Ranked: Ten Worst Tom Cruise Movies (According To Rotten Tomatoes)

Tom Cruise has made 42 movies. These 10 are cloaked in failure.

The Sultan of Swat

As far as pitchers go, Babe Ruth hit more home runs than almost anyone. He was the one exception to the still-uttered axiom that pitchers can’t hit. Every time someone broke his record, he’d break their record right back. Tom Cruise is sort of like the Babe Ruth of movies, especially once you learn the forgotten part of that Babe Ruth world record.

Most players never suffer more than 100 strikeouts in their career. Babe Ruth broke 1,300. He did that with an all-or-nothing approach, earning him yet another of his many nicknames: the King of Strikeouts. You gotta swing hard if you want to hit that many home runs. And you know what they say? The harder you swing…

Here are the ten times Tom Cruise swung so hard, he broke the box office.

Note: each title links offsite to Rotten Tomatoes

10. Far And Away (1992) 50%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Joseph (Tom Cruise) and his landlord’s daughter, Shannon (Nicole Kidman), travel from Ireland to America in hopes of claiming free land in Oklahoma. The pair get sidetracked in Boston, where Joseph takes up boxing to support himself. When he loses a pivotal fight, the two are left penniless. Now faced with poverty, the two must find new ways to scrape by. As their affection for each other grows, Joseph questions whether he is truly what Shannon needs in her life.

9. Rock of Ages (2012) 43%

Rotten Tomatoes description: The songs of Journey, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard and other artists underscore a tale of big dreams in Hollywood. Soon after hopping off a bus from the Midwest, aspiring singer Sherrie Christian (Julianne Hough) immediately finds herself in trouble. Coming to her rescue is Drew (Diego Boneta), a bar-back at the legendary club the Bourbon Room. With stars in their eyes, the young lovers chase their dreams, but a misunderstanding involving rock god Stacee Jaxx (Tom Cruise) threatens to tear them apart.

8. Vanilla Sky (2001) 42%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Tom Cruise and Cameron Crowe reunite after “Jerry Maguire” for “Vanilla Sky,” the story of a young New York City publishing magnate who finds himself on an unexpected roller-coaster ride of romance, comedy, suspicion, love, sex and dreams in a mind-bending search for his soul.

7. Legend (1985) 41%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Darkness (Tim Curry) seeks to create eternal night by destroying the last of the unicorns. Jack (Tom Cruise) and his friends do everything possible to save the world and Princess Lili (Mia Sara) from the hands of Darkness. Enter a world of unicorns, magic swamps, dwarfs and rainbows.

6. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016) 38%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Investigator Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) springs into action after the arrest of Susan Turner (Cobie Smulders), an Army major accused of treason. Suspecting foul play, Jack embarks on a mission to prove that the head of his old unit is innocent. After crossing paths with the law, Reacher must now go on the lam to uncover the truth behind a major government conspiracy that involves the death of U.S. soldiers.

5. Days of Thunder (1990) 38%

Rotten Tomatoes description: In the fast-paced world of NASCAR, a rivalry brews between rookie hotshot Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) and veteran racer Rowdy Burns (Michael Rooker). When both of them are seriously injured in competition, the former bitter rivals become close friends. With Cole’s spirits restored by a romance with neurosurgeon Dr. Claire Lewicki (Nicole Kidman), and Rowdy still sidelined by injuries, Cole decides to race Rowdy’s car in the Daytona 500 against underhanded newcomer Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes).

See also: How The Failure of “Days of Thunder” to Top “Top Gun” Changed Hollywood Forever (Slate)

4. Lions for Lambs (2007) 27%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Inspired by their idealistic professor, Dr. Mallery (Robert Redford), to do something meaningful with their lives, Arian (Derek Luke) and Ernest (Michael Peña) join the military and ship out to Afghanistan. Their experiences tie together two separate but related stories. In California, Mallery tries to break through to a disaffected student, while in Washington, D.C., a presidential hopeful (Tom Cruise) prepares to give a journalist (Meryl Streep) the scoop of a lifetime.

3. Losin’ It (1982) 18%

Rotten Tomatoes description: A teenager (Tom Cruise) and his buddies drive to ’60s Tijuana with a woman (Shelley Long) looking for a quick divorce.

2. The Mummy (2017) 15%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Nick Morton is a soldier of fortune who plunders ancient sites for timeless artifacts and sells them to the highest bidder. When Nick and his partner come under attack in the Middle East, the ensuing battle accidentally unearths Ahmanet, a betrayed Egyptian princess who was entombed under the desert for thousands of years. With her powers constantly evolving, Morton must now stop the resurrected monster as she embarks on a furious rampage through the streets of London.

1. Cocktail (1982) 9%

Rotten Tomatoes description: Brian Flanagan (Tom Cruise) wants a high-paying marketing job, but needs a business degree first. Working as a bartender to pay for college, Flanagan is mentored by his veteran boss, Doug Coughlin (Bryan Brown). Together, their showy tricks and charisma command large crowds and tip payments — until Flanagan and the cynical Coughlin have a falling out. Flanagan moves to Jamaica to raise enough money to open his own bar, where he falls in love with artist Jordan Mooney (Elisabeth Shue).

0. Austinpussy (2002) 0%

Wikipedia description: [Austin Powers: Goldmember] opens with a self-parody of the Austin Powers film series called Austinpussy, where Austin Powers is featured in a bio-pic parody of the James Bond film Octopussy. The self-parody is directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Tom Cruise as Austin Powers, Gwyneth Paltrow as Dixie Normous, [a vile person] as Dr. Evil, Danny Devito as Mini-Me, and John Travolta as Goldmember.

Ready to fly into the Danger Zone?

If reviewing Tom Cruise’s worst movies didn’t fill you with excitement, how about watching him duke it out with the Incredible Hulk? I’d tease you about who wins, but come on. It’s Tom Cruise.

The only Hulk who would really have a chance is mean, green, and straight poured into these jeans.

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