# The Real American Psycho: Tom Cruise **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 20, 2026, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235 "2026-09-20T22:56:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/61 "2026-09-22T19:36:02Z")
According to the diagnostic schema, you can have unipolar depression, but not unipolar mania. If you have mania, the assumption is that you’re bipolar and just haven’t had your first depressive episode yet. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/62 "2026-09-22T19:41:47Z")
> [@Thing.Fish](#): > > It’s rare, but not unheard of, to have mania without depression. Is it really mania if he _actually_ does the things he says? Most manic episodes have some degree of magical thinking, but when Cruise talks about being adored in front of big crowds, or pulling off some highly complex stunt, he’s making _literal_ plans. I mean, sure, his desire to film at the space station didn’t pan out, but it’s not like it wasn’t given some serious consideration. > **[Tom Cruise is no longer set to make history in space as the actor's NASA...](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/movies/articles/tom-cruise-no-longer-set-121046873.html)** > > Tom Cruise was set to star in the first narrative movie filmed in space, but the project is no longer going ahead ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/63 "2026-09-22T20:01:33Z")
It’s possible with that Oprah interview he had religious mania, or cult mania, or whatever. He could have been feeling ecstatic about Scientology. Religious ecstasy is a thing. He was behaving very strangely. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/64 "2026-09-22T20:05:17Z")
Wasn’t that when he announced his relationship with Katie Holmes. He was as giddy as a school girl getting the news that the cutest boy in school likes her. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/65 "2026-09-22T20:21:45Z")
The Answer can be found in Latrobe… If you have the courage to seek it! ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/66 "2026-09-22T21:04:35Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > > [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > > > Christian Bale got inspiration for his character Patrick Bateman in American Psycho from watching a Tom Cruise interview. > > Interesting. Can you give us a cite? Aside from the cites given: Bale’s performance _itself_ is a reasonable piece of evidence that Cruise was his inspiration. It’s an uncanny impersonation. Bale gets Cruise’s bright brittle intensity just right. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/67 "2026-09-22T21:21:07Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > I suspect that, who knows, some of the sessions/therapy might actually be, or feel, therapeutic for some people, at least if they can ignore the creepy Hubbard stuff. Hard to get people hooked if it is too noxious But it isn’t normal behavioral therapy for the benefit of the patient. It’s brainwashing to get you to believe in what the cult believes. The Thetans that oversee the universe, how you must submit to everything they tell you to do and to give them all your money, to cut off anyone who is worried about your giving them all your money, etc. There’s no meaningful therapy taking place. They try to break you down and make you believe you’re so low, that only following everything they say will give you a chance at becoming “clear”. But you never do. It’s about as theraputic as Jim Jones. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/68 "2026-09-22T21:51:19Z")
> [@Thing.Fish](#): > > According to the diagnostic schema, you can have unipolar depression, but not unipolar mania. If you have mania, the assumption is that you’re bipolar and just haven’t had your first depressive episode yet. My understanding is the term for unipolar hypomania is [hyperthymic temperament](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperthymic_temperament) > **Hyperthymic temperament** , or **hyperthymia** , from Ancient Greek _ὑπέρ_ (“over”, meaning here _excessive_) + _[θυμός](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thumos "Thumos")_ (“spirited”), is a proposed personality type characterized by an exceptionally, or in some cases, abnormally positive or irritated [mood](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mood_(psychology) "Mood (psychology)") and disposition. It is generally defined by increased energy, vividness and enthusiasm for life activities, as opposed to [dysthymia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dysthymia "Dysthymia"). Hyperthymia is similar to but more stable than [hypomania](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypomania "Hypomania").[[4]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperthymic_temperament#cite_note-4)[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperthymic_temperament#cite_note-5) > > Characteristics of the hyperthymic temperament include:[[6]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperthymic_temperament#cite_note-6) > > - increased energy and [productivity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Productivity "Productivity") > - short sleep patterns > - self-assurance, self-confidence > - talkativeness > - [risk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk "Risk")-taking/sensation seeking > - love of attention > - cheerfulness and joviality > - expansiveness > - tirelessness Supposedly both Bill Clinton and Teddy Roosevelt had/have this too. Its not technically a mental illness because it doesn’t ruin your life. It does kind of fit Cruise. > **["You're so tired you're going to puke": Tom Cruise's Sleeping Schedule Would...](https://fandomwire.com/tom-cruises-sleeping-schedule-would-blow-your-mind/)** > > Fans know Tom Cruise as the dedicated actor who does crazy stunts, but how much time does he spend getting a good night's sleep? > [Tom Cruise](https://fandomwire.com/tag/tom-cruise/) made some remarks on his demanding work schedule in a conversation with Ellen DeGeneres when he first appeared on her show in 2003. When asked about his average sleep duration, Cruise revealed that it varies depending on the day’s demands, workload, and his responsibilities as a parent. On occasions when he is shooting a film or engrossed in a project, the _Top Gun_ actor usually manages to get around four to six hours of sleep per night. > > Cruise, known for his genuine personality, acknowledged that many might wonder how he manages to maintain his high energy levels with such little sleep. In response, he humorously mentioned the boundless energy that comes with being a parent. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/69 "2026-09-22T22:19:00Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Supposedly both Bill Clinton and Teddy Roosevelt had/have this too. > > Its not technically a mental illness because it doesn’t ruin your life. > > It does kind of fit Cruise. I think of Tony Robbins, the self improvement guru. Personally, I’d find it exhausting. Random, but I’d note that Family Guy occasionally has a parody version of Tom Cruise appear. He is depicted as a (very short) high energy, high optimism, guy. It’s very much a joke about the personality we’ve been discussing. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/CCkeoHcABuY/maxresdefault.jpg "Tiny Tom Cruise 😂 #familyguy #shorts") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCkeoHcABuY) ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2026, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/70 "2026-09-23T10:27:40Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > The Answer can be found in Latrobe… If you have the courage to seek it! I understood that reference… ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2026, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/71 "2026-09-23T12:11:09Z")
I don’t know whether it is depression, [but in this interview,](https://youtu.be/4rnztuLdCzg) soon after the Oprah incident, I think, he struck me as brittle, irritable, and working very hard to _act_ happy. By the second half, he’s just scary. I remember thinking, I wouldn’t want to be alone with him that afternoon, and I hoped Katie would be all right. It’s entirely possible that he’s the sort for whom depression is more irritability than sadness, and that masks the symptoms for folks around him who don’t know how to recognize it. ---
**Author:** ![JohnnyEcks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnnyecks/32/18197_2.png) [@JohnnyEcks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnnyEcks)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2026, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/72 "2026-09-23T12:48:00Z")
For what it’s worth, Cruise had supposedly reached “OT level VII” just before the Oprah interview, a level that promises to free you from past trauma and produce euphoria and a variety of superpowers. If this is true, his antics during the interview can be read as a man desperate to project this, or possibly to convince himself of it. Or both. Probably both. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2026, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/73 "2026-09-23T12:55:47Z")
Yeah, engrams are a bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235/74 "2026-10-05T23:02:46Z")
> **[Smiling, Unblinking Tom Cruise Just Wants To Know Why Nation Didn't See 'Digger'](https://theonion.com/smiling-unblinking-tom-cruise-just-wants-to-know-why-nation-didnt-see-digger/)** > > WASHINGTON—Faced with a weekend of dismal ticket sales that ranked among the worst in the megastar’s career, a smiling, unblinking Tom Cruise calmly stated Monday that he just wanted to know why the nation didn’t turn out to see his new movie Digger.... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-american-psycho-tom-cruise/1033235.md?page=3)