American actor best known for starring in films like Top Gun, Rain Man, Mission Impossible, Jerry Maguire and Minority Report. The Biggest star in Hollywood has attracted a myriad of articles that never cease to highlight his 'apparent' lack of height, even going so far as to claim Tom is seeking advice over a potential quarter inch loss in stature. Tom's height is regularly listed as being 5ft 7, although back in the 1980's he was being commonly referred to as an average 5ft 8 or 9, a height which Tom himself was quoted saying in 1988: "I have always been pretty much the same weight, 147 pounds - at 5 feet 9 inches" and in another article from 1988, it mentioned: "Incredibly average, except for the devilish grin and the ice-blue eyes. Now you know, so stop asking: That's how Tom Cruise really looks. At about 5-foot-8 and 160 pounds, he's in decent shape, but no hunk."

Nicole Kidman once mentioned that when filming Days of Thunder "They had me in really flat shoes, but you could still see I was taller than him. I'd prefer to be smaller, but I don't mind. I like the fact that he's one of the most famous actors in the world and can work with anybody - but he doesn't mind working with an actress who's taller." After their divorce, she joked "Now I can wear heels again". That film's Producer - Don Simpson - also couldn't resist a jibe: "I'll never put Tom Cruise down. He's already kinda short."

However, Scottish comedian Billy Connolly piped in on the topic, laughing at the notion Tom was some sort of pint-sized midget, exclaiming that "Tom was at least 5ft 10...[he's a] Smashing guy. Everybody thinks he's a small guy. He's not. I think they would like him to be wee. I think they're jealous b**tards.".

Tom & Rosamund Pike, Katie Holmes, Cameron Diaz / Photos by PR Photos
Another actress who worked on Eyes Wide Shut with Tom, also revealed that "We started chatting and I cheekily said, 'So how tall are you? C'mon... back to back!' And he did! Answer: he's a smidge taller than me and I'm 5'7 ¾. Myth dispelled - he's not 5'2!"

Richard Harris seemingly thought the opposite, saying: "You have guys like Tom Cruise, who's a midget, and he has eight bodyguards, all 6-feet-10, which makes him even more diminutive. He disappears behind them. It's an absolute joke." This mind-set was shared by chat-show host Paul O'Grady who was astounded when he met Tom, saying "He was minute. Honestly, he looked like a Borrower. I wanted to say, "Come on, where's the real Tom? Why have they sent along a mini-me?"

There is never-ending speculation as to whether he wears shoe lifts or elevated boots, even some magazines falsely crediting an innocuous pair of Air Force One sneakers as some form of thick wedged elevator sneaker. However, for Interview with the Vampire, it was reported at the time that Tom requested Elevator Shoes to look taller beside Brad Pitt.