An Ode to ‘Mission: Impossible’

In the wake of his ties to Scientology, his takes on psychiatry, and the infamous Oprah interview, Tom Cruise has worked hard to hide himself from the public eye for the past decade-plus. When he does emerge, it’s typically within the vacuum-sealed environment of press junkets and late-night appearances. As a result, Cruise has felt less like a person than Hollywood’s real-life version of the Winter Soldier: a vessel activated for death-defying stunts who then goes into cryogenic stasis between productions.