Barely two months after he was dumped by Paramount, Tom Cruise celebrated his comeback as a Hollywood mogul with the announcement yesterday that he is to be put in charge of United Artists.

The deal, struck between Cruise’s company, Cruise/ Wagner and MGM, the owners of the studio founded by Charlie Chaplin and his friends, is a big coup for the controversial actor.

Cruise’s career as producer appeared to be over when he was dismissed by Paramount in August over his erratic behaviour and evangelising for the Church of Scientology.

Sumner Redstone, the 83-year-old chairman of Viacom, the owners of Paramount, terminated his 14-year-old business relationship with Cruise, claiming that he had cost the studio up to $150 million (£78m) in lost revenues on Mission: Impossible III.

Mr Redstone has told Vanity Fair magazine, in an issue to be released next week, that Cruise’s conduct was “embarrassing the studio”. He said that Cruise had become a hate figure for women after his criticism of Brooke Shields’s treatment for post-natal depression and his bizarre relationship with his fiancée, Katie Holmes.

“He didn’t just turn one off,” Mr Redstone told the magazine. “He turned off all women and a lot of men.” Cruise is due to marry Holmes on November 18 in Italy.

The deal to revive the near-defunct United Artists to accommodate Cruise and his long-time business partner, Paula Wagner, is a rebuttal to Mr Redstone’s assertion that the days of big movie star power were over.

United Artists, responsible for such key film franchises as Rocky, Pink Panther and James Bond, was set up in the golden age of Hollywood by a group of actor luminaries to escape the shackles of studio bosses.

When he heard about their scheme, Richard A. Rowland, head of Metro Pictures, exclaimed: “The inmates are taking over the asylum!” Under the deal announced yesterday, Cruise will star in and produce films for the studio, while Ms Wagner will be chief executive. The pair will be handed complete creative control of the company’s production slate. MGM will serve as financial backers and distributors of their films.

Harry Sloan, the chairman of MGM, said: “Our partnership with [the new owners] reaffirms our commitment to providing creative talent with a comfortable home at United Artists and a dedicated distribution partner in MGM.”

Cruise vowed to turn United Artists into a haven for independent film-makers, allowing them creative space to develop their talents. “Paula and I are very respectful of the rich history and tradition of United Artists,” he said. “It’s our desire to create an environment where film-makers can thrive and see their visions realised.”

Rick Sand, the chief operating officer of MGM, said that under Cruise and Ms Wagner, the studio would be free to make $100 million (£52 million) action films starring Cruise, as well as lower-budget fare. “It really depends on what they, as the creative executives, want to produce,” Mr Sands said. “It’s a real studio that we are reinventing.”

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