• "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" sees Tom Cruise's hero fight an evil AI known as the Entity.
• The story is packed with intense action sequences and leaves the door open for more installments.
• Is this really Tom Cruise's last movie in the "M:I" franchise?

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning."

"Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" leaves the door open for future movies despite being a worthy sendoff for Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt.

The sequel follows the agent as he races to save the world from the Entity, an evil AI that has taken control of every nuclear missile on the planet. He also has to fend off Gabriel (Esai Morales), an assassin from his past who wants to control the Entity for himself.

Ethan focuses on trying to disable the AI, and he's forced to retrieve its source code from the Sevastapol, the Russian submarine that sank at the start of 2023's "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning."

Here's how it all plays out. Cue the theme music.

Ethan Hunt saves the world with seconds to spare in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning."

For audiences who are claustrophobic, a certain scene in "The Final Reckoning" will be a nightmare. Ethan's team discovers that the Sevastopol submarine wreck, which holds the Entity's source code, is at the bottom of the North Pacific, and transmits the location to Ethan, who is in a submarine with Captain Bledsoe (Tramell Tillman).

Ethan dives down to the wreck and eventually retrieves the source code after a painstakingly long sequence in which he has to navigate falling missiles and debris while the sub slowly floods.

The most intense moment sees him escape through a tiny missile tube and float to the surface. He actually drowns in his ascent, but luckily, Grace (Hayley Atwell) is waiting with the inflatable hyperbaric chamber that stops him from dying from decompression sickness.

After that, the gang heads to a secure digital bunker in South Africa, where the Entity is planning to wait out the impending nuclear apocalypse by combining its source code with a piece of tech called the "Poison Pill." This would isolate the AI into a single hard drive and avert the end of the world.

But before they can do so, Gabriel shows up to try to take the Entity for himself. He reveals a smaller nuclear bomb will go off if Ethan doesn't give him the Poison Pill. Predictably, the deal goes south, and Ethan chases Gabriel — even when the villain takes to the sky in a biplane.

Ethan climbs aboard a second plane piloted by Gabriel's henchman, and a jaw-dropping feat of aerial stuntwork ensues, as Ethan moves between the two planes in midair to retrieve the hard drive.

The film cranks up the tension during the climax because while the aerial chase is happening, Benji (Simon Pegg) gets shot and has to talk Grace through rebooting the digital bunker while their enemy-turned-ally Paris (Pom Klementieff) performs an emergency tracheotomy on him.

In true "Mission: Impossible" style, Ethan retrieves the Poison Pill at the last moment as Gabriel falls out of the plane and dies. To make matters worse, the plane catches fire, and Ethan has to leap out of the vehicle and put the source code into the Poison Pill while falling through the air, because nothing is ever easy in this franchise.

Obviously, he manages to pull it off, and Grace uses her quick reflexes to yank a glorified USB stick out of the console in the bunker to permanently trap the Entity. In the film's final moments, the IMF team meets up again in London as Grace gives Ethan the stick containing the Entity for safekeeping. They all share an emotional look at one another before going their separate ways.

That shot doesn't definitively end the franchise, and leaves the door open for the cast to return (should they choose to accept) for another mission.

But that's a little weird, since the film was billed to be an ending to the franchise. Here are the lingering questions we have about "The Final Reckoning" ending.

Was Ethan Hunt supposed to die at the end of "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning?"

Our most pressing question is whether Ethan was originally supposed to die at the end of the film. During the climax on the burning biplane, Gabriel makes a point of telling the hero that he's wearing the only parachute before he falls out and is killed by the plane's fin.

The film perfectly sets up that Ethan might have to sacrifice himself in order to save the world. But no, there's a second parachute tucked away inside the plane that Ethan conveniently finds.

Considering "The Final Reckoning" has been billed as Cruise's swan song and the end of the franchise, it would have made sense for the hero to go out in a blaze of glory. But no, Hunt just puts the two together while falling through the sky and then lands on the ground as if it's just a normal day.

It's a shame, because killing him off would've given the story and its ending more weight.

Why was Luther Stickell hooked up to medical equipment in "The Final Reckoning"?

Tech genius Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) has helped Ethan as part of his team in every "Mission: Impossible" movie. During "The Final Reckoning," Ethan finds Luther in a base underneath King's Cross train station in London, where he develops the Poison Pill.

But during those scenes, it's heavily suggested that Luther may be dying of some kind of disease. He's hooked up to medical equipment, there's a hospital bed, and an IV drip — yet the film strangely never addresses this at all.

Instead, Stickell dies while defusing a bomb left by Gabriel.

Why does "The Final Reckoning" completely ignore Ilsa Faust's death in the previous film?

One of the most devastating moments in "Dead Reckoning" is when Gabriel murders Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) in Venice. Isla was a mysterious MI6 agent with whom Ethan had a "will-they-won't-they" relationship.

Many fans assumed her death was a fakeout as part of a plan to trick the Entity, but Isla does not return in the final installment.

Even without bringing Ferguson's character back, it feels like a bizarre choice that the film does not even mention that Gabriel murdered someone Ethan was close with.

Did "The Final Reckoning" need to be that long?

One of the most obvious questions is: Why did "The Final Reckoning" need to be two hours and 50 minutes long?

The first hour of the sequel is crammed with exposition about where the team is after the previous film, how the Entity has taken hold of the world's nuclear weapons, and why the authorities think Ethan might be working for the opposing side (he isn't).

It could have focused instead on setting up the concept of the Poison Pill and isolating the Entity in the South African bunker. It's understandable though; the early scenes put a variety of different locations from around the world on display and give "The Final Reckoning" the feel of a globe-trotting adventure. If only traveling all that way had led to a more a definitive ending.

• Tom Cruise has starred in eight "Mission: Impossible" movies since 1992.
• The actor reprises his role in the 2025 sequel, "The Final Reckoning."
• Here are all of the "Mission: Impossible" movies, ranked from worst to best.

Tom Cruise is taking on one last daring adventure in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," which pits Ethan Hunt against an evil AI that threatens to destroy the world.

The actor has been the face of the franchise since the first movie in 1996, and has starred in eight films in total.

The Impossible Mission Force (yes, really) first debuted in the "Mission: Impossible" TV series in 1966, which starred Steven Hill and Peter Graves and ran for six seasons until 1973, before it was revived for another two seasons on ABC in 1988.

With the franchise set to end with "The Final Reckoning," here are all the "Mission: Impossible" movies, ranked.

8. "Mission: Impossible 2" (2000)

"Mission: Impossible 2" should be given way more love than it gets, mainly because the Hong Kong cinema legend John Woo helmed it. Yes, the "Hard Boiled" and "Bullet in the Head" director brought his signature bullet ballet style to the "Mission: Impossible" sequel, with all the slow-motion flair you could ask for.

Is it cheesy? Sure. Does the script need some work? Definitely. Is there any smart subtext or meaning underneath all the action? Absolutely not. This is a peak 2000s action movie, and it knows it. 

"Mission: Impossible 2" is so over the top that once you've made peace with it, it's best to just go along for the ride. Come on, Tom Cruise and Dougray Scott play motorbike chicken with each other before a midair tackle sends them both crashing to the ground. What's not to love? It's the type of vehicular chaos that the "Fast & Furious" franchise's Dominic Toretto would be proud of.

Even so, "Mission: Impossible 2" ranks at the bottom of the bunch.

7. "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" (2011)

The 2011 film "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" takes the franchise into the modern era. It follows Hunt and his team as they're forced to go on the run when they're framed for bombing the Kremlin.

It quickly becomes a race to stop the villainous Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist), who wants to start a nuclear war so that only the strongest members of humanity will survive. 

It's this plot that keeps "Ghost Protocol" from ascending the ranking, because, as spy thrillers go, stopping a nuclear war feels predictable, and the film fails to do anything unique with the premise. Plus, there's nothing particularly extraordinary about Hendricks as a baddie.

But generic plot devices aside, the film features some brilliant fights and gripping set pieces. The stand-out moment is when Cruise's hero climbs the Burj Khalifa in Dubai with nothing but sticky gloves and rope.

One of the most surprising elements of the film is Jeremy Renner's William Brandt, a disgraced former agent who's grappling with the guilt of failing Ethan on a former mission. That sub-plot works very well among the rest of the action, and it's a clever way of injecting a bit of heart into the mission.

6. "Mission: Impossible 3" (2006)

Two words: JJ Abrams. The "Lost" and "Fringe" creator made his big screen debut in 2006 with "Mission: Impossible 3," which takes a mid-noughties approach to the Impossible Mission Force and gives it a brutal edge.

The sequel pits Ethan, Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), Zhen Lei (Maggie Q), and Declan Gormley (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) against a nefarious arms dealer played by the incomparable Phillip Seymour Hoffman.

Part of what elevates "Mission: Impossible 3" from previous films is that it never actually explains what Ethan and the gang are chasing. It's known only by its mysterious codename, the Rabbit's Foot. It could be an infectious disease, a computer virus, a hard drive teeming with currency, or nuclear codes — and that's what makes it so compelling. 

It's also refreshing to see Ethan settled and in love with Michelle Monahan's Julia Meade. What does married life look like for a superspy? How does that complicate his responsibility to save the world? 

The sequel feels very busy, as Abrams packs a lot into a tight two-hour run time. And some parts don't quite work, like Ethan's dynamic with his young mentee Lindsey Farris (Keri Russell). But there are some stellar sequences throughout, like the ballistic shoot-out on the bridge, which is an eye-popping piece of action choreography.

5. "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" (2025)

"Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" is the sequel to 2023's "Dead Reckoning," and sees Hunt race to stop an assassin known as Gabriel (Esai Morales) from controlling a sentient AI called the Entity. Just to raise the stakes, the Entity has already taken control of the world's nuclear weapons and plans to wipe out humanity.

