Tom Cruise receives the US Navy’s highest civilian honor! To lead is to serve
Cruise, already the U.S. Navy’s 36th Honorary Naval Aviator, was honored with a Defense Public Service award on Dec. 17.
Tom Cruise is adding a unique distinction to his collection of Hollywood accolades: the U.S. Navy’s highest civilian award. Called a “staunch advocate for the U.S. Navy” in a Tuesday, Dec. 17 press release, the actor-producer, 62, was honored with the Department of the Navy Distinguished Public Service (DPS) Award.
Presented by Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro, it is the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a civilian outside the Department of the Navy.
After starring in 1986’s Top Gun, the action-packed drama about naval aviators, Cruise led and produced the 2022 box office hit Top Gun: Maverick. The Joseph Kosinski-directed sequel “brought nostalgia to older audiences and reinvigorated younger viewers’
interest in the skill sets and opportunities the Navy provides,” per the press release. “The success of this portrayal led to Cruise being named the U.S. Navy’s 36th Honorary Naval Aviator.”
Cruise received the award in England during a ceremony on Tuesday at the Longcross Film Studios in Chertsey, Surrey.
“I know in life, something that is very true to me,” he said in a speech. “To lead is to serve. And I know that to my core.”
