Gina Gershon appeared on “Watch What Happens Live” and was asked by host Andy Cohen if she had ever been with Tom Cruise. The two co-starred in the 1988 film “Cocktail,” and Gershon recalled nearly breaking Cruise's nose while filming a sex scene. It was the first time Gershon had ever filmed a love scene on film. The actress said Cruise took “total” care of her during filming.
“He was a gentleman,” Gershon said. “It started under the covers and I told him I was ticklish. I said, ‘No, don’t ever do that.’ At one point, I think he wanted a reaction, so he grabbed my stomach and I kneed him in the nose. I said, ‘Oh my God! I just broke Tom Cruise’s nose.’ And he said, ‘No, you asked me to. It’s my fault.’ He was very protective of me.”
Cruise played a business student who turns to bartending to support his family in Cocktail. The film, which also starred Bryan Brown and Elisabeth Shue, received negative reviews but was a box office success, grossing $171 million worldwide. The film was released at a time when Cruise was rising in Hollywood following Risky Business and Top Gun.
At the same time, Gershon was a newcomer to Hollywood movies at the time. She rose to fame in the 1990s with acclaimed performances in the film “Bound,” which Gershon recently revealed she was told not to do because the film was about a lesbian relationship. The actress said on the “It Happened in Hollywood” podcast that her agents specifically told her that she “couldn’t play a lesbian” because it would ruin her Hollywood career.
“It was a great script, and I can tell the directors were great, but my agents said to me, ‘We’re not letting you make this movie. You’re ruining your career. We’re not letting you act. You’re never going to work again.’”
“I just said, ‘Well, I guess if you can’t play me, I’ll go somewhere else. You know? No hard feelings,’” Gershon continued, noting that she fully believed in the script written by the Wachowski brothers. “I said, first of all, it’s short-sighted to say, ‘Oh, this is a gay movie.’ I mean, they’re lesbians. They love women, but it’s really a movie about confidence.”
Watch Gershon's full appearance on Watch What Happens Live in the video below.
