“It’s Destroying Pure Cinema from Within”: Tom Cruise Urges Hollywood to Protect Actors from the Rise of AI

Tom Cruise, one of Hollywood’s most dedicated champions of practical filmmaking, has issued a powerful warning to his peers: artificial intelligence, he says, is threatening to erode the very essence of cinema.

Speaking passionately during a recent discussion with industry colleagues, the Mission: Impossible star described AI as a growing force that risks “destroying pure cinema from within,” urging actors and studios alike to take immediate steps to protect human creativity.

“Cinema Has Always Been About People”

“Cinema has always been about people,” Cruise said. “It’s about truth, connection, and emotion — not algorithms. When we start letting AI generate faces, voices, or performances, we’re cutting the human heart out of storytelling. It’s destroying pure cinema from within.”

Known for performing many of his own stunts and for his deep involvement in production, Cruise has long been regarded as one of the last traditionalists in a digital age. His remarks reflect growing unease in Hollywood about the accelerating use of AI technology — from generating synthetic performances to digitally recreating actors’ likenesses without consent.

“We work our entire lives to bring authenticity to what we do,” Cruise said. “AI doesn’t know fear, pain, or joy. It can imitate, but it can’t feel. And that’s the difference between a movie that thrills and one that touches your soul.”

“Audiences Know When It’s Real”

To illustrate his point, Cruise referenced Top Gun: Maverick, the 2022 blockbuster that revitalized the movie theater experience through its commitment to real aerial sequences and genuine emotion.

“Every flight sequence, every maneuver in Top Gun: Maverick was real — real jets, real pilots, real emotion,” he explained. “That’s what audiences respond to. They can feel when it’s real.”

For Cruise, that visceral connection between actor and audience — forged through risk, performance, and authenticity — is what defines cinema. “When you see something real, it stays with you,” he said. “It reminds you what human beings are capable of.”

A Call to Protect Artistic Identity

While acknowledging that AI can be a useful tool for visual effects and technical support, Cruise warned that its misuse poses grave ethical challenges. “One day, someone could create a film with your face, your voice, and your name — and you might have nothing to do with it,” he cautioned. “That’s not art, that’s theft.”

He called on his fellow actors and filmmakers to take collective action to safeguard creative rights and ensure that technology remains a tool — not a replacement.

“We have to draw the line now,” Cruise insisted. “We need to make sure the tools serve the storyteller — not the other way around. If we lose that balance, we lose cinema itself.”

A Defender of “Pure Cinema”

Cruise’s comments come at a time when debates about AI’s role in entertainment are intensifying across Hollywood. Unions, studios, and advocacy groups are all grappling with how to regulate the use of digital likenesses and maintain transparency in the creative process.

For many, Cruise’s words serve as a rallying cry — not against progress, but for preservation. The actor, whose career has spanned four decades, has consistently advocated for real filmmaking over artificial shortcuts.

“No machine can capture the courage, craft, and humanity that go into making a great film,” he said. “That’s what pure cinema is — and it’s worth fighting for.”

As technology continues to redefine the industry, Tom Cruise’s message is both a warning and a reminder: the future of film depends not on how advanced the tools become, but on how fiercely humans protect the art at its heart.