Buttmunker

This is what I heard a long time ago - Tom Cruise was offered the role of Henry Hill (the role played excellently by Ray Liotta) in Martin Scorsese's 1990 hit GoodFellas, but turned it down because he didn't ever want to play a role where the character used drugs.

This was 1990, and by 1999 Cruise was smoking grass with wife Nicole Kidman in Eyes Wide Shut, but in 1990 he may have had some high ideals.

True?

Crocker Jarmen

I'd never heard that. It's possible I suppose. I think Cruise is a good actor and I could see him pulling off something like the Henry Hill role.

I don't know if it's really his high ideals erroded. There's a bit of a difference in playing someone who uses and sells coke compared to a charcter who smokes a joint once inawhile. Besides, listening to the way Cruise deified Kubrick, he probabley could have asked him to kill a man on camera and Cruise would have been okay with that.

Goat3001

It wouldn't surprise me. Actors turn down big roles like this all the time.

B.A.

I've never heard that before either.

MasterCXtreme

I doubt it.
Hello... Minority Report

Jackskeleton

Let me ask you this.. Where is Ray Liotta now and where is Tom Cruise now? exactly.

tsohg

Liotta was the bomb in GTA:VC yo.

B.A.

Cruise might have been a good psycho in UNLAWFUL ENTRY now that I think about it.

Tarantino

Tom Cruise would have been the bomb in No Escape.

Michael T Hudson

He was good in Narc.

Dr. DVD

I highly doubt that Cruise's careers would have been hurt by Goodfellas. However, he most likely would have overshadowed the work of DeNiro and Pesci. Bascially, it would have been a Tom Cruise movie and not a Martin Scorsese classic.

Ruderic

Goodfellas was better than most Tom Cruise movies and I say that as a Tom Cruise fan.

toccoa_winters

i doubt he would ever turn down a chance to work with robert de niro.

Goldberg74

Tom would have had to have been in "Corinna, Corinna."

Derrich

Cruise missed out on some Jennifer Love Hewitt action from Heartbreakers.

D

Ruderic

Thats Ray's claim to fame!

Rival11

This one is easy, No - TJ Cruise didn't turn the role, he simply was laughed at when he asked for it.

Jazzbutcher

Groucho

Tom Cruise is probably sent every script in Hollywood. Obviously, he can't take every role. I'm sure it's technically true that he turned down Goodfellas, but I doubt he was seriously approached or considered.

Speaking of Narc, that film was produced by Cruise. Coincidence?

slop101

It would make sense, since Cruise had just come off of Color of Money w/ Scorsese, and Marty probably like working with him and wanted to use him again.