Tom Cruise’s Salary for “Mission: Impossible” Over the Years: A Detailed Breakdown

Tom Cruise truly did the impossible and continues to do so with every movie of the franchise. Mission: Impossible started as an action-packed flick made to entertain the masses and has now grown to become so much more. With intricate plot twists and more interesting characters, the franchise just keeps getting better.

As the last movie of the franchise releases soon, Cruise prepares to say goodbye to his iconic character Ethan Hunt who spanned decades. Nevertheless, the actor has seen exponential growth over time both in terms of popularity and the salary he earned from the franchise. Here’s a breakdown of the Hollywood megastar’s net worth.

How much did Tom Cruise earn for the Mission: Impossible Franchise?

Tom Cruise has never been one to settle for a mediocre role let alone a meagre salary. The actor knows his worth in terms of what he brings to the table and does justice to being one of the highest-paid movie stars in Hollywood.

Back in 1996 when the first Mission: Impossible was released, nobody anticipated what a global phenomenon it would turn out to be. As more movies kept the story going, it became clear why Cruise chose to produce the movies in addition to acting in them.

Mission: Impossible went on to gross $457 million at the box office, breaking records and opening the doors for more movies to follow. For this, Cruise took home a whopping sum of $70 million which includes not just his fee as an actor but also the residual benefits from ticket sales and digital rights agreements since he’s also a producer of the franchise. Similarly, the third movie in the franchise earned him $75 million.

The 2011 release Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol also made Cruise $70 million richer which includes $12 million in acting fee. In the latter years of the 2010s, Cruise reasonably increased his upfront salary and continued to earn through the profit-sharing model.

Mission: Impossible 2 paid him the highest

Cruise cashed a cheque of an unbelievable sum of $100 million for Mission: Impossible 2 which is one of the highest-paying movies he’s done so far. This is again because of his fee as an actor plus the accumulated money from other avenues since the movie became insanely successful.

However, if we see only the salary he earned as an actor without the sum earned as a producer, then Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation, the fifth installment in the series, takes the cake. For this flick, he earned 25 million, his highest so far, in just his acting salary.

Tom Cruise’s Latest Mission: Impossible Salary

For the latest Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One released in 2023, Cruise earned about $15 million upfront. The amount seems less compared to his other actor’s salaries because of the agreement in which he earns a share of the entire revenue the movie earns in its lifetime.

At the same time, his salary for the upcoming Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning remains unknown. Seemingly, Cruise will have a similar agreement and take a smaller share in salary and make substantial amounts in the profits the movie makes.

Many executives in Hollywood hail Cruise as the mastermind behind the success of his movies because he puts his heart and soul into promoting the movies just as he does with acting in his projects. In this way, Cruise also takes responsibility for the performance of his movies as a producer, sharing in the overall revenue.

It will certainly be sad for Cruise to say goodbye to the franchise but it feels like he is going to make it worth it.

What is Tom Cruise’s Net Worth in 2024?

Almost every movie starring Cruise has charted over $100 million at the box office. The star power of the actor is unparalleled let alone his ability to undertake massive action sequences by himself. His actor’s salary for the entire Mission: Impossible franchise alone stands at somewhere around $285 million.

The actor has an incredible net worth of over $600 million today. Looking at his lifetime career earnings, adding all the salaries he has earned across his decades-long career, the number would have been somewhere around $745 million.

Cruise’s journey in Hollywood has been illustrious, to say the least. As he bids adieu to the franchise, fans are sure that the actor will return with more intriguing narratives and characters in the future.

Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning hits theatres on May 23, 2025.