Tom Cruise stars in at least one film from the 1980s.
Tom Cruise . He started his career at age 19 in the film Endless Love ( 1981 ) . Cruise became a full-fledged movie star after starring as Pete `` Maverick '' Mitchell in the action drama Top Gun ( 1986 ) . One of the biggest movie stars in Hollywood , Cruise starred in several more successful films in the 1980s , including the dramas The Color of Money ( 1986 ) , Cocktail ( 1988 ) , Rain Man ( 1988 ) , and Born on the Fourth of July ( 1989 ) . Top Gun is a 1986 American romantic military action drama film directed by Tony Scott , and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer , in association with Paramount Pictures . The film stars Tom Cruise , Kelly McGillis , Val Kilmer , Anthony Edwards , and Tom Skerritt .