While the 2025 movie is billed as the final entry in the franchise, its story doesn't quite live up to the high expectations set by "Dead Reckoning." The first hour is bogged down by lengthy exposition and generic action movie silliness.

That being said, as soon as the action picks up and Cruise embraces his adrenaline junkie persona once more, "The Final Reckoning" provides a breathtaking cinematic experience.

Whether it's the suspenseful scuba dive into a wrecked submarine or how Hunt climbs between two biplanes in the sky to fight Gabriel, the film's ambitious sequences deserve to be seen on the big screen.

4. "Mission: Impossible" (1996)

Taken from the 1966 TV series of the same name, 1996's "Mission: Impossible" introduces Cruise's Ethan Hunt, a field agent working for Jim Phelps (Jon Voight), the main character from the show. 

It has audiences instantly on their toes when Ethan's entire team, including Phelps, are assassinated by a double agent in the opening — forcing our hero to go on the run after being framed for their deaths.

"Mission: Impossible" earned itself a place in cinema history thanks to the brilliantly intense break-in scene, in which Cruise's Hunt hacks into a CIA mainframe computer while suspended on cables.

And of course, the high-octane ending on top of a Channel Tunnel train is a pulse-pounding affair set to the iconic theme music. 

Cruise effortlessly brings Hunt to life alongside top-notch performances from Voight, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Ving Rhames, which really help sell the paranoid atmosphere of the film

3. "Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation" (2015)

"Rogue Nation" is where frequent Tom Cruise collaborator Christopher McQuarrie properly put his stamp on the franchise. McQuarrie expands the world in a fascinating way with the introduction of the Syndicate, a vast organization made up of rogue agents from every intelligence agency on the planet.

Their mission (should they choose to accept it) is to create disorder and chaos to destabilize the global intelligence community, although their true goals don't become apparent until 2018's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout." Hunt is determined to root out the Syndicate, and its sinister leader, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris).

"Rogue Nation" also introduces Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), an enigmatic British agent who has a delicious will-they-won't-they dynamic with Cruise's hero.

A brawl in the rigging above an opera stage in Vienna is a stunning highlight, as is Cruise's underwater dive to retrieve a computer chip from a submerged safe. Cruise broke the world record for holding his breath for six minutes while completing that stunt in 2014.

2. "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One" (2023)

"Dead Reckoning Part One" sees Hunt's IMF team chasing a key that will lead them to an unstoppable AI that could wreak havoc on the world.

And, of course, every government agency in the world wants to get their hands on it, so Hunt and his team are effectively on the run from everyone. 

"Dead Reckoning's" focus on AI gives it a grounding in the real world, but the film also continues to elevate the sheer scale of action that audiences have come to expect from the "Mission: Impossible" franchise. 

That jaw-dropping mountain jump at the movie's climax has to be seen to be believed, and it only gets more bonkers after that.

It's a testament to Cruise and McQuarrie that the film feels fresh and new — even if the script does drag on at points. 

Then again, audiences are coming to see Cruise throw himself off a mountain, not to hear Oscar-winning dialogue.

1. "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" (2018)

There's no question that McQuarrie's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" is the best movie in the franchise, which is impressive considering it's the sixth outing for Hunt and the gang. 

It continues the Syndicate storyline from "Rogue Nation" and dives further into Solomon Lane's scheme. He wants to destabilize the world by irradiating the Siachen Glacier, which supplies water to India, Pakistan, and China. This would kill off a third of the world's population and drastically change society in the process.  

But most of the story revolves around a CIA and IMF mole who goes by the codename 'John Lark.'

The hunt to find this rogue agent crosses the world, introducing the likes of Henry Cavill's CIA agent August Walker and Vanessa Kirby's underworld matriarch, Alanna Mitsopolis. 

The scope of McQuarrie's movie is massive, and its huge stunts mirror that size. A gobsmacking scene sees Hunt dive with Walker from a plane and parachute into Paris. Cruise shot the stunt alongside a cameraman to properly capture the chaotic dive. 

Then, of course, there's the film's exhilarating helicopter chase through a New Zealand mountain range — just another example of McQuarrie and Cruise's commitment to filming these stunts in the most jaw-dropping way possible.

"Fallout" is a thrilling chapter of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise that deepens the audience's understanding of Cruise's hero while delivering a stunning cinematic experience.

• Tom Cruise does his own stunts, and it's remarkable what he's been able to pull off.
• Hanging from the side of a plane, skydiving, climbing the world's tallest building — he's done it all.
• He also jumped off the roof of the Stade de France to mark the end of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Tom Cruise has been one of the biggest names in Hollywood since the 1980s, and as his star power grew, so did his ambitions. 

He started to do a lot of his own stunts when appearing in action blockbusters like "Top Gun," "Mission: Impossible," and "Minority Report." Now, stunts have become Cruise's calling card.

His ambitiousness also bled into real life at the 2024 Paris Olympics' closing ceremony when he jumped off the roof of the Stade de France.

Now, the actor has added another stunning aerial sequence to his list of feats, in his latest movie: "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning."

Here are the best stunts of Cruise's career, ranked.

12. For the cargo-plane crash in "The Mummy," Cruise did the stunt inside a NASA plane that trains astronauts for zero gravity.

In 2017's "The Mummy," Cruise finds himself stuck in a cargo plane as it crashes. To pull off a scene like this, actors would typically film it in a controlled setting like a sound stage surrounded by a green screen.

Not Cruise, though.

The star shot the scene in a plane that NASA uses to train astronauts.

The scene was filmed in the plane which had to go up to 25,000 feet to get the look that Cruise was in zero gravity. The plane then did a free fall for 22 seconds.

Cruise did the flight four times to pull off the scene.

11. Cruise flew a helicopter in "Mission: Impossible — Fallout."

For the thrilling helicopter-chase scene in the finale of "Fallout," Cruise spent 16 hours a day training to get to the required 2,000 hours to fly a helicopter on his own.

But Cruise didn't just fly the helicopter. He also pulled off a 360-degree corkscrew dive in it, which would challenge even the most veteran pilot.

10. Cruise is really in an F/A-18 jet for the flight scenes in "Top Gun" Maverick" and had to deal with the G-forces.

When you see Cruise and the cast looking like they are battling G-forces in the jets, complete with distorted faces, it's because they really were.

Cruise and the cast went through training so their dogfight scenes could look as realistic as possible — which meant sitting in the F/A-18 jets as they were spun around and took dramatic dives.

9. Cruise jumped off the Stade de France during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The 2024 Paris Olympics closing ceremony went big on the Americana to mark Los Angeles hosting the 2028 games, with Cruise pulling off a stunt straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster.

He jumped off the roof of the Stade de France and descended into France's national stadium in front of thousands in a stunt that blurred the lines between himself and the daring characters he's known for playing. 

When Cruise got to the stage, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Olympian gymnast Simone Biles gave him the Olympic flag. After it was attached to a motorbike, the actor drove out of the stadium to start the flag's journey to America. He was later shown jumping out of a plane and turning the Hollywood sign into the Olympic rings. 

They're not the most extreme stunts of Cruise's career, but perfectly captures his showmanship.

8. Cruise climbed a 2,000-foot cliff in "Mission: Impossible 2."

In the opening scene of 2000's "M: I 2," Cruise is seen climbing a cliff. And yes, that's really him.

Cruise scaled the cliff in Utah with nothing but a safety rope. He also did a 15-foot jump from one cliff to another.

7. Cruise held his breath for six minutes for an underwater stunt in "Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation."

In one scene, Cruise's Ethan Hunt has to dive into an underwater safe to retrieve the computer chip that will lead him closer to the villain.

Along with having to hold his breath the whole time, he must keep away from a large crane that's circling around the safe.

For the scene, Cruise first jumped off a 120-foot ledge. Then, in a 20-foot deep-water tank, Cruise held his breath for six minutes.

6. Cruise broke his ankle jumping between buildings while making "Mission: Impossible — Fallout."

Tom Cruise loves to run in his movies; it's become his trademark. But his ability to continue running came into question after a stunt went wrong on the set of "Fallout."

While jumping from one building to another, Cruise hit the wall of the building the wrong way and broke his ankle.

The accident halted production for months and doctors told Cruise his running days might be over. But, six weeks later, Cruise was back on set doing sprints.

5. Cruise climbed the tallest building in the world for "Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol."

The Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the tallest building in the world, and Cruise climbed it.

For "Ghost Protocol," the actor's climb got him up to 1,700 feet in the air.

He also fell four stories down by rappelling on the surface of the building.

4. Cruise did 500 skydives and over 13,000 motocross jumps for the thrilling motorcycle stunt in "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 1."

For the latest "M:I" movie, Cruise once again pushed himself.

And one stunt in particular is definitely up there as one of his craziest ideas yet: driving a motorcycle off a cliff.

The star did 500 skydives and over 13,000 motocross jumps to prepare for the stunt. And that wasn't just so Cruise had the skill and comfort to pull off the stunt; the training also made it possible for director Christopher McQuarrie and his crew to map out camera angles to capture it. 

The stunt was then done on the first day of principal photography.

"We know either we will continue with the film or we're not. Let's know day one!" Cruise told "Entertainment Tonight" on why it was done on the first day.

Cruise ended up doing the stunt six times on the day of shooting.

 

3. Cruise hung on the side of a plane as it took off for "Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation."

Cruise clung to the side of a massive Airbus A400M plane as it took off and went up to 1,000 feet dealing with speeds of 100 knots.

To protect the actor, he was secured with a wire attached to the plane. He also had special contacts on to protect his eyes from debris.

