In between life-threatening stunts, Ving Rhames accepted a different kind of mission. I learned how to survive and succeed in Hollywood from Tom Cruise.
The actor who has appeared in every Mission: Impossible movie as world-class hacker and confidant Luther Stickel takes on a new high-risk operation.
As host of the History Channel series “Ving Rhames: The Scariest of All Time,” he takes viewers through some of the most devastating natural disasters ever recorded. There, the danger is real and survival is not guaranteed.
The 66-year-old told Fox News Digital that aside from the explosions, car chases and high-altitude chaos, he never worried about safety while making Mission: Impossible, all thanks to Cruise’s steady hand.
“Tom Cruise has made it very safe for us,” Rhames insisted.
From the beginning, Rhames said the 63-year-old star managed to surprise him.
“(What surprised me about him?) I think it’s the fact that Tom Cruise can’t see color,” Rhames said. “I was able to work with a white actor who was really blind to color, and the experience was very moving.”
In between daredevil stunts, Cruise didn’t hesitate to sit down and bond with Rhames.
“(My favorite memory) is talking to him offstage,” Rhames said. “I learned the secrets he knew about this industry and was able to tell me about them.”
Rhames said the biggest lesson he imparted to Cruz was surprisingly simple: “Treat everyone fairly.”
In an industry known for egos and excess, Rhames said this principle was essential to his longevity in the entertainment industry.
“[One of the big pieces of advice]is to be in Hollywood, not in Hollywood,” he said. “That comes from years of experience.”
FOX News Digital has reached out to a spokesperson for Cruise for comment.
Before Mission: Impossible, Rhames faced another challenge. He played Marcellus Wallace, a feared Los Angeles crime boss, in 1994’s Pulp Fiction. Like Cruise, he described the cast as “realistic.”
But there was one surprising reason this dark comedy was memorable.
“There’s tape on the back of my head!” he said. “I went to the dermatologist and had the keloid injected. I put a Band-Aid on it. Then, on the day of filming, I took it off. Quentin Tarantino said, ‘Where’s the Band-Aid?'” It was an unplanned event. It just happened. ”
The appearance has become fixed. To this day, fans have a few choice words when they spot Rhames.
Rhames referenced one of his character’s most iconic catchphrases, saying, “I’m going to be medieval in your a-.”
Rhames said that despite his decades of experience in Hollywood, he was not prepared for the disturbing story revealed in “The Scariest of All Time.”
“We made an episode about what happened in China,” he teased. “I was influenced because I really thought about how many people were affected by this (natural disaster). If it happened in America, how would I be affected? But I hope (these stories) give me knowledge. And I hope that the knowledge I gain from it makes me a more complete person.”
After finishing his narration of “The Worst Ever”, Rhames has one thing to say to the audience.
“Never put humans first, that’s what I would tell them,” Rhames said. “History repeats itself.”
Rhames is still going strong and Cruz is just as relentless.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter at the May 2025 premiere of Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning, Cruise said he doesn’t think he’ll ever walk away from action movies.
He previously told the same outlet that he hopes to continue making Mission: Impossible movies into his 80s, like Harrison Ford, who continued making Indiana Jones movies into his 80s.
“In fact, I said I was going to make movies until I was 80, but actually I’m still going to make movies until I’m 100,” Cruise said. “I’m never going to stop. I’m not going to stop doing action movies, I’m not going to stop doing dramas, I’m not going to stop doing comedy movies. I’m excited.”
