BTS¡¯ Jin hasn¡¯t had a moment to breathe since his military discharge. From charming fans on Run Jin to causing chaos on Kian's Bizarre B&B and Screwballs, he¡¯s been popping up on every variety show worth mentioning. He has also released two albums¡ªHappy and Echo¡ªsince his discharge, and the promotional campaigns have been nothing short of a dreamy experience for fans. Just when we thought we¡¯d seen it all, Jin¡¯s next guest might be his most unexpected yet: Hollywood¡¯s action hero, Tom Cruise.
As part of the Mission: Impossible ¨C The Final Reckoning promo tour in South Korea, Cruise is set to appear on Run Jin. A recently released teaser shows Jin tackling a high-stakes ¡°mission,¡± ending with a warm hug that fans suspect is with Cruise himself. While the team-up is definitely one for the history books, not all ARMYs are thrilled about the collaboration.
Run Jin follows the same unpredictable and often hilarious formula of BTS' pre-military variety show, Run BTS. Only this time, it¡¯s focused entirely on Jin. The series, which kicked off after Jin¡¯s return from military service, invites surprise celebrity guests to take on weird and wild missions with the BTS vocalist.
Tom Cruise's team-up with Jin is just the latest example of Hollywood finally recognising the potential of the Korean market. From Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman doing promotions for Deadpool & Wolverine in Korea, to Robert Pattinson¡¯s surprise stint on a Korean variety show while promoting Mickey 17, South Korea has become the global hotspot for promotional tours. And, given Korean stars' huge global fan following, it's understandable to see why.
Amid the news of Cruise's participation in Run Jin, his long-standing, high-profile ties to the Church of Scientology are once again under scrutiny. The Hollywood star has been one of the church¡¯s most prominent members for decades, and his affiliation has often sparked controversy.
His divorce from Katie Holmes in 2012 was widely speculated to be influenced by Scientology, especially after Holmes sought sole custody of their daughter Suri. More recently, Suri dropped Cruise¡¯s last name altogether and now goes by Suri Noelle, a move many see as another quiet break from her father¡¯s world.
While many ARMYs are excited to see Jin back in action with a global star, not everyone is celebrating the collab. Fans have voiced discomfort over Cruise¡¯s involvement, pointing to his religious affiliations and the problematic allegations tied to Scientology.
One user pointed out, "Everyone knows that Tom Cruise is into Scientology and tbh maybe they should stop collabing with weirdos."
Another concerned fan wrote, "There's no need to celebrate Tom Cruise is a literal scientologist cult member... begging hybe to do SOME kind of research before letting him go on Jin's show."
"I am deeply uncomfortable about Tom Cruise being on Run Jin bc this is almost definitely a bid to try and introduce Scientology to armys, like that man did not ask to be on the show for any other reason," wrote a third user.
"Tom Cruise is a very bad man involved with very bad people and its actually a bit upsetting that he is going to be involved with them like this. The Run Jin team probably doesn't even know all this but... yeah idk i'm so disturbed by this," wrote a fourth fan.
Check out more reactions below:
The Run Jin episode featuring Tom Cruise will premiere on May 18 on BTS' official YouTube channel, BANGTAN TV.?
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