Samantha Harris has interviewed some of the biggest names in Hollywood, but one sit-down nearly turned into a disaster, and it took Tom Cruise to stop it from happening. The former “Dancing With The Stars” host, 52, told Fox News Digital about one of the wildest assignments of her career, a promotional shoot with Cruise in Seville, Spain, that came within seconds of going seriously wrong.
Getty“I’ve told my kids from the moment they were born… do not ride on a motorcycle,” Harris said, kicking off the story.
The Shoot Takes an Unexpected Turn
GettyAccording to the former “Entertainment Tonight” correspondent, the original plan never called for her to get anywhere near Cruise’s motorcycle. “It was a closed course with like 20 different cameras set up and fans for the movie promotion standing around,” she told Fox.
“We weren’t even supposed to ride on the motorcycle. We were supposed to talk to him, do an interview, get into a chase car with a stunt driver, and then chase him on his motorcycle. But I was like, ‘Tom… can I just sit on the Ducati?'”
Cruise, then promoting Knight and Day, agreed without a second thought. He told her to “come on over,” setting up a moment neither of them saw coming.
The Ducati Nearly Crushes Tom Cruise
GettyWith only horseback riding experience to draw on, Harris climbed onto the motorcycle the only way she knew how. “Well, let me tell you, I’ve only ridden horses. I’ve never ridden motorcycles. Now, if you know the difference with a horse, you put your left foot in the stirrup on the left side, and you swing your leg around, and you get on, so that’s what I’m thinking I do.”
What came next played out in front of a crowd of fans and a bank of rolling cameras. “And I go to get on, and this Ducati, slow motion, as thousands of fans are watching, as cameras are rolling, this 500-pound Ducati starts to tip with me on it over, about to crush Tom Cruise.”
Cruise didn’t miss a beat. “And I am freaking out, but literally, like in a movie scene, Tom gets under that Ducati, catches it with both arms, pushes it, rights it back up,” Harris said.
A Second Try Goes Off Without a Hitch
Certain the moment had cost her the shot, Harris figured she’d be sent straight back to the chase car. Cruise had other plans. “And he says, ‘Can we try that again? This time keep your foot planted… on the ground as you get on.'”
The second attempt went off without a hitch, and the ride that followed turned into one of the most memorable moments of Harris’ career. “We got on the Ducati, he says, ‘Hold on.’ I wrap my arms around him and audibly, but I think I’m saying it in my head, go, ‘Oh my God, your abs.’ It was caught on TV. It aired later that day. My husband saw it at home while he’s dealing with… our firstborn. And I’m pregnant with my second. I don’t even realize I’m pregnant.”
With Harris holding on behind him, Cruise sped through the city streets. “Tom takes off through the streets of Seville, Spain. It was the most fun, awesome TV experience of all my different thousands of celebrity interviews,” she said.
Even now, looking back on a career filled with A-list sit-downs, Harris says this one still stands out, a wild, unscripted reminder of just how much can happen behind the scenes of a simple movie promotion.
