Tom Cruise Was "Not Happy" With Minority Report Star For Taking 46 Takes On One Line

Minority Report star Colin Farrell recalls upsetting Tom Cruise after struggling to say one line in the sci-fi classic. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the 2002 film stars Cruise as John Anderton, an officer in the PreCrime division of police who butts heads with Department of Justice agent Danny Witver, played by Farrell.

During a recent appearance on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Farrell reveals that his on-screen friction with Cruise got a little too real when Farrell couldn’t say one wordy line during an intense scene. His difficulty with the line stems from staying out too late the night before celebrating his birthday. As he recalls:

“I had one of the worst days I’ve ever had on a film set [on ‘Minority Report’]. It was my birthday on May 31, and we were shooting, and I begged production — who did I think I was? — of a $120 million film if they [could] not have me working on my birthday.

“So of course my pickup was 6 a.m. on May 31, and I got up to all sorts of nonsense the night before. And I remember getting into bed, and as soon as I turned off the light the phone rang and it was the driver, [who] said, ‘It’s 10 past 6.’ And I went, ‘Oh, sh*t.’

Farrell recalls arriving on set when assistant director David H. Venghaus Jr. told him, “You can’t go to set like this.” But Farrell wasn’t deterred, telling Venghaus, “Just get me six Pacifico Cervezas and a packet of 20 [Marlboro] Red.‘” Farrell continues:

“Now, listen, it’s not cool because two years later I went to rehab, right? But it worked in the moment. All the holy people that we look to on how to live a life would say the present is all that counts.

“So I had a couple of beers and went to set, but it was terrible. I’ll never forget the line that I had that I couldn’t get out. It was, ‘I’m sure you’ve all grasped the fundamental paradox of pre-crime methodology.’ That was the line that started the scene.

“I remember [the crew] coming up and saying, ‘Do you want to go out and take a breath of fresh air?’ And I remember thinking, ‘If I go out and take a breath of fresh air, then I’ll be under more pressure when I come back in to be better.’ And I went, ‘No, we’ll just go through it.’ It took 46 takes. Tom wasn’t very happy with me. Tom, who I love, was not very happy.”

Cruise is famously an actor with a very strong and serious work ethic, as a number of collaborators over the years have attested. Though the Mission: Impossible star holds himself to a very high standard, it’s said, he holds his colleagues to a high standard as well.

Despite the friction during this one scene, Minority Report ended up being a hit for all involved. Critically, the film was praised for its blend of thought-provoking storytelling and impressive visuals, with the narrative exploring what happens when Cruise’s character finds himself framed for a murder that hasn’t happened yet.

Minority Report was a hit with audiences too, grossing $358 million worldwide. Cruise had starred in a number of big movies by the time of the film’s release, but Farrell didn’t have as many major titles under his belt. The Spielberg movie paved the way for movies like Phone Booth (2002), The Recruit (2003), Daredevil (2003), S.W.A.T. (2003), Miami Vice (2006), and In Bruges (2008).

Cruise, on the other hand, would appear in films like The Last Samurai (2003), Collateral (2004), Mission: Impossible 3 (2006), and Valkyrie (2008). He also worked with Spielberg again on War of the Worlds (2005). It’s noteworthy that Minority Report marks Farrell’s only collaboration with either Cruise or Spielberg.

Farrell is evidently able to laugh about the encounter now, and it’s possible the door is open for another Cruise collaboration in the future, especially with the Mission: Impossible franchise having now ended. It remains to be seen whether Farrell will ever share the screen with Cruise again, but one day on Minority Report clearly remains a memorable one for the star.