Cruise did this stunt eight times.

2. Cruise navigated between two flying planes in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning."

In the climax of "The Final Reckoning," Hunt holds on to a biplane during takeoff, before eventually punching its pilot, throwing him out of the vehicle, and climbing into another plane being flown by the villain, Gabriel (Esai Morales).

The ambitious nature of the scene is what we've come to expect from Cruise, but seeing him cling on for dear life above the valleys of South Africa is nothing short of astounding.

Yes, he was strapped to the two different vehicles during multiple takes to achieve the sequence, but watching it unfold on the big screen is still breathtaking.

1. Cruise did 106 skydives with a broken ankle to pull off the HALO jump in "Mission: Impossible — Fallout."

While Cruise was healing the broken ankle he sustained earlier in the "Fallout" production, he went and pulled off the most amazing stunt he's done in his career so far.

In the movie, Cruise's character and CIA tagalong August Walker (Henry Cavill) decide to do a HALO jump — a high-altitude, low-open skydive, in which you open your parachute at a low altitude after free-falling for a period of time — out of a giant C-17 plane to get into Paris undetected.

Cruise did this for real by executing the jump 106 times over two weeks, many of them done during golden hour, a very brief period of perfect lighting that occurs just before sunset.

• Tom Cruise returns with death-defying stunts in "Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning."
• In 2023, Cruise told Business Insider that he's "always pushing" to make his films bigger and better.
• Cruise's commitment to his craft, including doing his own stunts, keeps audiences coming back for more.

From climbing the world's tallest building to clinging to the wing of a plane in flight and even jumping on Oprah's couch — there's a reason why Tom Cruise is the last great action star.

It's simple: stunts.

In the 15 years since the release of 2011's "Ghost Protocol," the fourth "Mission: Impossible" film, Cruise has done increasingly hair-raising stunts in each of his new movies.

Earlier in his career, Cruise acted in a greater mix of genres, including the 1994 horror "Interview with the Vampire," the 1996 comedy-drama "Jerry Maguire," and the 1999 erotic thriller "Eyes Wide Shut." In that era, he was considered widely a sex symbol.

Now, he trades in extraordinary feats.

"I'm always pushing," Tom Cruise told Business Insider in 2023 on the red carpet for "Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning."

"Every time they say, 'Can you top it? Can you not top it?' We're always pushing. Every film I do, whatever genre it's in, I want to make it as entertaining as possible for that audience. I know I can do things better," he said.

And it's a winning tactic. "Top Gun: Maverick," in which Cruise flew in real fighter jets, raked in $1.5 billion in 2022, while "Dead Reckoning," where he leapt off a mountain on a motorbike, made $567 million.

In "Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning," which is out on Friday, Cruise performs two nerve-shredding stunts: a scuba dive into the wreck of a submarine that rolls down into an ocean trench, and the climactic third act, where his character clings on to a biplane in flight.

It's expected to make $80 million in its opening weekend, The Hollywood Reporter reported, citing the National Research Group.

Cruise's enduring star power can even grab the attention of the most seasoned industry insiders. Rob Mitchell, the director of theatrical insights at film tech company Gower St. Analytics, recalled working as a sales analyst at Paramount in 2011, when employees did a set visit to see Cruise climb the Burj Khalifa.

"Everyone was taking pictures inside the Burj Khalifa, with Tom Cruise outside waving in," he told BI.

These sorts of stunts signal to audiences that Cruise is a bona fide star who is hardworking and takes his craft seriously—all ingredients of a movie more likely to be worth their hard-earned cash.

Referring to "Mission: Impossible," Mitchell said: "There comes a point where people aren't really going for the story as much as they are for the excitement and the thrills."

"In an era dominated by CGI superheroes, Cruise's staying power lies in the 'authenticity' of his performances," Stuart Joy, the course leader of film and TV at Solent University, UK, told BI. "Like Christopher Nolan, he champions analogue filmmaking in a digital age. But while Nolan does so behind the camera through practical effects and large-format film, Cruise embodies it on screen through real stunts and real danger."

Cruise's dedication to filmmaking has taken him around the world. During an interview at the BFI in London in May, he said he would "force" studios to send him to different countries to learn how movies were made there.

He also said encourages younger stars to "spend time in the editing room, produce a movie, study old movies, recognize what the composition is giving you, know what those lenses are, understand the lighting and how to use it for your benefit."

Last year, Cruise's "Top Gun: Maverick" costar Glen Powell told GQ that he was sent to a theater in Los Angeles to watch a six-hour "film-school" movie that Cruise made just for his friends.

"[Cruise] is like: 'Do we all agree that this is what a camera is? This is the difference between a film camera and a digital camera…' The funniest part is on flying. It was like he put together this entire flight school. So he would literally go 'OK, this is what a plane is. Here's how things fly. Here's how air pressure works,'" Powell said.

Centering his career around stunts is a smart PR move

As well as being undeniably impressive, stunts help to keep past controversies out of the conversation, Joy said.

"Cruise's transition from character-driven roles to stunt-centered performances seems intentional, not just as a creative decision but as a deliberate attempt to recalibrate public perceptions of his star persona," he said.

"After the mid-2000s controversies (most infamously the Oprah's sofa moment and scrutiny of his ties to Scientology) Cruise has successfully redirected the audience's attention," Joy added, referring to the moment in 2005 when he jumped on Winfrey's sofa while talking about his love for his then-girlfriend, and now ex-wife, Katie Holmes.

"Rather than inviting emotional connection through vulnerability, he now earns our praise and admiration through the spectacle of physical risk," Joy said.

Next, Cruise plans to shoot a movie in space with his "Edge of Tomorrow" and "American Made" collaborator, director Doug Liman.

In 2020, Deadline reported that Universal planned to spend $200 million on the film, and collaborate with Elon Musk's SpaceX to shoot it. Cruise and Liman were originally set to take flight in 2021, but the project is yet to materialize.

If it does get off the ground, audiences will likely flock to see "the ultimate Tom Cruise movie," as Mitchell puts it.

But wherever Cruise's career takes him next, Joy said that one thing is for certain: "He's made himself the guardian of a traditional cinematic spectacle."

• Tom Cruise, 62, said he wants to keep making movies until he's in his 100s.
• The "Mission: Impossible" star said he stays young by doing various activities.
• Working the mind and body and maintaining a zest for life are common traits in centenarians.

Tom Cruise said he wants to keep making movies until he's in his 100s. If he stays as active and curious as he is now, he may well succeed.

The 62-year-old actor, perhaps best known for his adrenaline-fueled stunts in the "Mission: Impossible" franchise, said in 2023 that he was inspired by Harrison Ford, who still works at 82.

But he told The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday: "Actually, I'm going to make them into my 100s. I will never stop. I will never stop doing action. I will never stop doing drama, comedy films — I'm excited."

"Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning," the eighth movie in the franchise and coming out this week, sees him doing a lengthy scuba dive and wing walking on a biplane, among other impressive stunts.

When Men's Health asked in 2023 how he stays young, he said: "Sea-kayaking, caving ... fencing, treadmill, weights ... rock-climbing, hiking ... I jog ... I do so many different activities."

Centenarians tend to be active and curious

Business Insider has spoken with many experts in healthy aging as well as healthy older people, including centenarians.

A common theme among them is keeping their minds and bodies active, including with new hobbies. A 2023 study based on interviews with 19 people between 100 and 107 published in the Journal of Happiness Studies identified eight traits in the centenarians. They included: being active, challenging your mind, taking commitments seriously, and being curious.

A person's chances of living a long, healthy life partly come down to their genetics and environment — and Cruise has more resources than most to take care of his health and try new things. But research suggests that a person's diet, exercise, and lifestyle can have a significant impact on their longevity.

Joyce Preston, who's from the UK and turned 100 in March, told BI that her morning routine included yoga or gentle exercise. She also enjoys short walks.

Meanwhile, John Tinniswood, who died at 112 in November, said: "Always do the best you can, whether you're learning something or whether you're teaching someone. Give it all you've got. Otherwise, it's not worth bothering with."

Some centenarians also prioritize diets of fresh, whole foods over processed ones. One 2022 study found that eating whole grains, legumes, fish, fruits, vegetables, and nuts could add 10 years to a person's lifespan.

Meanwhile, an expert in healthy aging previously told BI that 30 minutes of activity a day, particularly a mix of cardio and resistance training, could help prevent chronic illnesses.

By nailing these health basics, Cruise's dream of making films into the 2060s might not be mission impossible.

• Warning: spoilers of "Final Destination: Bloodlines" ahead.
• "Final Destination: Bloodlines" features a scene where an MRI machine rips out a character's piercings.
• The actor, Richard Harmon, said he came up with a disturbing addition to the scene.

Audiences were terrified of logging trucks after watching "Final Destination 2." Now, thanks to "Final Destination: Bloodlines," they'll be afraid of MRI machines, too.

Richard Harmon, the actor whose character meets his grizzly end in the MRI scene, told Business Insider that he masterminded its most eye-opening moment.

The new movie, which is out now, follows Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), a college student who dreams of her grandmother (who is alive) dying in a skyscraper accident in 1968.

She realizes that her family wasn't meant to exist, and that they're being hunted by Death itself.

Richard Harmon plays Erik, Stefani's cousin, a tattooist and piercer who is skeptical about the deaths plaguing his family. Toward the end of the film, Erik finally dies when an MRI machine is accidentally turned to the highest setting, ripping out all of his body piercings — including one on his penis.

Ahead of the film's release, Harmon told BI it was his idea for the character to have his penis pierced.

