Tom Cruise Has Perfect Answer For Question About Donald Trump

As if there were any doubts as to why Tom Cruise is one of Hollywood's last remaining movie stars, how he handled a recent question about President Donald Trump should end those.

Cruise is the star of the latest installment of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise, with "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" set to hit theaters May 23. And he once again demonstrated why he's become one of America's most popular and bankable actors: he knows why the audience is there.

Cruise was this week was on the press tour for "The Final Reckoning," when a reporter from South Korea asked about Trump's proposed tariffs on films shot overseas. 

"I’d like to ask this question to anybody who’s up for it," the reporter said. "I watched this film and I saw that it was filmed in many different locations around the world, including Africa. Of course, we all are aware of the tariffs that President Trump has been imposing on overseas productions and films. So is this particular movie under that tariff? And how much of the film was shot overseas?"

Sure enough, Cruise handled it perfectly.

Tom Cruise's new movie "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" hits theaters May 23 ahead of Memorial Day Weekend. (Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)

Tom Cruise Demonstrates Why He's A Movie Star

Instead of taking the bait on a loaded political question, Cruise responded with "We’d rather answer questions about the movie. Thank you," closing with a smile.

How easy would it be for other celebrities to answer questions exactly as he did? 

Instead, so many of them choose to make every answer, every opportunity, every issue about themselves and their own political opinions and desires. Just as one example, look at Rachel Zegler and how she handled her personal social media and commentary before the release of "Snow White." 

She wished Trump supporters would "never know peace." She disparaged the original "Snow White" by calling it "weird," because the values of the story and legendary film didn't align with modern viewpoints. At every turn, she undermined the success of her own movie by being aggressively political.

How did Cruise handle it? By focusing on the movie and declining to get involved in an unnecessary political debate. Providing unnecessary headlines that could hurt the film's box office potential.

This is the model for Hollywood; no one cares what they think about Donald Trump or his policies. Tom Cruise is trying, essentially by himself, to bring the industry's box office back where it used to be. Everyone else should take notes.