Posted on 06/19/2005 6:16:24 PM PDT by Dog
Four men were arrested tonight after Hollywood star Tom Cruise was drenched with water at the London premiere of his new film.
They were working on a new Channel 4 comedy programme and may now be charged with assaulting the A-list actor.
He reacted angrily to the prank, repeatedly calling the man who soaked him a “jerk”.
Cruise was on a walkabout talking to some of the 5,000 fans who had packed into Leicester Square for the star-studded premiere of War of the Worlds and he was accompanied by his new fiancé, actress Katie Holmes.
As he answered questions from journalists a bogus reporter, wearing a white and green t-shirt, stuck out a joke microphone and used it to squirt water into Cruise’s face.
The star struggled to maintain his composure and rounded on the man, saying: “Why would you do that ... why would you do that ... why would you do that?”
As the prankster offered a barely audible excuse, Cruise said: “Do you like thinking less of people, is that it?”
After an uncomfortable silence the joker went to walk away but Cruise said: “Don’t run away.”
He told his assailant: “That’s incredibly rude. I’m here giving you an interview and you do that ... it’s incredibly rude.”
Cruise then said forcibly: “You’re a jerk ... jerk ... you’re a jerk.”
The man was escorted away by security guards and taken inside the cinema where he and the three other members of his freelance camera crew were arrested.
A Channel 4 spokesman said: “The incident was for a new Channel 4 entertainment show part of which involves playing comedy pranks on celebrities and on members of the public.
“The water squirting was not intended to cause offence and was very much in a spirit of fun.
“We hope Tom Cruise will be able to see the joke in the spirit with which it was intended.”
Ashton Kutcher, they ain't.
Sorry but those panksters are just idiots.
Cruise handled himself much better than most, including myself.
Put some ice on it Tom.
Candid camera.
Everywhere I turn (in the news) it's either Tom Cruise or Paris Hilton.
Who are they? What are they?
He's lucky it was just water and just a joke.
---“The water squirting was not intended to cause offence and was very much in a spirit of fun.
“We hope Tom Cruise will be able to see the joke in the spirit with which it was intended.”---
I think he did. It was intended to make him look foolish, to get a laugh at his expense.
It is one thing to joke and prank amongst your friends. Pranks on strangers, even celebrities, is just lame.
I don't think much of Cruise, but I have to admit that I admire his restraint in this.
I'd have most likely ended up in jail.
Ha ha.
Say what you want about the actors of yore, but I never read about this happening to John Wayne, Errol Flynn or Robert Mitchum.
uh, someone squirted water in tom cruise's face in another country.
nothing to see here, folks. move along.
His vocabulary seems stuck on cruise control.
agreed. Hope he presses charges. I can't imagine if he would have kept his composure if they had sprayed Miss Holmes instead of him, though.
When asked to comment on the incident, fiancee Katie Holmes stated, "he's an amazing man. really amazing."
I agree completely. The news report says he "reacted angrily." As if he shouldn't!
No, he should say: "I'm a multi-millionaire world-famous actor, and I love it when unknown morons walk up to me and squirt me with water for no reason, while I am working. I hope more people do it, because I find it very clever, really. I enjoy it. I hope more people will take the liberty of approaching me and playing practical jokes on me. That's their right, after all. We celebrities are a public commodity; use us and abuse us as you wish."
Really.
It's not like everyone isn't already laughing out loud at him.
Talk about piling on.
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