Les grossman: The movie

[Abraham]

Tom Cruise has pulled off one of the great career rescues of all time. A couple of years ago the guy was a joke, and it looked like he **** away his entire career in one hour on Oprah's couch. But as is the case with all good action heroes, when the chips were down Cruise pulled it off, and all of a sudden we're looking at a summer 2010 where a Cruise film could be one of the biggest hits of the year and there's a Mission: Impossible IV coming down the pike that, judging by the director (Brad Bird) could be actually interesting.

But even still, Cruise has to be keenly aware that he's in the diminishing years of his action movie career. I think he'll be in good enough shape to keep running and jumping on screen well into his 60s, but he doesn't want to just churn out Mission: Impossible movies for the rest of his life. He's definitely going to take another couple of flying leaps at the Oscar before he's done (his last time invited as a nominee was 1999!), but I don't think a glut of serious pictures is what he's after either.

Which is why the reappearance of Les Grossman, his character from Tropic Thunder, has been so interesting. Grossman showed up at the MTV Movie Awards last night and, by some reports, stole the show (I have no idea because I couldn't be ****ed to sit through the program).

I don't think Tom Cruise does anything just for the hell of it, and I definitely don't think he undergoes a long make-up process just for a gag. And consider this: the reason for him being on the awards show was to pimp his upcoming Knight and Day, so why dress up like a character from a two year old movie while doing that?

So what if the Les Grossman thing is something Cruise is considering spinning off? Maybe he brought the character out to see if people still react positively to him, and they do. If Cruise is about going to head into Oscar mode in the next couple of years, having a raucous comedy on the side can only help demonstrate his range. And since Cruise's intensity simply doesn't work in non-fatsuit comedies (he always has to be the intense straight man), Les Grossman opens up brand new doors for the actor.

This is all spitballs and ********, obviously. Maybe Cruise just has a latex fetish. But something tells me that there are people somewhere in a room in Beverly Hills or West Hollywood talking about packaging a deal for the further adventures of Les Grossman.

UPDATED: Yup, Cruise told EW there's a Grossman movie in the works. Don't doubt me! Thanks to Brian Gallagher for that link.

 

[Gabe99]

From /film 12/11/2008:
Will Tom Cruise Return as Les Grossman?

From MTV 3/2/10:
Ben Stiller And Tom Cruise To Make 'Tropic Thunder' Spin-Off Movie?

 

[dark_b]

''less is more''

the reason he worked so good is because he didnt have to much screentime. its like saying hey lets make a full Jack Sparow movie. wouldnt work.


a movie where the whole story is devoted to this guy will not work IMO. Cruise is a good actor and hey maybe it will make money.

 

[dude stannis]

This is what I just posted in the Last Movie You Watched thread:

I'd love to see the character return in a film, but he doesn't warrant his own feature. Like a TT sequel with a strict dictator James Cameron type director and an insane Klaus Kinski type actor (Nicolas Cage anyone?) with a different set of actors or something.

 

[Prison Mike]

a Les Grossman movie? He wasn't that funny...

 

[matrix_ghost]

As much as i love Cruise as Grossman , i wonder if this really is a good idea. His raging on in Tropic Thunder was great but to see an entire movie of him doing that can get old pretty fast.
Less is more in this case although with the right material this can work.

But then again , isn't Tropic THunder also a Less Grossman movie

 

[Evil Twin]

I picture a broad version of THE PLAYER, but without the underlying outrage.

 

[Darthphere]

Yeah, I think he would work best as a recurring character in other movies.

 

[BlackLantern]

I picture a broad version of THE PLAYER, but without the underlying outrage.

exactly what I was thinking, I haven't seen "The Player" in forever, need to watch that again...it could work as an ensemble movie and as long as Bill Hader is there as the assistant, Id watch it

 

[Drizzle]

the reason he worked so good is because he didnt have to much screentime. its like saying hey lets make a full Jack Sparow movie. wouldnt work.

The two (soon to be three) "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequels were practically Jack Sparrow movies. Sure, they had the love story and pirate war subplots, but you can't tell me that he wasn't the main focus of the sequels.