"Looking at this character and the way that he's tattooed and the way that he's pierced, I said 'there's another piercing, you know,' and they're like, 'What do you mean?' 'I think you know exactly what I mean,'" Harmon said.

He added: "Then both of our directors said, 'We actually had that thought,' and I said, 'Well why aren't we doing it?'

"We discussed it, and then we put it in on bthe day."

Craig Perry, who has produced every "Final Destination" movie, explained to BI in a separate interview that the MRI scene works so well because: "that's something that people understand, and there's such an unbelievable rich vein of danger in that machine and what it can do, and if you're not careful about metal objects around it."

Perry added: "This is a perfect opportunity for us to put some characters in a circumstance where there's a rising level of magnetism and how it starts to slowly impact the world around them, until it starts impacting the world inside of them."

Harmon assured horror movie fans that incidents like the one in "Final Destination: Bloodlines" are extremely rare, but had some important advice: "Don't let our movie tell you not to go get an MRI. The chances of what happened in that scene are very slim… Just maybe take your piercings out first."

• Marvel's "Ironheart" follows Riri Williams, a character from "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever."
• Riri (Dominique Thorne) is a teenage inventor who builds her own version of the Iron Man suit.
• The Disney+ show is produced by "Black Panther" and "Sinners" director Ryan Coogler.

Marvel's "Ironheart" puts a new hero in the spotlight.

Three years after she was first introduced in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) is back as the focus of the upcoming TV series.

In the 2022 film, the teenage tech genius built her own version of the Iron Man suit and fought against Namor (Tenoch Huerta) and the Atlantean army alongside Shuri (Letitia Wright).

While the Wakandans didn't let Riri keep the armor at the end of the film, they didn't say anything about her not making another suit — and that's exactly what she does in "Ironheart."

In the series, which is produced by "Sinners" director Ryan Coogler, she'll also contend with the divide between magic and technology thanks to the introduction of a character named The Hood.

Here's what to know about the show.

'Ironheart' premieres on June 24

The first "Ironheart" trailer shows Riri living in Chicago after the events of "Wakanda Forever" and building her own suit of armor. She crosses paths with Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos), who wears a magical hood that gives him dark, mystical powers.

In the footage, which was released on May 14, Robbins promises Riri that he can fund her "vision" if they work together. He points out that she is overlooked at college despite being a genius.

The trailer confirms that the six-episode miniseries will start airing on Disney+ on June 24 in the US.

Dominique Thorne leads the 'Ironheart' cast alongside Anthony Ramos

This is Riri's second appearance in the MCU, and the character has appeared in the Marvel comics since 2016.

The Hood was introduced to comic readers in 2002 as a petty criminal who gains magical powers after he steals a hooded cape and a pair of boots from a demon. The outfit allows him to turn invisible when holding his breath, and he can also levitate.

Alden Ehrenreich, best known for playing a young Han Solo in "Solo: A Star Wars Story," plays an original character named Joe McGillicuddy, who has a secret bunker, as seen in the trailer.

Actor Sacha Baron Cohen is also listed in the cast, but his role is unknown.

Rounding out the cast are Lyric Ross as Natalie Washington, Riri's friend, Anji White as Riri's mother, and Manny Montana as Cousin John.

• Sean "Diddy" Combs is on trial for racketeering and sex trafficking charges.
• 50 Cent used the trail as an opportunity to reignite their decadeslong feud.
• On Wednesday, 50 Cent made fun of Diddy and Jay-Z's friendship.

With Sean "Diddy" Combs on trial over charges including racketeering and sex trafficking, 50 Cent has been gleefully fanning the flames of their two decadeslong feud.

The trial is separate to a civil lawsuit filed by Diddy's ex partner Cassie in November 2023, accusing him of rape, sexual assault, and human trafficking (which she said was settled for $20 million). Diddy has denied the allegations.

The beef between the two rappers kicked off publicly in 2006 when 50 Cent released a diss track called "The Bomb," which accused Diddy of knowing who shot and killed The Notorious B.I.G. in 1997.

Since then, the pair have taken numerous jabs at one another. In 2010, Diddy described 50 Cent as a "hating ass crap" after he became the manager of Rick Ross in 2009 — another rapper who 50 Cent had beef with.

Here are some key moments from the beef, and who else has become tangled up in it.

50 Cent joked about Diddy and Jay-Z's friendship

On Wednesday, 50 Cent shared an Instagram post showing photos of Jay-Z and Diddy over the years.

"Friends till the end, Jay you still there? We blew up Kid cudi's car to show him who's the BOSS! LOL," 50 Cent wrote in the caption speaking as Diddy.

Cassie's 2023 lawsuit against Diddy claimed that he was responsible for blowing up Kid Cudi's car. In her testimony during Diddy's ongoing trial, Cassie said she admitted to Diddy she cheated on him with Kid Cudi in 2011.

50 Cent commissioned a documentary about Diddy soon after Cassie filed her lawsuit

After Cassie filed her November 2023 lawsuit, by December 50 Cent's production company had started work on a documentary about the allegations.

50 Cent later posted a clip from the documentary featuring the Bad Boy Records rapper Mark Curry, alleging that Diddy spiked girls' drinks at parties.

50 Cent confirmed to Variety in September 2024 that he's making the documentary for Netflix. It's unclear when it will be released.

A representative from Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider about the documentary.

50 Cent taunted Diddy when he was arrested

When the details of a federal indictment emerged, alleging that law enforcement seized narcotics and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant during raids on Diddy's mansions in March 2024, 50 Cent wasn't silent for long.

He wrote on X: "Here I am keeping good company with @DrewBarrymoreTV and I don't have 1,000 bottles of lube at the house."

50 Cent made fun of Diddy after the authorities raided his mansions

50 Cent also taunted Diddy when federal officers raided his properties. In a since-deleted Instagram post from March 2024, he shared a screenshot of a TMZ article about the raids and wrote: "Now it's not Diddy do it, it's Diddy Done. They don't come like that unless they got a case."

Page Six reported at the time that 50 Cent also posted a screenshot of Diddy's two sons, Justin and King Combs, in handcuffs, but that post was also deleted.

In the caption, Page Six reported he wrote: "Shit just got real. The Fed's in all the cribs, damn they got the kids in cuffs."

In December 2024, Diddy posted a statement on X that read: "Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged. I will fight for my name, my family, and for the truth."

Representatives for 50 Cent and Diddy did not respond to requests for comment from BI.

• The "Final Destination: Bloodlines" trailer shows a character getting dragged by his nose piercing.
• The actor Richard Harmon said the ambitious stunt involved real fire and took five days to shoot.
• He also told BI he had freedom to get weird with his character, and asked to lick a garbage truck.

Even fans of the "Final Destination" movies probably winced at a man being dragged by his nose piercing in the "Bloodlines" teaser trailer: a scene that its actor told Business Insider took five days to shoot.

"Final Destination: Bloodlines" is the sixth chapter in the franchise, which has made over $600 million worldwide since in launched in 2000, according to The Numbers.

The new film follows a student Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), who has a disturbing dream of her grandmother dying in an accident on a skyscraper in 1968, despite the fact that the older woman survived the incident.

Richard Harmon plays Erik, Stefani's cousin, who works in a tattoo parlor and is covered in piercings. In a standout scene in the film, he's working late when he gets his septum ring caught on a chain attached to a ceiling fan, and cleaning fluid accidentally catches fire below him.

He told BI that no computer-generated effects were used to film the scene.

"That was all legitimate. I just had wires on behind me, so if the wire broke, I wouldn't have my nose ripped off. But yeah, they did all that practical. The fire was real, the chain is real," he said.

Explaining how the crew kept him safe while filming the stunt, he said: "The chain had a bit of a breakaway weight, so if the wires were to give out and I got a little bit of pressure on it, the chain would break. It wouldn't hold me up, but it was a ton of fun.

"We shot that sequence actually over five days, which is a lot of time to shoot one thing."

Erik is foul-mouthed, impulsive, and reckless throughout the film. He even provokes Death to murder him while pretending to have sex with a garbage truck.

Asked how much freedom he had with the character, particularly with the garbage truck scene, Harmon said: "The making love to the garbage truck, coitus, so to speak, the beast with two backs, that was in the script, actually!" he recalled, adding that he chose to take the scene a step further.

"I don't think they knew what I was gonna do with it, and I just remember being like, 'Can you like wipe off the… Can you sterilize the truck so I can lick it?' And they did."

• Robert De Niro criticized Donald Trump's tariffs at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday.
• The actor called Trump a "philistine president" while accepting a lifetime achievment Palme d'Or award.
• Here's a timeline of their 14-year feud.

Robert De Niro told the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday that America is fighting for "the democracy we once took for granted," in his latest swipe at Donald Trump amid a 14-year feud.

Since 2011, De Niro has criticized Trump's politics and behavior in interviews, award speeches, and political campaign videos.

Here's a timeline of De Niro and Trump's feud.

April 2011: De Niro criticizes Trump for commenting on former president Barack Obama's citizenship.

Trump and De Niro first exchanged verbal blows in April 2011 after Trump questioned the citizenship status of then-president, Barack Obama.

Trump was one of many celebrity and political figures who began demanding to see Obama's birth certificate at the time because they wrongly believed he was born in the US.

During an interview with NBC News' Brian Williams at the Tribeca Film Festival, De Niro criticized those who made this claim.

"A lot of these guys, they're intentions are not even good. They're just playing the game. And they're playing with people's lives," De Niro said in 2011 (per The Hollywood Reporter). "It's crazy. They're making statements about people that they don't even back up. Go get the facts before you start saying things about people."

De Niro confirmed later in the interview that Trump was among the people he was referring to.

Trump hit back a few days on "Fox & Friends," where he said De Niro was "not the brightest bulb on the planet."

