When Mission: Impossible 7 and 8 finally come out, Tom Cruise would have accomplished the brave feat of playing secret agent Ethan Hunt into his sixties, and Paramount wants to make sure that milestone is treated as such.
To put things into context, since the first Mission: Impossible came out in 1996 the then 34-year-old Cruise has starred in a total of six films for the franchise, set to be capped at eight entries when MI:8 releases in 2024, which would see him match the combined movie output of both Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig as James Bond. Although Mission: Impossible films have had their highs and lows in terms of quality, recent entries are regarded as some of the best in the series, a standard the studio will want to uphold in Cruise's final two outings.
According to a recent report from Variety, that is precisely the idea Paramount is gunning for with MI:7 and MI:8. One of the key ideas to achieve this would be having MI:8 filming complete by the time MI:7 is out in theaters come July 2023, because the latter could feature a cliffhanger ending and Cruise wants a “seamless transition” between the two movies. Both films were originally intended to be filmed at the same time by director Christopher McQuarrie, until added the extra logistics and costs the COVID pandemic forced onto Mission Impossible became too much to bear.
Contrary to most modern films, all those impressive Mission: Impossible stunts are often put together on real filming locations instead of large hangars with green screens. This is a creative choice that fans definitely appreciate but one that also disrupts the production phase. MI:7 and MI:8 are not the only Cruise movies distributed by Paramount that fans have been eagerly anticipating for the past two years, though Top Gun: Maverick does appear to have its May 27 premiere target fully locked.
It seems almost natural for the final two Mission: Impossible films to be all about Cruise, as the actor’s legacy in the role is a huge component of why these movies have remained consistently popular and profitable for almost three decades. While every time a 007 actor retires from the role rumors about his replacement begin instantly, there’s hardly any talk of anyone ever replacing or taking up Cruise's mantle.
Ethan Hunt is undoubtedly the world’s most famous secret agent, and considering the contrasting styles the Mission: Impossible and James Bond franchises feature, the two spies would probably be more like admirers of each other’s craft rather than competitors. At least by the time Cruise retires, a new Bond should be ready to suit up as 007.
Mission: Impossible 7 is set to release on July 14, 2023, and Mission: Impossible 8 is scheduled for June 28, 2024.
Source: Variety