Hayley Atwell says Tom Cruise helped her deal with social anxiety

Los Angeles, Mar 29 (PTI) Actor Hayley Atwell says a pep talk by Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise helped her a lot in overcoming social anxiety.

Atwell, who featured with Cruise in 2023's "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning", opened up about dealing with the issue during her appearance on the podcast "Reign With Josh Smith”.

“Social anxiety... It manifests in different ways, but the pep talk (Tom) gave me helps that. If you walk into a room and you feel the anxieties coming, and it makes me want to retreat into myself, I start to overthink, and go: ‘Do I look weird? Do I seem awkward?’ We go into ourselves, and Tom said: ‘Try doing the opposite'," she recalled.

Atwell, who will reprise her role of Grace in the long-running franchise's eight part "The Final Reckoning", said once a person is able to identify the reason behind the anxiety, then overcoming it becomes easier.

"So he was just like: ‘If you are scared of something just keep looking at it. Just try not to close your eyes or turn away. Just keep looking at it and it will often give you information about what to do to overcome it," she added.

Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, "The Final Reckoning" is slated to hit theatres worldwide in May. The film is expected to bring curtains down on the franchise, in which Cruise plays the role of of spy agent Ethan Hunt.

He first starred as Hunt in 1996 movie which emerged as a massive box office success. He reprised the role in the next six installments.

The film series is a reboot of the 1966 television series of the same name and its sequels.