"I have been watching over the years, and I like his acting, but in terms of when I watch him doing interviews and various other things, we are not dealing with Albert Einstein," Trump added before doubling down on his demand for Obama to show his birth certificate.

August 2016: De Niro calls Trump "nuts."

De Niro and Trump's beef cooled off until Trump became the Republican Party's candidate for the 2016 presidential election.

While speaking at an event for the 40th anniversary of "Taxi Driver" in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in August 2016, De Niro brought up Trump's campaign and said the businessman was "totally nuts."

"It's crazy that people like Donald Trump, he shouldn't even be where he is, so God help us," De Niro said. "What he's been saying is really totally crazy, ridiculous stuff."

Fall 2016: De Niro joins the Democrats' campaign and says he wants to "punch" Trump.

De Niro was one of the many celebrities who supported Hillary Clinton's bid for the presidency in the run-up to the 2016 election.

In October of that year, De Niro participated in a video for the #VoteYourFuture campaign to get young people involved but spent most of the video slinging insults at Trump.

"I mean he's so blatantly stupid. He's a punk, he's a dog, he's a pig, he's a con, a bullshit artist, a mutt who doesn't know what he's talking about, doesn't do his homework, doesn't care, thinks he's gaming society, doesn't pay his taxes. He's an idiot," he said.

De Niro added: "He talks about how he wants to punch people in the face. Well, I'd like to punch him in the face."

De Niro later told "The View" that the "punch" threat was symbolic and he didn't actually want to hit Trump.

"I said that because he said that about somebody that he would like to punch them in the face. How dare he say that to the crowd?" De Niro said of Trump.

In the following weeks, De Niro argued publicly with actors Jon Voight and Arnold Schwarzenegger over their support for Trump and spoke out against Trump during a speech at the Hollywood Film Awards.

When Trump was elected in November 2016, De Niro told The Hollywood Reporter that he felt "like I did after 9/11."

De Niro also told "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" that he won't punch the president.

"I can't do that now; he's the president. I have to respect the position, though we all know what…," he said, trailing off as a joke. "We have to see what he's gonna do, and how he's really gonna follow through on certain things."

Their feud then cooled off for the remainder of 2016.

2017: De Niro criticizes Trump in speeches and interviews.

In 2017, De Niro took almost every opportunity to fire more shots at Trump.

In January 2017, De Niro appeared in a "United We Stand" rally against Trump, where he joked about the president's social media rants and criticized his stance on immigration.

"He's a bad example of this country," De Niro said of Trump. "We're all rooting for the new administration, of course, to abandon the divisive, racist, misogynist, ignorant plans it's trumpeting and lead us with intelligence and compassion."

In the same month, he told "Today" that calls to boycott Trump's presidential inauguration were justified.

"I think that whatever people do, they should do it fully because there's a lot of crazy stuff happening now," De Niro said.

In May 2017, De Niro used a speech at Brown University as he accepted an honorary doctorate of fine arts to mock Trump.

"When you started school, the country was an inspiring, uplifting drama. You are graduating into a tragic, dumbass comedy," he said.

During another speech at the Annual Hudson River Park Gala, De Niro called Trump a "motherfucker," New York Daily News reported.

2018: Trump finally responds to De Niro after further insults.

In March 2018, De Niro called Trump an "idiot" in a speech for an event to celebrate the Fulfillment Fund for promoting higher education.

"He lacks any sense of humanity or compassion," De Niro said per Variety. "Now I'm not trying to turn this non-political event into a political one, but as long as our country's leadership is so appalling and so corrupt, I'll be speaking out at every venue."

He added: "To be silent in the face of such villainy is to be complicit, and it's especially appropriate tonight because Trump treats education as a con, a way to make a profit at the expense of the suckers."

Continuing the sentiment about speaking up against Trump, in June 2018, De Niro said "fuck Trump" while hosting the Tony Awards, and received a standing ovation.

This comment finally garnered a response from Trump.

"Robert De Niro, a very Low IQ individual, has received too many shots to the head by real boxers in movies. I watched him last night and truly believe he may be 'punch-drunk,'" Trump wrote on X two days after the Tony's.

Robert De Niro, a very Low IQ individual, has received too many shots to the head by real boxers in movies. I watched him last night and truly believe he may be “punch-drunk.” I guess he doesn’t...

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2018

"I guess he doesn't realize the economy is the best it's ever been with employment being at an all time high, and many companies pouring back into our country. Wake up Punchy!" he continued.

De Niro was also one of several Trump critics who were mailed bombs in October 2018, though police never linked these incidents to the former US president.

De Niro was unfazed and instead responded by encouraging people to vote in the midterm elections.

"There's something more powerful than bombs and that's your vote. People MUST vote!" De Niro told Sky News. "I thank God no one's been hurt, and I thank the brave and resourceful security and law enforcement people for protecting us."

In 2018, "Saturday Night Live" began featuring regular sketches mocking Trump, with Alec Baldwin portraying the president. De Niro joined these sketches in April, making frequent cameo appearances as Robert Mueller, the special counsel overseeing an investigation into Trump's election campaign and Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 US elections.

2019: De Niro says Trump's "impeachment and imprisonment" would make America great again.

In March 2019, Mueller released a report on his investigation into the US 2016 election. The report found that Russian agents "interfered in the presidential election in sweeping and systematic fashion" but said there was not enough evidence to accuse Trump's team of being involved.

However, the evidence within the report kickstarted a campaign to impeach Trump.

De Niro also joined calls for Trump's impeachment. During a speech at the American Icons Awards in late March, De Niro said Trump's "impeachment and imprisonment" would make America great again.

In May, De Niro wrote an open letter to Mueller in The New York Times to encourage him to testify against Trump in Congress.

In October, De Niro also told The Guardian at the London Film Festival that he wanted to see Trump jailed after his impeachment inquiry.

"Oh, I can't wait to see him in jail. I don't want him to die, I want him to go to jail," De Niro said.

Trump was impeached in 2019, but for a different investigation, and the president was later acquitted by the Senate.

Throughout 2019, De Niro also threw further insults at Trump, including calling him "too stupid to even know he's evil," a "total loser," a "white supremacist" and a "nasty little bitch."

2020: De Niro criticizes Trump's response to the COVID pandemic.

During Trump's last year in office, the world was hit by the COVID pandemic.

In May 2020, De Niro criticized Trump's response to the pandemic on BBC Newsnight, saying that the president did not care how many people had died.

"It's Shakespearean, the whole thing, you've got a lunatic saying things that people are trying to dance around," De Niro said. "They're doing it in the hearings a little more, trying to say tactfully that this is what will happen, Fauci is doing that."

“It’s like Shakespearean the whole thing” – actor Robert de Niro on how the coronavirus outbreak is being handled in the US#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/k64t3Mhcl9

— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) May 12, 2020

De Niro added, referring to Trump: "It's appalling. He wants to be re-elected. He doesn't even care how many people die."

Trump being voted out of office in November 2020 didn't mean De Niro was done criticizing him.

De Niro told MSNBC in November, after the 2020 election, that he though there would be another "Trump-like" candidate who would be smart enough to trick the public.

"It's the same playbook as Mussolini, as Hitler, as wannabe dictators," De Niro said. "It's all appealing to the worst prejudices, the worst weaknesses of the public and instead of leading them and guiding them and being someone that they can look up to."

2023: De Niro reignites the feud during the press "Killers of a Flower Moon" press tour.

Ahead of the 2024 election, Variety reported that De Niro compared Trump to the "evil" men in "Killers of a Flower Moon" during a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival for the film.

"There are people who still think he can do a good job. Imagine how insane that is," De Niro said, referring to Trump.

In October, De Niro missed the Stop Trump Summit in New York City after contracting COVID but said in a video statement: "When I look at him, I don't see a bad man. Truly. I see an evil one.

"The man who was supposed to protect this country put it in peril, because of his recklessness and impulsiveness. It was like an abusive father ruling the family by fear and violent behavior."

At the Gotham Film Awards, he brought up Trump again but stalled during his speech and accused Apple, the producer of the movie, of editing what he wanted to say.

"I just want to say one thing. The beginning of my speech was edited, cut out. I didn't know about it. And I want to read it," De Niro said before bringing out his phone to read the original speech.

"The former president lied to us more than 30,000 times during his four years … in office, and he's keeping up the pace in his current campaign of retribution," De Niro said, referring to Trump. "But with all his lies, he can't hide his soul."

De Niro told Rolling Stone that he found out after the event that Apple had tried to ask him to tone down the speech, but he had missed the memo.

Trump fired back at De Niro's comments in a post on Truth Social.

"Robert De Niro, whose acting talents have greatly diminished, with his reputation now shot, must even use a teleprompter for his foul and disgusting language, so disrespectful to our Country," Trump wrote.

"De Niro should focus on his life, which is a mess, rather than the lives of others. He has become a total loser, as the World watches, waits, and laughs!" he added.

March 2024: De Niro fires back at Trump's social media posts.

On "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in March, Kimmel asked De Niro about Trump's social media posts about him.

"He's so fucking stupid," De Niro responded. "Look at the lame, inane things that he said. He's so stupid he can't even say anything clever. He's a fucking moron."

"He is a malignant narcissist. He's a socio-psychopath," he added. "It's so frightening and scary, and he's dangerous. We got to get rid of him."

May 28 2024: De Niro appears in another Democrat campaign video and news conference.

On May 22, De Niro lent his voice to a video for Biden's presidential campaign.

"Now, he's running again, this time threatening to be a 'dictator,' to terminate the constitution," De Niro said. "Trump wants revenge, and he'll stop at nothing to get it."

