Tom Cruise presents a clip from "Top Gun: Maverick" on day one of Comic-Con International on Thursday, July 18, 2019, in San Diego. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
By Marcia Dunn
NASA is rolling out the International Space Station's red carpet for Tom Cruise to make a movie in orbit.
The space agency's administrator, Jim Bridenstine, said before Wednesday's planned launch of two NASA astronauts aboard a SpaceX rocket that Elon Musk's company is already getting customers eager to blast off.
Cruise is one of them.
Bridenstine said he'll leaving it to Cruise and SpaceX to provide the mission details.
"I will tell you this: NASA has been in talks with Tom Cruise and, of course, his team, and we will do everything we can to make it a successful mission, including opening up the International Space Station," he told The Associated Press.
Asked about Cruise filming on the space station, Musk told "CBS This Morning," Actually, I think that remains to be seen. We are supportive and I think NASA is supportive of anything that captures the imagination of the public."
Bridenstine said the whole reason NASA created "this commercial marketplace" is so SpaceX, Boeing, and other private companies can attract customers besides the U.S. government. That will drive down costs to American taxpayers, he said, and increase access to space for all types of people — celebrities included.
"I don't admit this very often ... but I was inspired to become a Navy pilot because when I was in elementary school, I watched the movie 'Top Gun,'" the 44-year-old Bridenstine said.
Cruise starred as Navy pilot Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in the 1986 film. A sequel is due out later this year.
"The question is, 'Can Tom Cruise make a new movie that inspires the next generation Elon Musk.' And if he can do that, then we're all for it. NASA is all in," Bridenstine said.
A message to Cruise's representative was not immediately returned.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Raina Moskowitz, CEO of The Knot Worldwide, unpacks the 2025 Global Wedding Report, from Gen Z trends to how Taylor Swift's wedding could reshape the industry.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
