Tom Cruise Going Into Politics - Don't Worry, It's Just a Movie!

The spec script war is back on, at least where Dan Fogelman is concerned. After years of writers complaining that they can't sell a script that isn't based on an already-existing property, Fogelman (who had a hand in writing "Tangled," "Bolt," and "Cars") has made millions selling "Crazy, Stupid, Love" (set for release this summer), "Imagine" (on which he'll make his directorial debut), and "My Mother's Curse" (which is in production right now).

Now Deadline reports that Warner Brothers is throwing $2 million, plus another $3 million should the film go into production, his way for an untitled project with Tom Cruise attached.

In the film, Cruise would play a politician with a spotless record - until he has an affair. We've all seen how a politician's personal life can totally redefine their professional career over the last decade, so the film would follow Cruise's character as he returns to his hometown to repair his relationships and confront the past. Someday, someone will make a film in which the protagonist returns home and doesn't completely fix himself by the end, but this probably won't be that.

Cruise last played a politician in Robert Redford's often-forgotten "Lions for Lambs," which admittedly wasn't all that good but had some very solid aspects to it. Tom Cruise's performance was among those. Cruise has a natural ability to be insincerely charming - it's no surprise that Christian Bale drew inspiration from the star when crafting his character for "American Pyscho" - a quality much suited to the realm of politics.

Cruise will next star in the fourth "Mission: Impossible" film, which is slated for release in December and by all accounts is supposed to be amazing, and will follow that up with the adaptation of the Broadway musical "Rock of Ages."