"Original fight club"

Rob Lowe: “Tom Cruise knocked me out”

Rob Lowe has now revealed that he was once knocked out by Tom Cruise.

(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Frazer Harrison)

They met as teenagers in 1980, when Tom Cruise and Emilio Estevez shared an apartment in Los Angeles. Three years later, Rob Lowe and the 'Mission Impossible' star became stars together in the film 'The Outsiders'. On the "Rich Eisen Show", Lowe now revealed that he and Cruise shared a competitive spirit back then - which ended in a knockout for him.

The 60-year-old revealed that he and Cruise used to have boxing matches in the hallway of their hotel to pass the time during breaks in filming 'Outsider': "When two 18-year-olds are stuck in the same place, too much testosterone comes together. That's why we had sparring matches - but with face masks and head protection."

Cruise "fully muscled"
Tom was already "fully muscled" back then, while Rob, according to his own recollection, had "the thin arms of a pipe cleaner". In one fight, he still managed to get through Cruise's guard and land a direct hit on his chin.

Standing in front of the camera together for "The Outsiders": Rob Lowe (2nd from left) and Tom Cruise (far right)

(Bild: picturedesk.com/ZOETROPE STUDIOS / Mary Evans )

Cruise's reaction: "His pupils went black. The next thing I remember was coming to on the floor. Tom had knocked me out. It was the original Fightclub."

Unconventional audition
In addition to Lowe, "The Outsiders" also became a breakthrough film for Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, Ralph Macchio and Diane Lane. To mark the 42nd anniversary of the film, Francis Ford Coppola shared footage of the young actors' auditions on Instagram.

The legendary director dared to try his hand at casting: "I invited all the actors together and had them all audition for the different roles. It was very interesting because they had such a close eye on their rivals."

"Deep connection"
The result was very positive for Coppola: "The guys developed a mutual respect and a deeper connection with their colleagues."

Macchio commented under the post that this casting experience and the movie "left a deep impression on me to this day".