Tom Cruise Receives First Oscar at 2025 Governors Awards: “Making Films Is Who I Am”
“Making films is not what I do, it is who I am,” Tom Cruise said while accepting an honorary Oscar at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 16th Governors Awards on Sunday Night. Cruise was one of four film artists selected for this year’s ceremony, held at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood, the seventh produced by Jennifer Fox.
Cruise was feted alongside actress/singer/songwriter Dolly Parton—who collected, in absentia, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in recognition of her philanthropic work—production designer Wynn Thomas, and actress/producer/choreographer Debbie Allen.
The Governors Awards were attended by a room full of Oscar hopefuls this year, including Die My Love‘s Jennifer Lawrence, One Battle After Another‘s Leonardo DiCaprio, Jay Kelly’s Adam Sandler, Hedda‘s Tessa Thompson, Hamnet‘s Jessie Buckley, Frankenstein‘s Jacob Elordi, Wicked: For Good‘s Ariana Grande, and more.
Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu, who helmed Cruise’s upcoming, not-yet-titled 2026 film, set the tone for Cruise’s coronation by saying, “Tom Cruise doesn’t just make movies, he is movies,” adding, “This may be his first Oscar, but from what I have seen and experienced, it will not be his last.”
Cruise’s acceptance speech included making sure he thanked “the studios, the agencies, the artists and the storytellers,” and, of course, the stunt teams who he has grown so close to over the years, as well as theater audiences. As always, Cruise paid special mention to the audience. “Without you, none of this has meaning for me.” Cruise then turned his attention to the colleagues he’s worked with and ask them to stand up. Many people rose to their feet, including the folks at this table — Steven Spielberg (Minority Report), Jerry Bruckheimer (the Top Gun movies), Christopher McQuarrie (producer/director of the most recent Mission: Impossible films) and CAA agent Kevin Huvane — as he applauded them. “I want you to know, please know, that I carry you with me — each of you — and you are a part of every frame of every film that I have ever made or ever will make. And I want you to know that I will always do everything I can for this art form — to support and champion new voices and to protect what makes cinema powerful, hopefully without too many more broken bones.”
Lily Tomlin took to the stage prior to Cruise’s night-ending award by accepting Dolly Parton’s Oscar on her behalf. Tomlin worked with Parton on the classic 1980 film 9 to 5. A video highlighted Parton’s long tenure of great work both on and off screen, including her charitable work through the Dollywood Foundation and the Imagination Library, as well as her financial contributions to funding the development of the COVID-19 vaccine and her longtime support of the LGBTQ community.
Parton appeared onscreen in a prerecorded video, saying: “I grew up in a house with 12 kids. Now that alone teaches you how important sharing is! Don’t get me wrong — we didn’t have that much to share, but my mama and daddy showed me that the more you give, the more blessings come your way. And I’ve been blessed more than I’d ever dreamed possible. This award tonight, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award — it makes me want to dream up new ways to help lift people up, and isn’t that what we’re supposed to be here for?”
Andra Day then did a rousing version of Parton’s iconic “Jolene.”
The legendary production designer Wynn Thomas was greeted by Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer, who worked on one of his films, 2016’s Hidden Figures. In a video lauding Thomas’s work, Spike Lee spoke about collaborating with the veteran on some of his best films, including 1986’s She’s Gotta Have It, 1989‘s Do The Right Thing, 1992‘s Malcolm X, and 2020’s Da 5 Bloods.
Thomas thanked his mother and late grandmother for supporting him, even if they weren’t quite sure about “this art thing” that he was pursuing, as well as “all of my art directors, my assistant art directors, my set designers, my set decorators and dressers, my scenic artists, my prop men and women, all the graphic designers I work with, my construction coordinators, my location managers and scouts. These are the people who make me look good, and these are the people who let me be the dreamer and who turn my dreams into reality.” He added, to laughter, “I’d like to thank some of my directors tonight — not all, but some.”
Wicked: For Good star Cynthia Erivo headed on stage to lead the tribute to Allen, and said, “Her impact on the world of film is extraordinary.” Allen acted in 1980’s Fame, produced Steven Spielberg’s 1997 Amistad, and was the choreographer on a record seven Academy Award telecasts. Allen thank her late parents, who, she said, “raised their children believing that they were citizens of the universe, that there were no boundaries, and that anything we could see we could be…. We were faced with brick walls and glass ceilings and ‘Whites Only’ signs everywhere, but we grew up believing in ourselves, we grew up understanding what fight and faith is.” She acknowledged her siblings, including the actress Phylicia Rashad, who were seated at her table.
Featured image: Tom Cruise at The 16th Governors Awards held at The Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood on November 16, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
