's incredible impression of Tom Cruise has just gone viral 22 years on

An old clip has resurfaced of Ben Stiller doing an impression of Tom Cruise and it's truly the most joyful thing you'll see today.

Stiller parodied Cruise in Mission Impossible while at the MTV Movie Awards in 2000 and the Top Gun actor was genuinely caught off-guard.

The pair sat down for an interview as Stiller, who was dressed in a matching outfit, joked they'd worked together so long they could 'finish each other's sentences', before mimicking Cruise's every move.

Outstanding.

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Mission: Improbable (2000 TV Short)

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This old Ben Stiller impression of Tom Cruise has just gone viral and it’s a most welcome 16 seconds escape

Poke Staff. Updated August 24th, 2022

For reasons that aren’t entirely clear or important, this old clip of Ben Stiller doing a hilarious impression of Tom Cruise – in front of Tom Cruise – has just gone wildly viral.

And not only is it a very welcome escape from everything else that is going on right now, it’s also very, very good.

Not for nothing did it go viral in the subReddit called r/contagiouslaughter.

‘Spot on.’ HuffnDobak ‘Which one is Tom Cruise again?’ OffbeatBat ‘And thus the friendship that would become Tropic Thunder began.’ GearJunkie82 ‘It started when Ben Stiller did “The Hustler of Money.” ‘They were supposed to do a Hardy Boys movie together called “Hardy Men” but it never happened, and we got Tropic Thunder instead.’ canteen_boy ‘F-ckk I want that movie.’ TMA_01 ‘These shorts during the MTV movie awards were amazing. “Now I’m just thinking crazy here, what if, just spit balling, what if right before Tom Cruise crashes into that guy mid air… time freezes, we zoom in on Tom..He turns to the camera, and says “this mission just got a hell of a lot more impossibler” SeedyRedwood

And the clip in full …

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How Tom Cruise Ended Up Casting Himself In Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder

• Tom Cruise's range as an actor extends beyond action films, as he has appeared in a variety of genres, including dramas and comedies.
• Cruise played the role of Les Grossman in Ben Stiller's film Tropic Thunder after giving Stiller the idea for the character and requesting to play him with specific conditions.
• Cruise and Stiller became friends after Stiller made fun of Cruise on his sketch comedy show, and they have collaborated on multiple projects together since then.

Tom Cruise got his big break in the romantic comedy Risky Business back in the early 1980s. Since then, he’s gone on to become Hollywood’s go-to actor for action flicks. After all, Cruise was the leading man in blockbusters such as Top Gun and the Mission: Impossible film franchise. It’s no surprise he’s one of the highest-paying actors of all time.

Today, Tom Cruise has a massive net worth, mostly due to his work in action films. However, the actor has shown his range by appearing in all kinds of movies, from dramas to comedies, such as Ben Stiller’s 2008 film Tropic Thunder . Believe it or not, Cruise cast himself in the role of Les Grossman in this film!

Fans Praised Brendan Fraser For Revealing The Real Reason Tom Cruise Failed With The Mummy

Tom cruise cast himself as les grossman in ben stiller’s tropic thunder after reading the script a second time.

In 2008, Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller collaborated once again for the comedian’s film Thunder Tropic . The movie stars Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Jay Baruchel, and Brandon T. Jackson as a group of actors making a Vietnam War film. After their director (Steve Coogan) tragically dies in an accident, they are forced to rely on their acting skills to survive.

Thunder Tropic was a huge success, grossing over $195 million at the box office worldwide . The main and ensemble cast were greatly praised for their performances, including Cruise, who played the ill-tempered studio executive Les Grossman.

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Funnily enough, Cruise gave Stiller the idea for the character of Les Grossman .

“We were watching a film and I said, ‘What are you working on?’ He says, ‘I’m working on this film Tropic Thunder, ’ and he says, ‘Look, would you mind reading the script and, you know, I’d like to talk to you about it.’ So I said, ‘Okay,’” Cruise explained in an interview.

“I read the script and he had all the characters except the studio wasn’t there, there was a structural compression missing down on those characters.”

Noting that the movie was missing something, Cruise gave Stiller some ideas. “I was like, ‘You need the studio.’ So he came back like a few weeks later and I started reading, and I read this character and I went, ‘Okay,’ I said, ‘This is fun.’”

Then, Cruise asked Stiller if he could play this character. But he had two conditions. “I said, ‘I wanna have fat hands and I wanna dance.’” Luckily, Stiller agreed.

Tom Cruise And Ben Stiller Became Friends Over A Joke

To this day, Ben Stiller is one of Tom Cruise’s closest friends in Hollywood . The two first met after Stiller made fun of the actor on his sketch comedy show.

“He saw it somewhere, but then we did the Ben Stiller Show and we did the Cruise thing too and a friend of mine was in The Firm at the time, and I showed it to him down there and he loved it,” Stiller told Collider in a 2008 interview. “I mean, I would probably not have loved it if I saw somebody gave me somebody doing me. I always give him credit for that.”

These Ben Stiller Movies All Include Members From The 'Frat Pack'

Afterward, the two kept in touch, even collaborating on a parody a couple of years later. “Then we did this thing on the MTV Movie Awards like eight years ago and that was really fun,” Stiller explained.

