This week, the Onion A.V. published an interview that quotes actor Bronson Pinchot saying that Tom Cruise made “constant unrelated homophobic comments” while the two were on the set of 1983’s Risky Business. Cruise’s rep responded today, telling EW, “Obviously, this is so far removed from who Tom Cruise is as a person, this must have been said in jest.”
Pinchot, perhaps best known as Balki from the 1980s TV series Perfect Strangers, made the comments to A.V. Club during a discussion about the actor’s storied resume, which also includes films Beverly Hills Cop, True Romance, and The First Wives’ Club.
In addition to the negative comments about Cruise, Pinchot is also quoted as saying Denzel Washington is “one of the most unpleasant human beings I’ve ever met.” Washington’s rep says the actor has no comment.
UPDATE: Bronson Pinchot explains remarks to the Onion in email to the Wall Street Journal
Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna ltd
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Guess the only way Bronson could think of getting his face and name out there again was to diss other celebrities he’s worked with. He must have graduated from the Dustin Diamond Academy also!
I’m not surprised to hear that Tom Cruise made homophobic comments, and I’m also not surprised to hear that Denzel is unpleasant. He seems like it, in his movies and in every awards show on which I’ve seen him present or accept. Doesn’t take an expert to tell he’s intense to the point of being scary and unpleasant. Good for Bronson Pinchot.
I believe Tom Cruise would make comments like that based on his unwavering faith in Scientology but it wasn’t Pinchot’s place to comment on them
it was 1983 – i’m sure he wasn’t a Scientologist then – he was probably just a young guy with no filter
I agree with Bayou. I was surprised to see Bronson’s name mentioned at all on this site. I am a fan of both Denzel and Tom and find Bronon’s comments hard to believe. All the movies mentioned were from the 80s/90s! What has he done lately besides speak at an AV club?! I can’t name all of the projects D&T have done this decade alone! Bronson is hater.
Pinchot sounds like a jerk. Not believing the comments about Cruise or Washington. Washington does impress me as probably being a very private person, but that doesn’t make him bad. And everybody seems to think it’s always open season on Cruise. Does
Pinchot still have a career? Sour grapes.
So I guess you only believe what the stars want you to believe. That is sad.
If you read the full article, he explains that TC was a young man and when you are young you say stupid things as you are finding your way. He also says DW was unpleasant because he was “method acting” and his abusive behavior was justified as method.
Well done EW. I thought you were the last hold-outs when it came to veracity in entertainment journalism. You cut and paste just like the rest of the rags and bottom-feeders. If I want this crap I’ll read Hello!
Yeah, how dare he then go on to call megastar Tom Hanks one of the nicest men in the business? Sour grapes indeed.
You know who also thinks Tom Cruise is gay? Richard Gere’s gerbil!
You know who also thinks Tom Cruise is gay? Beach Volleyball!
You know who else thinks Tom Cruise is gay? Quentin Tarantino! (See: his monologue in Sleep with Me)
You know who also thinks TC is gay? Oprah’s couch.
He sure didn’t sound bitter or angry in the interview. It sounded like he was just telling it like it was. Wish more in Hollywood did that!
Cruise should have “no commented” also, but “whatevs!” Ignore-ignore-ignore
Hello, the interview was in the onion which is a satire magazine!! He was trying to be funny.
No, it was in the A.V. Club, which is the non-humor part of The Onion.
I don’t know. It’s not like he has anything to lose. I wouldn’t discount his claims so fast.
Exactly, nothing to lose…which would actually make him more inclined to take stabs at Hollywood’s top dogs. They can’t end a career that has never taken flight.
He’s a creepy lil’ man!!!
AND Chaz Witerbottom…That was SO wrong, yet so damn funny!
I thought the interview was wonderfully insightful. He was just as frank about himself as he was his perception of fellow actors. Candid and thoughtful. Certainly worth reading.
Ummmm…..and we care because?
Well I’m not sure about the Tom Cruise comments. However, I have heard many, many times that Denzel is a huge jerk. Esp. after reading his interview with Vogue a year or so ago….sad.
How can Denzel be a jerk?
i always liked Mr. Washingtn, until I saw him on the Today show, where he was rude to Katie Couric an patronizing to Meryl Streep.Came across as totally pompous .
Whahh? Huhh? How is this news? Who cares? Why do we believe him? Why did I read this item? Why am I typing this note? Calgon, take me away!
so you would take the side of a guy who went haven’t seen since the 80s compared to people who have still make blockbuster movies….hmmmm?
Yes, because in Hollywood, success is no measure of character. Tom Cruise’s interview are self-serving and all over the place. BP’s interview was funny, self-aware, non-egotistical and credible. He also praised some other mega-stars as very nice people, so it’s not bitterness. Or do you assume he’s lying when he says Tom Hanks is a great guy?
Denzel and his wife are both jerks. His wife sang the national anthem at an event my husband was working (he’s a sound man). She started singing and the mic was off. The last thing my husband told her was “push this button to turn on the mic before you sing to take it off mute”. She didn’t take it off, sang with the mute on, and then complained to the coordinator my husband (who has 25 yrs experience in the biz) didn’t know what he was doing. My husband was then fired from the event. Denzel was a complete jerk to my husband and so was his wife.
Why don’t you post your name?
Remember when Balki was on the Surreal Life? This is a creepy guy. He freaked everyone out.
Strange yes but he stole the movie with his character in Beverly Hill’s Cop; it was one of the funniest things I have ever seen in a movie.
Pinchot must be desperate. Risky Biz was almost 30 years ago and he’s talking about this?
Read the interview. It is in a long-running format named “Random Roles” in which actors (both well-known and faded) are presented with selections of their work and invited to share their thoughts. The point being, he didn’t go to “Risky Business” without prompting. He was actually quite candid throughout the interview and seemed to be having fun. One got the impression that he knew perfectly well that his best days were behind him and that he didn’t mind calling them as he saw them because of it.
