If you watch The Outsiders today, it’s a bit of a shock. You see all these future icons—Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, Matt Dillon—looking like absolute babies. But then there’s Tom Cruise. He plays Steve Randle, a grease-covered, high-energy sidekick. And when he smiles, it stops you cold. It isn't the million-dollar, porcelain-white grin we’ve seen in Top Gun: Maverick or Mission: Impossible. It’s a mess. Specifically, Tom Cruise Outsiders teeth were famously chipped, misaligned, and discolored, looking nothing like the Hollywood standard he’d eventually define.
It was a choice.
Most people assume he just had bad teeth back then. That’s only half-true. Cruise did have dental issues as a teenager—he famously had a prominent front tooth that was slightly out of alignment—but for the role of Steve Randle, he went a step further. He voluntarily had a cap removed from a front tooth that had been chipped by a flying puck during a hockey match in his youth. He wanted to look rugged. He wanted to look like a kid who lived on the wrong side of the tracks in Tulsa.
The Story Behind the Infamous Gap
Francis Ford Coppola is a legendary director for a reason. He creates atmospheres that feel lived-in. When Cruise showed up to film The Outsiders in 1982, he was a hungry 20-year-old actor willing to do basically anything to stand out in an ensemble cast of "it" boys. He realized Steve Randle shouldn't have a perfect smile. Steve was a mechanic. He got into fights.
So, Cruise visited a dentist in Tulsa and had the cap removed.
It’s one of those tiny details that changed the entire energy of his performance. Without the "Hollywood" face, Cruise became a gritty character actor. Honestly, looking back at stills from the movie, it’s hard to reconcile that face with the man who would eventually become the biggest movie star on the planet. His teeth were crowded. They were yellowed for the role. The "middle tooth" phenomenon hadn't even become a meme yet because the misalignment was so distracting.
The 1980s were a different time for celebrity aesthetics. Nowadays, a young actor would be pressured into veneers before their first audition. Back then, flaws were character. If you look at the 1983 publicity shots for The Outsiders, Cruise is often seen leaning against a car, biceps bulging, but he’s keeping his mouth shut or smirking in a way that hides the damage. When he does flash the full grin in the film, it’s a jarring reminder of how much work he eventually put into his transformation.
How Tom Cruise Fixed the Outsiders Teeth
Transformation didn't happen overnight. After The Outsiders, Cruise’s career exploded with Risky Business. As his star rose, his dental journey began in earnest. It wasn't just about whitening. It was about major structural changes.
If you look closely at photos from the late 80s and early 90s, you can see the progression. He started with basic alignment. But the most famous moment in his dental history—other than the movie itself—happened in 2002.
He showed up to the premiere of Minority Report wearing ceramic braces.
He was 40 years old. Imagine being the most famous man in the world and deciding to spend a year with wire and brackets in your mouth. He did it because his midline was off. If you draw a line down the center of Cruise's face, his right incisor is actually the tooth that sits directly under his nose. This is the "middle tooth" that fans have obsessed over for decades.
Medical experts, like Dr. Kevin Sands, a prominent Beverly Hills cosmetic dentist, have often pointed out that Cruise’s dental work is a masterclass in "functional aesthetics." He didn't just slap on a row of identical white chiclets. He had his teeth moved, widened his arch, and eventually opted for high-end veneers that retained some of the natural character of his smile while fixing the glaring issues from his youth.
The Midline Mystery and the "Middle Tooth"
We have to talk about the midline. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.
The Tom Cruise Outsiders teeth era was the last time his teeth looked "natural," even if they were naturally broken. After the braces came off in the early 2000s, the alignment was much better, but that central incisor remained stubbornly centered.
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Why didn't he fix it perfectly?
Orthodontics is limited by the jawbone and the roots. Sometimes, to perfectly center a midline, you’d have to perform invasive jaw surgery or extract multiple teeth, which can change the shape of the face. Cruise likely chose a compromise: make them straight and white, but leave the bone structure as is. It’s a fascinating bit of human biology. Your teeth are anchored in the maxilla (the upper jaw), and if the symmetry isn't there from birth, you can only move things so far.
A Timeline of the Smile Evolution
- 1982: The cap comes off for The Outsiders. Gritty, chipped, and yellowed.
- 1986: Top Gun era. The teeth are capped and whiter, but the alignment is still visibly "crowded."
- 2002: The Braces Era. Cruise wears clear brackets to correct an overbite and midline issues.
- Present Day: The "Perfect" Smile. Highly sophisticated veneers that are bright but shaped to look like real teeth.
Why We Still Care About a 40-Year-Old Movie Smile
There is something deeply humanizing about seeing a superstar with "bad" teeth. In The Outsiders, Cruise looks like a regular guy. He looks like someone you’d know from high school. That accessibility is part of what made the movie a cult classic. It wasn't polished.
S.E. Hinton, the author of the original book, famously spent time on set and noted how much the boys bonded. They were all competing, but they were also all trying to out-act each other. Cruise’s decision to remove his dental cap was a signal to the rest of the cast: I’m taking this more seriously than you are. It worked.
While C. Thomas Howell was the lead and Matt Dillon was the heartthrob, Cruise’s intensity made Steve Randle memorable despite having relatively little screen time. The teeth were a prop. They were a costume. They were a tool.
The Cost of a Hollywood Smile
If you were to try and replicate Cruise's journey today, it would cost a fortune. Between the adult orthodontics, the multiple rounds of whitening, and the full set of porcelain veneers, you’re looking at an investment of anywhere from $30,000 to $100,000.
But it’s not just about the money. It’s about the "uncanny valley." Many celebrities today get veneers that are too big, too white, and too straight. They look like piano keys. Cruise’s teeth—even with the midline issue—look like his teeth. They fit his face.
The Tom Cruise Outsiders teeth serve as the "before" photo for the greatest glow-up in cinematic history. It’s a reminder that even the most "perfect" people usually started with some rough edges.
Actionable Insights for Your Own Smile
If you’re looking at your own smile and thinking about the "Cruise transformation," here are a few things to keep in mind based on modern dental practices:
- Midlines aren't everything. Most people will never notice if your teeth aren't perfectly centered under your nose. Focus on health and basic alignment first.
- Adult braces are normal. If Tom Cruise could do it at the height of his fame, you can do it at your office job. Clear aligners or ceramic brackets have made the process way less "obvious."
- Veneers require maintenance. They aren't permanent. They usually need to be replaced every 10–15 years.
- Character matters. Sometimes a slight imperfection—like the one Cruise kept—makes a smile look more "real" and attractive than a perfect, artificial one.
Check out the original The Outsiders again. Look past the denim vests and the grease. Look at the commitment in that broken-tooth smile. It was the first sign that Tom Cruise wasn't just another pretty face—he was a guy willing to look "ugly" to get the job done. That’s why he’s still here 40 years later.