On May 28, De Niro appeared at a news conference for Biden's presidential campaign outside Trump's hush money trial. At the conference, he said he had joined Biden's campaign.

"When Trump ran in 2016, it was like a joke. 'This buffoon running for president? No, never could happen,'" De Niro said. "We'd forgotten the lessons of history that showed us other clowns who weren't taken seriously until they became vicious dictators."

De Niro said the new Biden-Harris ad was created to show how Trump uses "violence" against people who stand in his way.

"But it's a coward's violence," he added.

In another interview with the press outside the courthouse, De Niro said: "He's a monster. He cannot be president of the United States again. Never ever."

Trump mocked De Niro on Truth Social in response.

"I never knew how small, both mentally and physically, Wacko Former Actor Robert De Niro was," Trump wrote on Wednesday. "Today, De Niro, who suffers from an incurable case of TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, commonly known in the medical community as TDS, was met, outside the Courthouse, with a force far greater than the Radical Left - MAGA."

He added that De Niro looked "so pathetic and sad" and the actor's brand has "gone WAY DOWN IN VALUE" since he started supporting Biden.

May 30, 2024: De Niro supports New York jury's decision to convict Trump.

On May 30, Trump became the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime, after he was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels.

Trump maintains his innocence.

"It's as it should be. Justice has been served. That's it," De Niro told PageSix, adding that the public must stop Trump from being elected in November.

De Niro told Variety at the time: "This never should have gotten to this stage. I don't want to be talking, but I am so upset by it. I have to say something. This is my country. This guy wants to destroy it. Period. He's crazy.

"People are fed up, they're going to fight back. That's not what we're about in this country."

May 13, 2025: De Niro calls Trump a 'philistine president' at the Cannes Film Festival.

De Niro appeared at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival to accept a Palme d'Or lifetime achievement award.

He used his acceptance speech to criticize Trump, and said: "Art looks for truth. Art embraces diversity. That's why art is a threat."

Referring to Trump becoming head of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in February, De Niro continued: "That's why we are a threat to autocrats and fascists. America's philistine president has had himself appointed head of one of our premier cultural institutions. He has cut funding and support to the arts, humanities, and education."

The actor also criticized Trump's recent move to put tariffs on movies made outside the US.

He added: "You can't put a price on creativity, but apparently you can put a tariff on it. Of course, this is unacceptable. All of these attacks are unacceptable. And this isn't just an American problem, it's a global one.

"Like a film, we can't just all sit back and watch. We have to act, and we have to act now."

Trump's representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• Sean "Diddy" Combs and the singer Cassie were together for over a decade.
• In November 2023, Cassie accused Combs of rape and abuse in a lawsuit.
• Cassie testified at Combs' sex trafficking trial on Tuesday.

The singer Cassie accused her former partner and record label boss, Sean "Diddy" Combs, of rape and abuse over the course of their decade-long relationship in a 2023 lawsuit.

In 2006, Cassie burst onto the music scene with hit songs like "Me & U" and "Long Way 2 Go," released via Diddy's Bad Boy Records.

The pair were first linked romantically in 2007 and broke up in 2018.

On Tuesday, Cassie testified against Diddy at his sex-trafficking trial.

Here is a timeline of Diddy and Cassie's relationship.

2006: Cassie releases her self-titled album with Diddy's record label.

In August 2006, Cassie released her self-titled album under Combs' record label, Bad Boy Records.

Combs produced the album and featured on a remix of her hit song "Me & U" alongside rapper Yung Joc.

2007: Diddy and Cassie reportedly start dating.

Combs and Cassie reportedly started dating in 2007 after she became the face of the rapper's fashion label, Sean John. The pair did not confirm their relationship at the time.

That year, Diddy's longtime partner, Kim Porter, said she ended her "on-again/off-again relationship" with him.

2012: Cassie and Diddy appear at events as a couple.

Although there were rumors that Diddy and Cassie were dating, they started appearing at events together in 2012.

They were seen together at Ye's (formerly Kanye West) Paris Fashion Week show, and also attended Diddy's own Paris Fashion Week event together.

2014: Diddy posts a photo of a diamond ring.

Engagement rumors swirled in 2014 after Diddy posted a since-deleted photo of a diamond ring on Instagram.

Per Billboard, the caption read: "Baby do you like it? I just want to give you what you like!"

December 2015: The pair reportedly break up.

A year after the first rumors that were engaged spread, the pair broke up briefly in December 2015, Page Six reported citing an unnamed source.

In 2022, the model Gina Huynh told The Jasmine Brand that she was seeing Diddy around this time, while he was dating Cassie.

Huynh said: "I was young too. I was young, naive, I didn't know better. It was enticing. It was very tempting. It was hard not to. I do feel bad though."

August 2016: More breakup rumors emerge following an argument.

The pair made headlines in August 2016 when TMZ reported that they got into an argument while driving through LA, with Diddy taking Cassie's phone and leaving the vehicle.

Per the report, the rapper later returned home to give her the phone back.

According to TMZ, Cassie's mother called the police over the incident, resulting in a domestic incident report being written by authorities.

January 2018: Diddy says he wants more children with Cassie.

Diddy appeared on Power 105.1 FM's "The Breakfast Club" and said that he wanted to have more children.

He said: "I love children. I'm trying to get 10. I could go to eight without a problem. Whatever is supposed to happen in the future is going to happen, but that's something that I want. I would only have it with my girl, of course."

October 2018: Diddy and Cassie break up.

Diddy and Cassie ended their relationship at some point in 2018, but the news wasn't made public until October.

A representative for Cassie told LoveBScott: "They are indeed no longer together and haven't been for months."

LoveBScott also reported that Diddy had been spotted with model Jocelyn Chew shortly before the announcement.

September 2019: Cassie marries Alex Fine.

After splitting up with Diddy, Cassie started dating her personal trainer Alex Fine. Cassie posted a photo of them kissing on her Instagram page in December 2018.

The couple later announced that they were expecting a baby, before getting married in September 2019, a year after Cassie's breakup with Diddy.

Cassie gave birth to their first child together, daughter Frankie Fine, on December 6, 2019, reported People.

The couple welcomed a second daughter, Sunny Fine, on March 22, 2021. Cassie announced the baby's birth on Instagram.

November 2023: Cassie files a lawsuit accusing Diddy of rape and abuse.

Cassie filed a lawsuit against Diddy on November 16, 2023 accusing him of rape, physical abuse, and controlling her over the course of their relationship, per documents seen by Business Insider.

"After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story, and to speak up on behalf of myself and for the benefit of other women who face violence and abuse in their relationships. With the expiration of New York's Adult Survivors Act fast approaching, it became clear that this was an opportunity to speak up about the trauma I have experienced and that I will be recovering from for the rest of my life," Cassie said in a statement.

Through his representatives, Diddy denied the allegations against him.

"Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations," said the rapper's lawyer, Ben Brafman, in a statement. "For the past six months, Mr. Combs has been subjected to Ms. Ventura's persistent demand of $30 million, under the threat of writing a damaging book about their relationship, which was unequivocally rejected as blatant blackmail. Despite withdrawing her initial threat, Ms. Ventura has now resorted to filing a lawsuit riddled with baseless and outrageous lies, aiming to tarnish Mr. Combs's reputation and seeking a payday."

The suit was settled that same month, according to CNN.

May 2024: A video from 2016 appears to show Diddy assaulting Cassie

CNN published a video on May 17, that appeared to show Diddy pursuing Cassie in a hotel hallway in 2016. At the time, the couple were still together.

The footage seemingly showed Diddy dragging and kicking Cassie in the hallway of the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles.

May 2024: Diddy apologizes

Diddy was heavily criticized on social media because of the footage. On May 19, he posted an apology video to Instagram in which he said he's not expecting forgiveness.

"My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video," he said.

"I was disgusted then when I did it. I'm disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab," the rapper added.

"I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I'm so sorry. But I'm committed to be a better man each and every day. I'm not asking for forgiveness. I'm truly sorry."

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May 2024: Cassie thanks fans for their support

On May 23, Cassie issued a statement via her Instagram to thank those who had supported her.

"Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers and those I have yet to meet," she wrote. "The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning."

She did not mention Diddy in the caption but added: "Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become. With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past," Cassie continued.

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14. May 2024: Cassie testifies at Combs' sex-trafficking trial.

On May 13, Cassie testified at Combs' sex-trafficking trial in New York.

She recalled being introduced to the parties Combs used to throw, called "freak-offs."

"I remember my stomach falling to my butt. Just the nervousness and confusion… I had just turned 22," she said.

Cassied said that during these parties, Combs would force her to engage with male escorts while he watched.

• Jamie Lee Curtis has promoted products including yogurt and pantyhose.
• She said the commercials allowed her to spend more time at home with her children.
• Curtis described herself as "an imperfect working mom."

Jamie Lee Curtis knows it may seem odd that she's done so many commercials considering she's, well, Jamie Lee Curtis.

The actor made her name in hit films and franchises including "Halloween," "True Lies," "Freaky Friday," and "Knives Out" and won an Oscar in 2023. She has also appeared in commercials for Hertz rental cars in 1988, and was a spokesperson for L'EGGS Pantyhose in 1996. In 2010, she started working with the food company Dannon to promote Activia yoghurt.

Curtis told Sunday's episode of "60 Minutes" she did the commercials "for the most part, because they allowed me to stay home with my kids. I am an imperfect working mom. Because no working moms are perfect."

She and her husband, Christopher Guest have two children, Ruby and Annie Guest, aged 28 and 37.

Referring to being a working mother, Curtis continued: "We make it look good, we think we've done it, but the truth is we feel badly, but I know how much time away from them I spent in pursuit of my own creativity."