God, remember that really awful movie he made called “Second Sight?” That movie sucked bad. Whatever, Bronson… you got nothing better to do than leech off of working, successful actors? Sheesh!
How many of us have said or done things when we were 20 that we would never say or do at 40 or 45?
I mean, I’m not the biggest Tom Cruise fan but I’m taking this with a grain of salt. It still impresses me that he will spend a good two hours signing autographs and taking photos with fans at premieres. There aren’t many stars who will do that. And that is one of the reasons he continues to be a huge star.
I agree with you. He was very young in 83 (as were we all!) and he may have said all kinds of random awful stuff, but he’s very good to his fan base now and has been for years. That being said, I don’t disbelieve Bronson, I just think it needs context (and sorry to hear about Washington, because I love his work)
Good to his fan base as long as they are men, don’t believe in taking anti depressants for post partum psychosis and agree totally with every thing he says. If he doesn’t believe it, no matter what scientific back ups there are he is right and everyone else is wrong.
I was under the pleasant impression that Pinchot had disappeared from view. He’s always struck me as a solipsistic bad actor; bummer that he’s made news again.
Wow, do you have a word of the day calendar?
BP was quite gracious in his comments regarding Tom Hanks and I have no reason to doubt the rest of his opinions and experiences… He has been a lot closer to these people than I have and if he says they have personality issues then its worth considering. Most actors are there for reasons that have nothing to do with aspiring to excellence as actors. A lot of actors are really disconnected from the rest of us, like Tom Cruise and his leadership role in Scientology – an obvious con/scam – for example.
The comments of people on this board amaze me. First, before making snap judgments @ these stars -read the Onion article. It’s very candid and very entertaining. Why is it so hard to believe that famous people may be strange in real life? Just because Tom Cruise is a “mega-star” doesn’t mean he’s couldn’t be a complete homophobic dork in real life. And Bronson tried to make it clear that his impressions were his own – and based on experiences that happened years ago. I think the more interesting point is, people seem to believe they KNOW these people personally. We don’t!
I couldn’t agree with you more! We really don’t know the stars involved, but it still gives us an insight into their true personalities through the perceptions of their co-stars and other people who work with them closely for several months at a time. Over time, people do develop reputations and watching interviews where they are rude and dismissive in a five or ten minute segment does make a statement about who they are and how readily they are able to project their craft to create a temporary image for the benefit of their fanbase.
actually…the only true part is about washington..his ego is the size of china’s population
I personally had a face-to-face meeting with Denzel on the streets of LA when I offered him to pull his suv out in front of mine and then he became a jerk about it…he’s a true ass of a person. I used to be a fan, but after my “average joe” experience with him and hearing others’ accounts of their contact with him, I truly think that he is just as nasty in person, it’s just that the general public doesn’t get to see this side of him.
I think it’s pretty great that good old Balki spoke so candidly about his fellow co-workers. It was an interview about his experience during the filming of various movies along his career. He could have blown hot air up our ass but instead he kept it real! Hollywood is filled with ass kissers and rarely will someone go without a safety net and say how they truly feel about their fellow actor. That being said, after working with Pinchot, I can safely say that he, Tom Cruise and Denzel were all involved in a tumultuous love triangle that left him the odd man looking in on a way to get to the cream filling of an A-list Oreo cookie.
Bronson Pinchot ended his career this week. Best of luck in your new career.
I met Denzel at a restaurant with his wife and I found him charming. I think that Pinchot’s opinion is as subjective as any other. The only certainty is that Pinchot is a failed actor who needs to speak ill of other people out in the medios. La opinion has of the other is completely subjective, while the fact of making such statements can be assessed objectively.
Pinchot is a terrible actor. His movies are horrible and their statements say a lot about him as a person. Her only chance of appearing in the press is speaking ill of others. I have heard hundreds of people speak well of Denzel Washington, starting with Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Jamie J. Foxx, Jodie Foster, Ethan Hawke … They have more credibility to me that Mr. Pinchot, a lousy actor who needs to speak ill of his colleagues to appear in the press. Their statements say a lot about him as a person.
Actually, if you read the entire interview, as noted above, he makes self deprecating statements and nice statements about others. It really is not all negative.
I don’t care if Denzel Washington is a jerk or gentleman,i like him in films.Actually i personally don’t care to know nothing about any star apart from whats on the screen,i love movies and gossip tends to undermine that sometimes.
Absolutely! I don’t want to know them as people, I want to know their work. Often the personal details just get in the way
Hysterical how so many of you jackasses are ready to crucify Pinchot because he spoke ill of two actors who simply have had bigger careers than him, or at the least are erroneously ascribing it to sour grapes. The only reasonable comments here are from those who actually read the AV Club article themselves and can appreciate the context, or those who have had run-ins with egomaniac prick Washington, or those who aren’t petrified of the Lord High Priestess of the Church of Scientology.
Word! You are totally correct. Pinchot was completely engaging during this interview. I sort of fell in love with him.
Tom Cruise was a very immature 20 when he made those comments about gays. That was almost 30 years ago. Those were different times.
Tom was only a young actor feeling his way in the world at the time. No wonder he picked up some odd habits and beliefs.
People shouldn’t mock him for his size, lack of real acting abilities, him being a jerk or his odd beliefs. He can’t help any of this, he is a victim of the life he’s had to lead.
Ya know what, though? He never grew up. He’s had all the resources in the world to support inner growth, and instead he’s… an egotistical 40-something.
If he doesn’t deserve any blame for his shortcomings, then neither does he deserve any credit for his phenomenal success. You can’t have it both ways.