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Louis, Louis, Louis. Always whining, Louis!

David Mumpower: Valkyrie and Benjamin Button stars Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt have been linked since their roles as disgruntled lovers in Interview with the Vampire. Who do you think has had the better career since 1994 and who do you expect to have the better career over the next decade?

Scott Lumley: If you base this strictly on box office results, Cruise is the clear winner with multiple films finishing well over $100 million (The Mission: Impossible series, War of the Worlds, Jerry Maguire, Minority Report). Yet, his off the wall behavior has lately seemed to alienate his fanbase and his totals seem to be dropping. Pitt, on the other hand, has put together an eclectic resume where he continuously stretches himself and tries new roles, something Cruise has been reluctant to do with the exception of roles in Tropic Thunder and Goldmember. Pitt seems poised to seriously dominate the box office for the next decade whereas Cruise seems to be in damage control mode.

Whatever happens, I'm pretty certain that both of them could crush us all to death with their wallets. Success on their level is very, very rare.





Joel Corcoran: This is an interesting question, and I don't necessarily agree with Scott's assessment on pure economics. Tom Cruise might've had more blockbuster openers, but I would bet that Brad Pitt's movies have done better at the box office overall. Pitt's career has been a record of consistent success (at least since Thelma and Louise), regardless of what types of movies he's done - big tentpole releases, art house films, romances, action films, and comedies. He's been in a few movies that didn't do quite as well (Meet Joe Black for one), but I can't think of a single movie he's been in that bombed at the box office. Cruise, on the other hand, has been a more typical movie star focusing almost primarily on blockbuster action movies and sweeping romances. Magnolia and Vanilla Sky are about the only movies that he's done outside those categories. Since 1994, Tom Cruise has appeared in 16 movies, while Brad Pitt has appeared in 30 movies plus a couple TV shows (notably "Friends). In terms of depth and breadth of career, I think Brad Pitt clearly has had the better career, which has made him a more well-rounded actor better prepared for the future.

Pitt should have the better acting career, though I think Tom Cruise has much more potential to expand his career in Hollywood. Since taking over United Artists two years ago, Cruise can expand into bigger roles as a producer (or even director) that Pitt will have a much harder time reaching.

Sean Collier: I don't want to go on Internet Tom Cruise Rant #365413 here, but at some point, Scientology will (rightfully) derail his career permanently. Pitt is building a nice, diverse career, and will continue to do so, I think - he takes on a wide variety of roles with a wide variety of expectations, and has very rarely missed with anything.

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