Tom Cruise was last at Cannes in 2022, when the film festival gave him an honorary Palme d’Or and, in return, got one of the last bona fide Hollywood stars to grace their red carpet as he launched “Top Gun: Maverick.

The scene delivered by Paramount Pictures marked a triumphant return to the festival for both the studio and Cruise, last in town for the premiere of ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ in May 2022.

Cannes: Cruise joined his director on 11 films, Christopher McQuarrie, for a deep-dive conversation at Cannes. “I’m a diehard believer in the big-screen experience,” said McQuarrie. “What makes film special is however many hundreds of strangers all come together to sit in the room and watch something together and experience something together.