Tom Cruise was snapped at the London premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick” helping Kate Middleton up a set of stairs at Leicester Square.
The actor wore a striking black tux while walking the red carpet alongside both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. As they approached a set of stairs, Cruise, 59, offered his hand to Middleton, who wore a Roland Mouret column dress and black Prada heels.
He then escorted the royal up the steps as Prince William walked alongside, seemingly adjusting his jacket and tie.
Once back on level ground, the “Mission: Impossible” actor introduced the future king and queen to co-stars Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm and Miles Teller.
Many observers took to Twitter in praise of the gentlemanly move.
“Tom is so lovely. Always the gentleman,” wrote one fan, with another posting, “I Dont care for, or about Tom Cruise’s religious beliefs, but i will say this, he is always a Gentleman and never forgets for a second how to behave in public.”
A third fan added, “Bless Tom Cruise. He looks like he takes everything he does so seriously, including escorting the Duchess up the stairs. I think William is struggling to hold it together 😅.”
Yahoo UK‘s royal executive editor Omid Scobie also addressed viewers questioning if Cruise is technically allowed to touch a member of the royal family, writing, “There are no official rules when it comes to touching a member of the Royal Family. It’s more down to what’s acceptable in society or not. I think there are a lot of things that are perceived as royal etiquette or royal protocol that we assume might be the case but aren’t actually.”
“It could have been far worse,” he added. “The worst would be for her to trip downstairs at a royal film premiere.”
The premiere was hosted by Paramount Pictures and The Film and TV Charity, which supports professionals in Britain’s film and television industry. The screening marks the 72nd Royal Film Performance put on by the charity in its nearly 100-year history, People reports.