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While on her HSM 3 publicity tour, Vanessa Hudgens admitted to Access Hollywood that she thinks Tom Cruise is "an amazing guy" and that she "looks up to him"!

The unlikely pals first met through an even more unlikely source -- Victoria Beckham introduced them backstage at a Spice Girls concert.

"I was at a Spice Girls concert because Victoria invited me," says Hudgens, who's apparently on a first name basis with Posh, "and Suri, Kate and Tom all walk in and Victoria was like, ‘You know Tom and Kate, don’t you?’ And I’m like, ‘No!’ And I got to talk to them, they are all really great people.”

That's when the Hollywood vet gave Vanessa advice on dealing with fame.

He told the budding star, "there isn’t much that you can do, it’s just part of your life now, so you have to accept it."

Pretty wise words!