A few weeks into 2016, Keanu Reeves lit up the internet (and a few targets) when video of his John Wick-level shooting skills hit YouTube. Rightfully so, because Reeves has some legitimate “3-Gun” shooting range ability. He’s not the only actor who does intense training for roles, however. The silver screen’s “Jack Reacher” works just as hard, getting his training from some of the world’s most elite special forces.
In this video, Tom Cruise gets firearms training from Mick Gould, a former British SAS operator.
Gould talks about giving Cruise the kind of training he would have had if the actor spent eight to twelve years in special forces.
“Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Tom Cruise and the late Marlon Brando, they are and were ultra-professionals at all times,” Gould told Dangerous Magazine in 2012. “It was a pleasure working with them, absolutely no ego at all.”
Cruise is known for his dedication to stunt work. For “Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation,” Cruise learned to hold his breath underwater for a full six minutes. For “Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol” The 53-year-old actor held on to the outside of an Airbus A400M military aircraft during takeoff and up to 5,000 feet over Great Britain.