“Thanks to Him Obviously”: How “The Biggest Movie Star in the World” Helped The Weeknd Land His First No. 1 Hit

Having won numerous Grammys, Billboard Music Awards, and American Music Awards, The Weeknd also sold over 75 million albums and set the record for most songs to cross one billion streams on Spotify. While continuing to expand his grasp on the music industry, the singer was once an aspiring artist trying to land his first No. 1 hit. And apparently, movie star Tom Cruise helped The Weeknd hit that goal when he appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon back in 2015. 

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While promoting the last installment of the Mission: Impossible franchise, Cruise received some surprise praise from The Weeknd. Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the singer recalled how Cruise covered “Can’t Feel My Face” during a lip sync battle with Fallon. “I definitely saw that. It actually helped the song. It helped it peak to the record-breaking top, thanks to him obviously. To the biggest movie star in the world.” 

Sadly, The Weeknd never got the chance to thank Cruise in person. While not meeting the actor, he hoped his praise would eventually reach him. “I’m a huge Tom Cruise guy. I love The Color Of Money, love Vanilla Sky, Eyes Wide Shot, Magnolia and Mission Impossible.”

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The Weeknd Promotes ‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’

Although a fan of Cruise, The Weeknd insisted the action star might not know who he was. “I don’t think he does but he did that for me. That like it wasn’t a favour, I didn’t know [him].”

Helping “Can’t Feel My Face” land the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, Cruise got some help promoting Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning from The Weeknd. During his time with Fallon, the singer surprised the audience when he threw on a Mission: Impossible hat and started to read the synopsis on the film. 

Knowing that Cruise didn’t need help when it came to promoting the film, the Weeknd shared a laugh as he returned the favor nearly a decade later. Even the band got in on the action as they started to play the famous Mission: Impossible theme. 

While The Weeknd received a No. 1 hit with the help of Cruise, only time will tell if the singer returned the favor and helped the movie star dominate the box office.

(Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)