Movies can often take months to shoot, whereas commercials typically take less time and don't require those involved to be on location for a long period of time.

It's not the first time Curtis has discussed her brand deals. In 2021, she appeared on "The Kingcast," where she said it was difficult being away from her family while shooting movies.

"It's the reason that I sold yogurt that makes you shit for seven years. Part of the reason why I've done commercials… I've been doing commercials for a very, very, very long time partially so I can ameliorate all of that distance from my family. It allowed me to earn money and stay home," she said.

She's not the only celebrity who has opened up about managing a side hustle with family in mind.

In 2023, "Modern Family" star Sofia Vergara appeared on "Hart to Heart," where she explained that her motivation in starting her own beauty lines and working with brands like Schwarzkopf was to provide for her family.

She said: "I always wanted to create something for me, for my son, for my family. I went from living in Columbia, from a lot of problems, to living in the United States and I wanted to take care of all of them, I wanted to make money."

• Austin Gayne is the founder of SuperX, a superhero and pop culture-inspired gym wear company.
• He works with brands including Marvel to create merchandise based on characters like Spider-Man.
• SuperX bought a lot of materials from China, but pivoted in response to Trump's tariffs.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Austin Gayne, the 29-year-old CEO of the sportswear company, SuperX, who is based in Nashville, Tennessee. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When people watch movies like "Batman Begins" and see Christian Bale's physique and Bruce Wayne's work ethic, it's like, "Wow, that's kind of inspiring." It makes you want to either start a fitness routine, be a better person, or just get your adrenaline pumping. This is our secret sauce at SuperX.

Although I started SuperX as a supplement company, I pivoted to activewear because nobody was really doing superhero designs. People see the company as a niche clothing brand, or a superhero clothing brand, but I'm transitioning it into a pop culture fitness brand, which understands the connection between customers wanting to feel like these characters.

The reason people connect with them is very character-specific. Let's use Spider-Man as an example. The reason so many people resonate with him beyond his cool powers is that they see Peter Parker.

He's overlooked, doubted, bullied, and below average, but he rises above it. Many fans relate to him, and they feel they can become something more.

So, when we collaborate with Marvel on merch featuring a character, we're really going to tap into that feeling. Everybody wants to be a better person. That's why our slogan is "Be extraordinary."

It's not just, "work out and become jacked." If that's what you choose to be, great! But it could be that you want to run a marathon, rank up in your career, be a better spouse, a better father, a better son, a better friend — whatever it means to you.

Getting permission from brands like Marvel and DC to make merch grew my business — but it's a complex partnership.

Think of huge companies that own massive properties. Disney owns Marvel and Lucasfilm. Warner Bros. owns DC Comics, "Harry Potter," "Mortal Kombat," and "The Lord of the Rings."

These licensers have their own set of guidelines and rules for each brand. So, for example, Disney's rules for Marvel are different to Lucasfilm's for "Star Wars." From my perspective, licensing is very challenging because a third party has to approve your products and marketing, which adds another layer of complexity to your business.

We're trying to master that approval process. Yes, licensing gives you a direct connection to the characters, which is great and comes with certain freedoms. It allows us to use superior details in our designs in unique ways, instead of just slapping a print on a T-shirt.

However, licenses also mean you effectively have a new business partner who makes product and creative-related decisions, which can make the process more complicated than creating things in-house.

And for businesses that are trying to expand, the recent tariffs will make things even harder.

Trump's tariffs will affect smaller businesses, but it's also a learning opportunity.

The moment we heard about the tariff increase, we immediately freaked out because we thought, "We have to adapt to this quickly." For a couple of days, I wasn't optimistic because I've never faced this before. With the margins we have, there was no way that we could continue doing business the way we did.

I immediately started calling different companies in different countries. We found a manufacturer in the USA who could make one of my products, and a handful in other countries, instead of getting all of our supply from one place.

Fortunately, we didn't have any shipments in the water when the tariffs were announced. I have immense sympathy for anyone who did, because if you had a shipment on a boat and it landed, you would be screwed. You would have to pay that amount, or you would just dock it and have to figure it out.

These tariffs are changing on a near-daily, if not weekly, basis. We just don't know how long they're going to be in place. They're going to ruin hundreds of thousands of middle to small-tier businesses because there isn't enough time to divest their manufacturing and supply chain from China to different countries.

However, the ones who survive will become better, leaner, more efficient, more tactical, and wiser operators.

It's kind of like Charles Darwin's theory. It's not the smartest or the strongest who are going to survive, but it's those who are most adaptable. I'm not the smartest or the strongest, but I'm definitely one of the most adaptable. You just say, "Hey, I'm going to figure it out. I'm going to lace up my boots. We'll figure this out, and eventually this too shall pass. When it does, I'm going to be better for it."

No amount of business books will teach you how to become an efficient operator. There's no amount of podcasts you can listen to figure out how to avoid all the mistakes.

I use these types of situations to offer encouragement to people in my situation. You have to think: "Okay, if I can get through this and make it on the other side, I should be wiser, more disciplined, and ultimately have a better and healthier business."

Essentially, our approach to navigating the tariffs all comes down to "Be extraordinary," which forces us to be innovative disruptors.

• Liam Payne died in Argentina last October at the age of 31.
• The former One Direction singer, who did not have a will, left behind a $32.2 million estate.
• Payne's ex-partner, Cheryl Tweedy, is legally responsible for his fortune until their son turns 18.

Liam Payne died without a will, so his ex-partner Cheryl Tweedy is tasked with co-managing his $32.2 million estate, legal documents show.

The couple were together from 2016 to 2018, during which time they had their son, named Bear.

Payne died in October 2024 after falling from the third-floor balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He found fame as a member of the boy band One Direction, alongside Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan.

Payne's estate was valued at $38 million, which dropped to $32.2 million after debts and expenses were deducted, probate documents released on May 1 show.

When a person who isn't married or in a civil partnership dies without a will in the UK, their estate is left to any children they may have. Because Bear, 8, is a minor, Tweedy is responsible for his inheritance until he turns 18.

Tweedy will manage the $32.2 million fortune alongside Richard Mark Bray, a music industry lawyer. Neither is allowed to distribute Payne's money, property, or possessions because they have limited authority over them.

Representatives for Tweedy and Bray did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

As Bear's mother, Tweedy became the administrator of the funds instead of his most recent partner, Kate Cassidy, an influencer.

Payne and Cassidy started dating in 2022. She travelled to Argentina with Payne, but left before he died.

"I had a responsibility, we had a responsibility. We had our dog, and obviously, I never, ever thought this event would occur," Cassidy told the Sun this year.

"It was a tragic accident, and no, I never did think [he might die young]. But, you know, we did have our own separate lives — this wasn't the first time we have travelled separately."

Shortly after Payne died, Tweedy wrote on Instagram asking fans to show kindness.

"As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I'd like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being," she said.

"Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son. A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again."

• Netflix's "Angi: Fake Life, True Crime" is about a woman who stole her identity before killing her.
• María Ángeles Molina — aka Angi — took out numerous loans in Ana Paez's name.
• At the time, the media described it as "the near-perfect crime."

"Angi: Fake Life, True Crime" tells the story of a woman who murdered her coworker but tried to make it appear as though she died during a sex game gone wrong in order to steal her identity.

The Netflix documentary, which was released on Friday, adds to the streamer's vast library of true crime content, which includes "American Nightmare," "Monster," and "Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer."

In 2008, María Ángeles Molina — also known as Angi — invited her coworker Ana Páez, a fashion designer, to her apartment in Barcelona, where she drugged her with chloroform before putting a sealed bag over her head. She also planted semen samples from two male sex workers at the scene.

In 2012, Spanish outlet El Pais reported that a man testified at Molina's trial that she had visited his brothel where the sex workers were employed.

"She said she didn't want sex but had made a bet with friends that she would sleep with a gigolo," Juan Manuel D. told the court.

El Pais reported that Molina masqueraded as Páez for two years before killing her. She took out several life insurance policies and lines of credit in Páez's name between April 2006 and November 2007, El Confidencial reported, and was seen on CCTV in a Barcelona bank wearing a wig to impersonate Páez in 2007.

Molina's boyfriend at the time also gave the authorities documents he found belonging to Páez, including her passport, hidden in the their bathroom.

The case was referred to by the media as "the near-perfect crime," according to Netflix.

María Ángeles Molina is serving time in prison

In March 2012, the Barcelona High Court sentenced Molina to 22 years in prison, which the Supreme Court later reduced to 18 years, El Confidencial reported. She was convicted of homicide and the falsification of documents.

She is serving her sentence in the Mas D'Enric prison in the Tarragona province, northeast Spain.

She was originally set for release in 2027. However, in March 2025, Molina was arrested a second time while on leave from prison. The authorities alleged Molina planned another homicide from inside the prison and used her temporary release to target someone else, El Confidencial reported.

The Spanish news site reported that the police suspected Molina was planning to use a hitman to carry out the killing, but did not say who the intended target was.

El Confidencial reported Molina had chosen not to testify before a judge in this new case.

• "Avengers" star Jeremy Renner said he rejected Marvel's offer to return to "Hawkeye" over low pay.
• The actor said that he was offered half of his season one salary for a potential second season.
• He blamed the dispute on who he called "penny pinchers" working at Disney, rather than Marvel Studios.

Jeremy Renner said he decided not to return for season two of "Hawkeye" because Disney offered him half the salary he received for the first season.

The actor played the superhero Hawkeye in the 2012 film "The Avengers," which is credited with turning the Marvel Cinematic Universe into the sprawling franchise that has earned more than $31 billion at the global box office, making it the highest-grossing movie series of all time.

