Tom Cruise reflects on career during 12th visit to Korea

Actor Tom Cruise made his 12th visit to South Korea on Thursday to promote Mission: Impossible — Final Reckoning. At a press event at Lotte Cinema World Tower in Seoul, he greeted fans with his trademark smile, showing little sign of his age.

Dressed in black slacks and a long-sleeve shirt, Cruise displayed a few more wrinkles but retained his familiar youthful charm. He waved enthusiastically to the crowd, flashing his signature bright smile and exuding his trademark warmth.

The upcoming film, set to open in South Korea on July 17, is the eighth installment in the Mission: Impossible series that began in 1996. The story follows Ethan Hunt (Cruise) as he races to track down a mysterious weapon that threatens humanity, continuing the plot from 2023’s Dead Reckoning.

At the event, Cruise reflected on his four decades in Hollywood. “Since I was a child, making movies has been my dream,” he said. “At 4, I dreamed of traveling the world to make films. I shot my first movie at 18. Lying in bed, I thought about how my life would change and vowed to give everything to this. I fell in love with it so much — now, it’s not just what I do; it’s who I am.”


이호재기자 hoho@donga.com