There is, of course, the matter of the ceremony’s host—self-appointed Kennedy Center chairman Donald Trump. Cruise has remained largely tight-lipped on the country’s current political hellscape. He even dodged a question about his favorite topic—movies—at a Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning press conference earlier this year,

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he will host this year's Kennedy Center Honors ceremony after announcing a lineup of honorees he approved as part of his effort to remake cultural institutions he has deemed too liberal.

KISS, Sylvester Stallone, George Strait, Gloria Gaynor, and Michael Crawford are the first Kennedy Center Honors recipients overseen by Trump.