Hawkeye is one of the few original Avengers who did not get a standalone movie. Instead, Renner led the Disney+ "Hawkeye" TV series in 2021 alongside Hailee Steinfeld, who plays Hawkeye's successor, Kate Bishop.

Steinfeld is expected to reprise her role in future Marvel projects. But Renner said in an episode of "The High Performance Podcast" shared on Thursday on Tiktok: "They asked me to do season two, and they offered me half the money. I'm like, 'Well, it's going to take me twice the amount of work for half the amount of money'."

Renner is also not among the cast members who have been announced so far for the 2026 blockbuster "Avengers: Doomsday."

Renner said that the negotiations for Hawkeye happened following a snowplow incident in 2023, which left him with 38 broken bones and took him months to recover from. He suggested that the low offer and his injuries may have been linked.

"I'm like, 'I'm sorry, why? Did you think I'm only half the Jeremy because I got ran over?' Maybe that's why you want to pay me half of what I made on the first season?"

He added: "And this is not Marvel mind you. This is not even really Disney, it's just the penny pinchers, the accountants. I told them to go fly a kite at the insult offer and so we didn't see eye to eye on that, sadly."

Renner said he "would still love to do" more "Hawkeye" but wants to be paid the same amount as he was for the first season.

"It's a little disheartening that didn't happen, but that's fine. I'm happy to let that go, because my body's probably thanking me that I'm not doing that right now."

Renner's complaints follow a lawsuit Scarlett Johansson brought a lawsuit against Disney in October 2021, after her solo movie "Black Widow" was released simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+ during the pandemic.

Johansson said the distribution strategy violated her contract and cost her millions in income, because her salary would've been dictated by the box office returns. The two parties settled for an unknown amount.

Marvel Studios and Disney didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

• The "Terrifier" franchise has given audiences a new horror icon with the serial killer Art the Clown.
• Damien Leone spent 10 years delivering flowers while writing "Terrifier" and "Terrifier 2."
• Now, after "Terrifier 3," the franchise has made almost $100 million worldwide.

The director Damien Leone said he spent 10 years working as a flower delivery driver while writing the "Terrifier" movies. Now, the ultra-gory franchise has made over $100 million worldwide.

The supernatural slasher movies revolve around Art (David Howard Thornton), a silent and brutal serial killer. To some horror fans, Art the Clown is now as iconic as the likes of Ghostface, Michael Myers, and Freddy Krueger.

The 2018 movie "Terrifier" made $420,000, and 2022's "Terrifier 2" earned $15 million as the hype around the character grew. Then, in 2024, "Terrifier 3" upped the gore — and the returns. The third installment grossed $90 million worldwide, per Box Office Mojo.

Collectively, Leone's twisted creation has now made $106 million.

Leone told Tuesday's episode of "Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum" that many aspiring filmmakers ask him about his path to success in the industry.

"My favorite thing to tell them is, 'Dude, I was writing the script to 'Terrifier 2' in a flower van," he said.

"That was my primary job for 10 years, because I knew I didn't want to dive into a career that would lock me up or keep me away from filmmaking," he added.

The director said that the role was flexible enough that he could focus on freelancing within the film industry, while writing "Terrifier 2."

He added: "I knew I needed a nine-to-five job that I could break away from any time I would get a freelance gig doing makeup effects on a movie or if I was going to go make my own movie, but I would always go back to the flower van.

"I literally wrote the entire movie of 'Terrifier 2' when I was delivering flowers. Almost all the ideas came to me while I was driving that van."

Leone is working on finishing the series with "Terrifier 4," which will dive further into the mythology surrounding the franchise's heroine Sienna Shaw (Lauren LaVera) and Art the Clown.

He said: "I'm going to wrap it all up in the next installment."

• John Lithgow will play Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in HBO's "Harry Potter" TV series.
• The star says it will be the last major role of his career.
• He also said he was surprised at the backlash to the show in connection to J.K. Rowling.

John Lithgow accepted the iconic role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in HBO's "Harry Potter" TV series, and he has no regrets.

The upcoming TV show, which will be a new retelling of J.K. Rowling's books with a fresh cast including Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, and Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, has been caught in the crossfire of backlash related to Rowling's controversial opinions on transgender women.

In an interview with The Times published on Sunday, Lithgow said he didn't expect to catch criticism for starring in the series because of Rowling's opinions.

"I thought, 'Why is this a factor at all?'" Lithgow said. "I wonder how J.K. Rowling has absorbed it. I suppose at a certain point I'll meet her, and I'm curious to talk to her."

The actor explained he wasn't thinking about Rowling — he was thinking about the two late, great actors, Richard Harris and Michael Gambon, who inhabited the role before him and died soon after.

"It was a big decision because it's probably the last major role I'll play," Lithgow said. "It's an eight-year commitment, so I was just thinking about mortality and that this is a very good winding-down role."

The actor said he got a sense of the coming backlash after a good friend who has a trans child sent him an essay about Rowling's views on transgender people. "That was the canary in the coal mine," Lithgow said.

When asked if the situation made him think differently about playing Dumbledore, Lithgow responded, "Oh, heavens no."

This isn't the first time Lithgow has been in a project connected to controversy. The actor also stars in the West End production of "Giant," which examines the life of author Roald Dahl, who faced backlash during his career for making antisemitic comments.

"It's so interesting to me at this moment in my life, when I've always loved entertaining kids, that I should be engaged with these writers — J.K. Rowling and Roald Dahl — who are geniuses at entertaining kids but have had crises among adults," he explained.

A representative for J.K. Rowling did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

• "The Last of Us" season two shocked audiences when Joel (Pedro Pascal) was killed in episode two.
• But Bella Ramsey said that a scene in the third episode of season two was the hardest to film.
• They said: "A very, very limited amount of people in my life will see me cry."

"The Last of Us" season two got audiences talking when Joel (Pedro Pascal) was killed off in the second episode. But Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie, a scene in episode three was the hardest to shoot.

The second season is based on the 2020 game "The Last of Us Part II," which sparked controversy because of Joel's death.

There are only a few minor differences between how Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) kills Joel in the series versus the game. It's a traumatic moment for Ellie, who is forced to watch Joel die.

In episode three, Ellie goes to Joel's house and smells one of the jackets in his closet as she grieves the loss of her adopted father figure.

"Oh God, in the closet, that was the hardest [scene]. So I really struggle with crying in scenes. I can get a tear out, but that's different to crying. And even getting the tear, it doesn't come easy for me. I don't cry in front of people in my everyday life," Ramsey told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published on Sunday.

They added: "A very, very limited amount of people in my life will see me cry. And so having to do that on a set full of people with the monitor and then more people watching the monitors… it's virtually impossible for me. So I was really worried about that scene, and that was the toughest one for me to shoot."

Ramsey said to achieve the desired effect, they didn't recall sad memories but filming with Pedro Pascal instead.

"I was remembering us the first few times that we met, and the whole of shooting season one together, and the funniest moments. I was remembering all of that and through the lens of losing him — not just Joel and Ellie, but like me and Pedro — because the memories of me and Pedro and Joel and Ellie are so intertwined for me," they said.

Pascal previously touched on what it was like filming his brutal death scene in "The Last of Us" season two when speaking to Entertainment Weekly on April 20.

"I've never experienced anything like I did that day where I stepped onto set in full makeup and then killed the vibe completely as soon as anyone set their eyes on me. This kind of shock and heartbreak… it was weird to be on the receiving end of that," he said.

Pascal added: "It's like the extreme version of, 'Is there something on my face?' I really could see this sort of grief take over everyone's look in their eyes."

• The third episode of "Andor" season two includes an attempted sexual assault.
• It has sparked backlash from some "Star Wars" fans, who think it's out of place in the franchise.
• Adria Arjona told Business Insider it was important to deal with her story in a genuine way.

Warning: Major spoilers for "Andor" season two.

"Andor" season two sparked backlash among fans by including the first reference to sexual assault in "Star Wars." Actor Adria Arjona said she had in-depth conversations to get her story right.

The series takes place five years before the events of the 2016 movie, "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," which is a prequel to 1977's "Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope."

Arjona plays Bix Caleen, a rebel fighter who was tortured by the Empire in "Andor" season one and is experiencing PTSD. In the third episode of season two, Imperial Lieutenant Krole (Alex Waldmann) attempts to force himself on her while she's hiding on a farming planet.

In the scene, he references the fact that she is an "illegal" and offers to stay quiet as long as she sleeps with him. When Caleen refuses, Krole attacks her, and she kills him with a wrench.

"Andor" doesn't shy away from the attempted sexual assault, as Caleen angrily says, "He tried to rape me."

It's the first time that "Star Wars" has directly used the word.

The scene was met with backlash from a portion of fans after the first arc of the season aired on Tuesday.

Some viewers said they felt rape and sexual assault should not be included in a franchise that was originally intended for children. Others said the episode should have a trigger warning.

On the "Andor" red carpet in London on April 10, Arjona discussed how she molded Caleen's PTSD and sexual assault storyline with showrunner Tony Gilroy this season.

"I had a lot of in-depth conversations, not only with Tony but also with professionals. There's a little bit of me in there, you know? I've really struggled with anxiety, and I've really struggled with panic attacks," Arjona told Business Insider.

"To me, it was really important that the way she dealt with this torture and assault was honest and genuine," she added.

While most "Star Wars" movies and TV shows are suitable for younger audiences, "Andor" is a more mature take on the galaxy far, far away. The show has garnered positive reviews, in large part due to its gritty portrayal of an anti-fascism movement.

The series examines the way the Empire commits war crimes and oppresses its people to achieve power.

"We're telling a story that's been told over, and over, and over again," Faye Marsay, who plays Vel Sartha, told BI. "That will resonate with people in the world today."