WHAT WENT WRONG

Listen Now: The Big Flop

Jan 9, 2025

Dive into the chaotic rise and fall of Tom Cruise during his infamous 'flop era.' Discover the wild tabloid tales that kept fans guessing amidst scandal and intrigue. Explore how Cruise’s reputation shifted from Hollywood hero to a subject of ridicule, with humorous insights on celebrity culture. Finally, ponder the bizarre rumors and the struggle for relatability in an ever-changing spotlight. This lively discussion captures the essence of fame and folly in Tinseltown.

07:24

AI Summary

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Tom Cruise's decision to abandon his publicist led to a series of scandals that damaged his carefully crafted Hollywood image.

The intense gossip and negative media narratives about his personal life significantly eroded public trust and interest in Cruise as a leading man.

Deep dives

Tom Cruise's Flop Era Overview

Tom Cruise experienced a significant downturn in his career during his 'flop era', highlighted by the disappointing release of Mission Impossible 3 in 2006. This film not only failed to recover its budget domestically but also became the least successful in the franchise’s history, indicating a substantial decline in his star power. The shift in his public relations approach, particularly following his infamous couch-jumping incident, played a pivotal role in this decline, leading to rampant tabloid speculation and negative press. As a result, audience reception towards Cruise began to wane, impacting his ability to secure leading roles and maintain his once-thriving career.

Intro

3min

Celebrity Gossip and Humorous Rumors

2min

The Downward Spiral of a Once-Mighty Star

3min

For over a decade, Tom Cruise was Hollywood's most bankable star, ruling Tinseltown with a million-dollar grin and a carefully crafted image. But when ditching his publicist led to couch-jumping antics, Scientology scandals, and box office bombs, La La Land’s Top Gun found himself in a tailspin that even Ethan Hunt couldn't escape.

On each episode of Wondery’s podcast The Big Flop, comedians join host Misha Brown to chronicle one of the biggest pop-culture fails of all time and try to answer the age-old question: who thought THIS was a good idea? Lizzie Bassett and Chris Winterbauer from What Went Wrong recently joined Misha to jump off the couch and into the lowest point of Tom Cruise’s career.

This is just a preview of The Big Flop. To hear the full episode, listen to The Big Flop wherever you get your podcasts, or at wondery.fm/thebigflop_whatwentwrong.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.