Tom Cruise shares the weirdest conspiracy theory he's ever heard about himself

It must be strange having millions of people thinking they know things about you - whether they're based in truth or not - but, that's the life of a celebrity, and something that Tom Cruise knows all too well.

In fact, the Mission Impossible actor has found himself at the centre of number of bizarre theories over the years, including some rumours related to the controversial Church of Scientology - of which Cruise is a member.

And it turns out celebrities aren't completely oblivious to the strange things people are claiming about them either, with the 61-year-old telling Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning director, Chris McQuarrie, the 'weirdest story' he'd ever heard about himself.

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Speaking to The Times, McQuarrie said that Cruise told him that he'd once heard that people on set 'were not allowed to look me in the eye'.

The actor's co-star, Simon Pegg, then added: "I’ve been able to hack my way through all the bizarre mythology that surrounds him.

"On one side he’s Tom Cruise – this enigmatic film star everyone wants to know about. And on the other, he’s just a guy. I like being normal with him."

So, at the end of the day, he's still a normal, down-to-Earth bloke - at least according to Pegg and his other Mission Impossible co-star, Hayley Atwell.

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In a recent interview with The Independent, the Captain America star said: "I truly feel you could meet him and go: 'He’s nice; he’s charming; he’s charismatic; he knows how to make people feel good about themselves.

"So that’s just a tactic for total manipulation, because he’s probably just an egocentric.' Or whatever bulls*** people want to make up about people.

"But over time, you’re just watching him, going - he really works hard, he really cares, he’s really interested in people and wants to engage with them, and he believes in the power of cinema as much as he did when he was five years old."

At least we've gotten to the bottom of one thing - if you ever find yourself on set with Tom Cruise, don't be afraid to look him in the eye.

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It also seems like critics are loving Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning, as the film has given Cruise his highest Rotten Tomatoes score yet - and not just for the franchise as a whole.

Previously, his top-rated film on Rotten Tomatoes was 2018’s Mission: Impossible – Fallout, which has a 97 percent score on the site.

This is followed by Top Gun: Maverick, with 96 percent, Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation, with 94 percent, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, with 93 percent, and 80s classic Risky Business, which has 92 percent.