A parody of Hollywood bigwigs, Cruise’s Les Grossman stands out as a sleazy, conniving, temperamental foil to the film’s main roster, which includes Ben Stiller and Matthew McConaughey. To bring Grossman to life, Cruise wore a fatsuit and a bald cap, resulting in a jarring look. Known for having considerable creative input on the projects he works on, Cruise himself is responsible for Grossman’s appearance in “Tropic Thunder.”
While speaking with Esquire, Stiller explained Cruise thought that a studio exec should serve as an antagonist in the film. “That part did not exist. [Cruise] said, ‘Well, there’s no studio executive and that would be really fun to be that guy.’ And he had this whole idea of what the guy should look like,” Stiller said, before adding that it was the actor’s idea to have Grossman dance. “And I remember when we did a makeup test, someone handed him a Diet Coke and then he just started moving,” the director added.
The character has proven to be so popular that Cruise is expected to return as Grossman in a brand new project, though concrete details haven’t materialized. While we never got to see “Tropic Thunder 2,” the flick is immortalized as one of the best comedies from the 2000s — thanks in part to Cruise’s wicked dance moves.
