Tom Cruise Abandons £35M London Penthouse After Violent Rolex Robbery

2026-02-04 02:49:51

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) It seems even the world's biggest action star has found a mission that's truly impossible: staying safe in modern-day London.

Tom Cruise has reportedly packed up and walked away from his £35 million penthouse in Knightsbridge. The Mission: Impossible icon is said to have reached a breaking point after a violent armed robbery unfolded almost on his doorstep.

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The final straw came on January 20 at One Hyde Park, the ultra-exclusive complex where Cruise had been living. A gang of masked thieves arrived on motorbikes and stormed the Rolex store in broad daylight.

Armed with machetes, claw hammers and specialist glass-breaking tools, they smashed display cases and fled with around 20 high-value watches, all in under three minutes.

The sheer speed and audacity of the raid has left residents shocked, tarnishing the long-standing perception that London's Knightsbridge exists in a protective bubble of wealth and security.

Cruise purchased the penthouse around 2021, drawn to London's energy and its ability to offer him a relatively grounded life off set. But sources say his feelings towards the area had already begun to shift, with the robbery acting as a final breaking point.

His team reportedly moved quickly to clear out the apartment, surprising even the building's concierge staff.

The Rolex heist, however, was not an isolated incident. It followed a string of crimes in the vicinity, including a ram-raid at a nearby store and a fatal stabbing last year.

Once known for jogging through Hyde Park and living the London life between film shoots, sources say the actor had grown increasingly uneasy as the area's sense of security began to chip away.

The 63-year-old star is now believed to have returned to the US for the time being, while considering more secluded parts of the British countryside.

The incident has inadvertently sent shockwaves across the city. When even a billionaire-status celebrity living in one of London's most fortified areas no longer feels safe, it raises uncomfortable questions about security in the capital's most sought-after postcodes.