Tom Cruise Divorce Due to Influence Fortunes of Another P.T. Anderson Film

Back in 2000, when Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia was in theatrical release, it was believed by many, including Anderson himself, that the film’s financial fortunes were diminished by the dissolution of Cruise’s most recent marriage, to Nicole Kidman. In that film, Cruise played T.J. Mackey, a motivational huckster and preposterously over-the-top public misogynist. In promoting the film, it was believed–reasonably enough–that Cruise would be sacrificing leverage in court as his divorce proceedings ran their course. Cruise ended up not doing much publicity for the film.

Now, a couple Cruise marriages later, Anderson has another film due for release, and people believe its fortunes will also be affected by the dissolution of Cruise ’s most recent marriage, to Katie Holmes. This time, though, it’s projected to be for the better. The Master is about an incorporated religion that is based on, and very similar to, Scientology. Scientology is believed to be at the very nexus of Cruise’s divorce from Holmes. As the public gets greedy for information about how things went wrong with this marriage, they will also be greedy for information about Scientology. They already are. When Anderson’s film drops this fall, it will land right in the middle of a rabid scramble for all things Scientology.

For those of us who consider Anderson the best filmmaker America’s ever had, it’s not exactly pleasant to see his film used as a kind of Scientology for Dummies, especially when it’s not even literally about Scientology. But the important thing, ultimately, is that the movie gets seen. And besides, a good box-office will increase the resources available for the next film, which is also important. (The Master itself wasn’t even going to be made until billionaire benefactress Megan Ellison came to its rescue.) It’s only right, too, that since a Cruise divorce substantially hurt the box-office of one film, a Cruise divorce should substantially help the box-office of another. It’s not revenge, exactly; it’s just getting even.