“We had a good time where I was doing his stuntman and since then we stayed in touch and talked about stuff over the years.” The two actors remained close friends over the years. At one point Stiller and Cruise would even set playdates for their kids .

Ben Stiller Wanted To Cut One Of Tom Cruise's Most Iconic Scenes In Tropic Thunder

Tom Cruise looked almost unrecognizable as studio executive Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder , as he used a fat suit and a bald cap to completely change his appearance. Because of this, most viewers didn’t realize that it was Cruise in the role until the credits rolled out.

One of Cruise’s most iconic scenes in this film has to be, hands down, the credits where Grossman shows his best dance moves to Ludacris’ song ‘Get Back’. Believe it or not, Ben Stiller was hesitant to include this dance scene in the movie at first.

“Les Grossman was a fun character [to play],” Cruise revealed in an appearance on Conan O’Brien’s show. The host asked the Mission: Impossible star if it was true that he took hip-hop classes to prepare for that final scene. “I actually take classes all the time to learn things or I want to prove a skill [...] So, I take dance classes and I took hip-hop and then what I’ll do is find a character to put that with.”

When the opportunity to appear in Tropic Thunder came, Cruise knew that this was the time to bring out his best hip-hop moves.

That’s why Cruise requested Stiller that he let his character dance at some point during the film. Initially, Stiller wasn’t sure whether that was going to work.

“Ben, he just looks at me like, ‘you know he’s just like right out of the movies,” Cruise explained. “So, for a couple of months, he kept saying, ‘You know, maybe we don’t do the makeup and you just look like yourself.” But Cruise wouldn’t have it. “‘No Ben,’ I said, ‘I really need fat hands and I’m gonna dance.”

Ultimately, Stiller agreed to go with Cruise’s vision for the character and it turned out to be the right choice. Fans loved to see Cruise dancing dressed as Les Grossman. It’s no wonder why this uncredited cameo put Cruise right back on the map!

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Our All-Time Favorite Parodies From the MTV Movie & TV Awards (VIDEO)

MTV Movie & TV Awards

• All the Shows Impacted By the Writers & Actors Strikes (So Far)
• 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards: See All the Winners

The 2022 MTV Movie & TV Awards will mark the 30th time that MTV hands out buckets of golden popcorn to fans’ favorite screen idols — and the fifth time that small-screen stars are added to the mix. Vanessa Hudgens ( t ic k, tick… BOOM! ) will host the main show on June 5, introducing the awards for film and scripted TV, while The Bachelorette alum Tayshia Adams emcees the unscripted ceremony immediately afterward.

As the nominees wait to see who’s taking home what award this year, we’re just hoping for gut-busting film and TV parodies, like the hilarious clips below. From Carrie Bradshaw wondering if Neo is “The One” to Tiffany Haddish bringing “Black Unicorn” energy to Black Panther , here are our favorite sketches from the last three decades of the awards show.

Basic Instinct meets The Brady Bunch (1993)

Florence Henderson shed Carol Brady’s wholesome image as she and three of her TV children from The Brady Bunch spoofed the classic Sharon Stone interrogation scene from Basic Instinct . In the sketch, Carol admits to her kids that she had an affair with Sam the Butcher. “He gave me a lot of pleasure,” she explains. “And a 30% discount on rump roast.”

Sex and the City meets The Matrix (2000)

As Carrie Bradshaw told her Sex and the City gal pals, waking up in the real world after a night in The Matrix with Neo (played by Jimmy Fallon ) was like weathering a bad hangover. (“Neo, your apartment has no natural light, I’m wearing a freakin’ potato sack, and I’ve got an outlet in the back of my head!” the Sarah Jessica Parker character tells her one night stand.)

Ben Stiller is Tom Cruise’s stunt double (2000)

Ben Stiller has Tom Cruise ’s trademark laugh down down to a tee, as he showed off as he played Tom Crooze, the Mission: Impossible actor’s stunt double. “I think if you’re going to be a really good stunt double, you have to really become one with the actor,” he says in the bit. “You have the walk like the actor, talk like the actor, legally change your name to sound like the actor’s. I don’t think of myself as stunt double, really. It’s more like I’m a stunt one -ble.”

Jack Black and Sarah Michelle Gellar debate a certain Lord of the Rings piercing (2002)

In this spoof of The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring , Jack Black ’s character drops trou and reveals to the rest of the fellowship that he used the ring for a Prince Albert piercing. “You’re telling us that you took the fabled ring of Sauron, the one ring that could destroy all of Middle-earth, and attached it to your little hobbit there?” an appalled Sarah Michelle Gellar says.

Justin Timberlake and Seann William Scott enter The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

In another parody of The Matrix franchise, Justin Timberlake and Seann William Scott played two ordinary guys who took the metaphorical red pill, getting sweaty in Zion and crossing paths with a humorless Neo. But it’s Wanda Sykes and Will Ferrell who stole the show, playing the Oracle and the Architect. “Ergo, open your yapper one more time and I’m going to Architect a world of pain all over your candy ass,” Ferrell’s hot-tempered and highfalutin character tells Neo. “Ergo! Vis à vis! Concordantly!”

Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey Jr. go viral (2008)

As Ben Stiller tries to come up with a viral marketing scheme for Tropic Thunder , he draws on Jack Black’s Kung Fu Panda character, Robert Downey Jr. ’s Iron Man alter-ego, and the twisted mind of his onscreen nephew, Carl. (RDJ fawns over Carl when he hears that the teen saw Iron Man three times. But when the actor asks if Carl liked the superhero movie, Carl says, “It’ll do… until Dark Knight comes out. Then you’re screwed.”)

Tiffany Haddish challenges T’Challa of Black Panther (2018)

Tiffany Haddish challenges Black Panther himself, T’Challa, for the throne of Wakanda in this segment. “I am Prince T’Challa, son of King T’Chaka!” the Chadwick Boseman character yells. Haddish responds. “Oh yeah? Well I’m T’Tiffany Haddish, and I know who bit Beyoncé!”

7 Times 'Sesame Street' Flawlessly Parodied Popular TV Shows (PHOTOS)

Zachary levi plays the game of thrones (2019).

In this Game of Thrones parody, Chuck alum Zachary Levi tries, and fails, to convince Daenerys Targaryen that he was “definitely not the one telling people that you are boning Jon Snow, your nephew.” Then he tries, and fails, to talk his way out of execution-by-dragonfire. “Snowman, you banged your aunt, but everyone bangs their aunt… in certain cultures… that I’ve heard about,” his stammering character tells Jon Snow.

The 2022 MTV Movie & TV Awards, Sunday, June 5, 8/7c, MTV

Ben Stiller

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Ben Stiller Calls Zoolander 2 Failure 'Blindsiding': 'It Affected Me for a Long Time' (Exclusive)

The actor/director opened up with David Duchovny for Duchovny's new podcast 'Fail Better,' which explores personal and professional failures and their impact

Brendon Thorne/Getty

Ben Stiller says the commercial and critical failure of Zoolander 2 was life-altering.

The 58-year-old, who wrote, produced, directed and starred in the 2016 sequel, reflected on the experience with David Duchovny on Duchovny's upcoming podcast, Fail Better .

"I thought everybody wanted this," Stiller said of the follow-up to the 2001 comedy, which was a box office success and widely quoted and memed. "And then it's like, 'Wow, I must have really f---ed this up. Everybody didn't go to it. And it's gotten these horrible reviews ."

According to Variety , Zoolander 2 only made $29 million domestically against a $50 million budget . The sequel starred fan favorites from the first film, including Stiller, Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell . It also included cameos from popular celebrities including Justin Bieber and Katy Perry .

"It really freaked me out because I was like, 'I didn't know was that bad?' '' Stiller continued. "What scared me the most on that one was l'm losing what I think what's funny, the questioning yourself ... on Zoolander 2 , it was definitely blindsiding to me. And it definitely affected me for a long time."

But Stiller says what followed was a period of introspection, which ultimately fueled new projects.

"The wonderful thing that came out of that for me was just having space where, if that had been a hit, and they said 'Make Zoolander 3 right now,' or offered some other movie, I would have just probably jumped in and done that," he recalled. "But I had this space to kind of sit with myself and have to deal with it and other projects that I had been working on — not comedies, some of them — I have the time to actually just work on and develop."

"Even if somebody said, 'Well, why don't you go do another comedy or do this?' I probably could have figured out something to do. But I just didn't want to," Stiller added.

Brian Ach/Getty

"Why didn't you want to?" Duchovny, 63, asked in response. "Was it anger?"

"It was just hurt," Stiller replied. "Finding yourself in terms of what creatively you want to be and do, I I always loved directing. I always loved making movies. I always, in my mind, loved the idea of just directing movies that since I was a kid, and not necessarily comedies. And so, over the course of like the next like, nine or 10 months, I was able to develop these limited series."

Eventually, Stiller moved on to direct the crime drama Escape at Dannemora in 2018, for which he won a DGA Award for Outstanding Directing – Miniseries or TV Film. He also was nominated for a Primetime Emmy. In 2022, he produced and directed the Emmy-nominated series Severance .

Duchovny and Stiller's friendship began when Duchovny appeared in Zoolander . Duchovny invited Stiller to be the first guest on his podcast Fail Better , which premieres May 7. Per the description, Fail Better will explore the topic of failure "in all its forms, from the professional to the personal, and the ways in which failure, shame and falling short shaped his and all our lives."

The podcast is the production of Lemonada Media and will feature guests including Sean Penn , Kumail Nanjiani, Fred Armisen, Bette Midler , Sarah Silverman and more.

“We have had such a great and at times life-changing experience making this podcast with David — his openness to learning and the quest to understand human nature is something he brings to each conversation. We are so excited to bring this show into the world,” Lemonada CEO Jessica Cordova Kramer shared. Duchovny will also share his own personal anecdotes throughout the series.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Listen to the audio trailer for Fail Better here and tune into episodes 1 (where Stiller details his other major career failure) and 2 on May 7.

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