I think a Les Grossman movie could work well with the right script and supporting cast. Also, there needs to be a lot of celebrity cameos.

 

[Figs]

''less is more''

the reason he worked so good is because he didnt have to much screentime. its like saying hey lets make a full Jack Sparow movie. wouldnt work.


a movie where the whole story is devoted to this guy will not work IMO. Cruise is a good actor and hey maybe it will make money.

Agreed!

I thought he was damn funny in Tropic Thunder but less is more is the best way to sum it up.

 

[BlackLantern]

http://www.deadline.com/2010/06/exclusive-paramount-to-make-les-grossman-film-for-tom-cruise/

Its on now

 

[Raiden]

I don't think an entire movie devoted to Les Grossman would work; the jokes will be running thin in about 5 minutes. Grossman is very much an one-joke character and works better as a cameo or supporting character. It'd turn out to be just like SNL's Ladies Man movie that was based on a skit and was given more attention that it deserved.

 

[Capt Throbberson]

Wasn't part of what made Les Grossman funny was the fact that nobody expected Tom Cruise to be in the movie let alone play a character like that?

 

[BlackLantern]

part of it...when I went to see "Tropic Thunder" I knew he was in it, but didn't expect all the makeup and everything

 

[Jennifer Walters]

Won't see it. Tom is still a joke himself. Just film him in a documentary. It'd be funnier than this ever could be.

 

[Capt Throbberson]

Won't see it. Tom is still a joke himself. Just film him in a documentary. It'd be funnier than this ever could be.

The sad thing is, this is true.

 

[BlackLantern]

Paramounts press release

HOLLYWOOD, CA (June 9, 2010) - Paramount Pictures and MTV Films announced today that they are set to develop a movie around mega-producer Les Grossman. The announcement comes on the heels of Grossman’s groundbreaking and visionary production of the soon-to-be Emmy® award-winning 2010 MTV Movie Awards Sunday night. Tom Cruise, along with Ben Stiller and Stuart Cornfeld of Red Hour Films will produce and have secured the life rights to Grossman. Grossman, best known as a mega producer, has most recently mentored talents such as Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner. In 2008, Grossman was introduced to the masses by Stiller in the comedy “Tropic Thunder” where the famed producer had a cameo playing himself. Said Ben Stiller: “Les Grossman's life story is an inspiring tale of the classic human struggle to achieve greatness against all odds. He has assured me he plans to quote, ‘F**king kill the ***** out of this movie and make Citizen f**king Kane look like a piece of crap home movie by the time we are done.’ I am honored to be working with him.” When asked what the screenplay was about Grossman responded: “To quote my great friend Kirk Lazarus, ‘I don’t read the script, the script reads me.’”Adam Goodman, Paramount Film Group President said, "Everything I learned in this business, I've learned from Les. I started out as his assistant, and from the first day he threw his desk at me when I got his lunch order wrong, I have loved him like a father. I am forever grateful to Ben and Stuart Cornfeld and their ability to secure his highly-coveted life rights,"Tom Cruise is said to be in talks to portray Grossman in the film.Michael Bacall (“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”) will write the script.

 

[Bad Superman]

Last night I watched the replay of the MTV movie awards and saw the Les Grossman - J-LO performance. I absolutely loved it!

 

[Bad Superman]

The new film could work if they make it something similar to Jerry Maguire, only with a humorous approach.

 

[baerrtt]

The new film could work if they make it something similar to Jerry Maguire, only with a humorous approach.

Jerry Maguire is a comedy already. And if you mean the idea of Grossman probably becoming a more caring character doesn't that ruin the point of the creation?

 

[dark_b]

you know what?

why not go full ****** with this? why not have Tom Cruise as Tom Cruise in the movie where hes career is going down. and he then goes to Les to get back up in hollywood.

 

[Golgo-13]

I would see this. He was the only thing remotely entertaining about the Mtv movie awards.

 

[Bad Superman]

Jerry Maguire is a comedy already. And if you mean the idea of Grossman probably becoming a more caring character doesn't that ruin the point of the creation?

No. I was thinking about how Grossman would handle the situations Maguire did in the film, only funnier.

 

[BlackLantern]

and with Bill Hader at his side