“The G force it bent my spine”: Even the Action God Tom Cruise Found Himself in an Ugly Spot in His First Ride in a Fighter Jet
Sebastian Wright
Updated on April 03, 2026
Tom Cruise, the man known for defying death in every film that he does, has had his fair share of flying lessons. With the actor known for piloting several fighter jets in Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick, the actor recalled the first time he sat in a F-14 Jet.
Sitting for a chat with Graham Norton, Cruise talked about his first experience while sitting in a F14 Jet for preparation of Top Gun. The actor recalled that the pilot pulled a sly maneuver with the F14 and the G force bent Tom Cruise’s spine!
When Tom Cruise Sat in an F14 Jet For Top Gun!
Cruise is known for flying around in planes and often piloting them. With the iconic role of Pete Mithcell in the Top Gun franchise, Tom Cruise loved the thrill of flying a military plane for the film. While learning for the 1986 film Top Gun, Cruise recalled a hilarious yet hurtful story.
In an interview with Graham Norton on The Graham Norton Show, Cruise talked about the first time he sat in a F-14 Jet. With the pilot named Bozo, the Mission: Impossible star revealed that while he was bent in the backseat, Bozo decided to do something horrible which cause Cruise’s spine to bend!
“When you first start flying, you get sick. When we were filming, my deal was, when I made my deal, I said ‘I’ve got to fly in the F14. So I had to go through all the ejector seat training and first pilot that I flew with, his name was Bozo.”
Cruise further continued,
“So we’re going out and we’re just sweating. I’m sweating in the F14. Because we were doing heavy maneuvers. So I leaned down like this [leaning forward], and he, at that point, decided to pull up, pulled up so hard and for so long, my head was literally touching the ground with the G force it bent my spine”.
As the interview continued, Tom Cruise revealed that there was a very particular reason why the name of his first pilot was Bozo.
Tom Cruise Revealed Why His Pilot’s Name Was Bozo
With Bozo going up and up, and Tom Cruise’s spine bending more and more, the actor was leaned down. As Cruise continued to tell his tale, the actor recalled that Bozo allegedly knew that Tom Cruise was ducked down but continued to push higher and higher just for fun!
“I mean, he was going up forever, so finally he leveled off, and I just I had the bag on my hand. I was like, I said ‘Bozo, what… didn’t you see? Like, you get a check, but you didn’t tell me you were going to do that!’ He says ‘Yeah, they don’t call me Bozo for nothing'”
Starring in the iconic movie got Tom Cruise the necessary fame that he required to make it big into Hollywood. With a sequel released in 2022, Cruise reinvigorated people’s interest in the Top Gun franchise as a third part was announced recently! Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick are available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
