Summary
AlthoughMission: Impossible 8is scheduled to be Tom Cruise’s final project in the franchise, his departure would be a huge misstep at this point. The film, which will pick up directly afterMission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1’s cliffhanger ending, was initially supposed to be the second part of this story, but has since been re-branded as a new film altogether. That being said, the story is sure to continue where the previous one left off, with Cruise’s protagonist Ethan Hunt searching forSevastopolin order to use the key he stole from Gabriel in the final scene.
Over the past few years,theMission: Impossiblemovies have just been getting better. Every film in the series has been a resounding critical success, even ifMission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1underwhelmed at the box office. This positive reaction would ordinarily be reason enough for the franchise to continue with Cruise in the lead. Aside from this and the unfinished story, however, I believe there is an even more compelling reason why theMission: Impossibleseries must continue without replacing Cruisein the lead.
Will Mission Impossible 8 Be The Last One?
Tom Cruise could exit the Mission: Impossible franchise with the upcoming sequels, but will Mission: Impossible 8 be the end of the franchise overall?
Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible Stunts Keep Getting Bigger With Each Movie
The Actor Isn’t Afraid To Reach New Heights
The unique draw of theMission: Impossiblemovies is that their stunts, much like the scale of the narratives, keep getting bigger and bigger with each movie. While the original film was a small-scale spy drama that focused mostly on stealth and combat, the latest installments have delivered huge international threats with big-budget vehicle chases and breathtaking action set pieces.This has rocketedMission: Impossibleto a whole new level of success, with the films becoming cinematic events where people turn up every few years to see the newMission: Impossiblestunts.
Of course, the franchise could survive without Tom Cruise in some form, but the actor’s dedication to doing his own stunts and pushing his own boundaries is exactly what makes this aspect of the films so endearing. Knowing that Cruise has been doing this for so long and still wants to go bigger and bolder with the film’s action is a huge selling point of the series. Without this, I find it hard to imagine that audiences would turn up as frequently and reliably to the new releases.
I Never Know What To Expect From Tom Cruise In Mission: Impossible
Every Movie Seems To Surpass Expectations
As an actor, Tom Cruise is one of the most ambitious and unpredictable in the business. He clearly loves these movies with a passion, and wants to surprise audiences every time a new one is made. And as the movies get bigger and bigger,his stunts and on-screen antics get less and less predictable. I certainly couldn’t have envisioned thatMission: Impossible - Falloutwould see Cruise fighting on the side of an airborne helicopter, or that he’d cling to the door of an ascending plane inMission: Impossible - Rogue Nation.
Jeremy Renner almost replaced Cruise afterGhost Protocolbefore ultimately turning down the offer […]
It’s this growing sense of danger and instability that makesMission: Impossibleso exciting, and it’s hard to imagine that anybody else would dare to get so risky behind the scenes. There are certainly actors who would give it a good shot -Jeremy Renner almost replaced CruiseafterGhost Protocolbefore ultimately turning down the offer - but the franchise would suffer without his dedication to stunts and action. The series would likely turn into a more story-focused spy franchise, likeJames BondorJason Bourne.
What We Know About Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible 8 Stunts
Filming Has Given Away Some Secrets
Not too much is known about theplot ofMission: Impossible 8,but a couple of the stunts have been filmed already, and they’re just as bold and frightening as you would expect. Photos have surfaced online of Tom Cruise, dressed in Hunt’s signature white t-shirt and black jacket, hanging from a plane - seemingly by only his hands. Obviously, there’s some movie magic ensuring that Cruise is safely secured to the vehicle, but from a distance (and certainly in the film) this seems like one of the actor’s most dangerous stunts to date.
This definitely won’t be the only stunt that Cruise finds himself performing inMission: Impossible 8, but for now, the rest have seemingly been kept under wraps. And with supporting actor Simon Pegg recently revealing on Instagram (viaCinemablend) that he has finished his portion of filming, it’s very possible that some stunts have already been shot and kept quiet from the public. Pegg had this to say about his Mission: Impossible exit: “What a f——ng incredible spectacle this next film is going to be, I’m so excited for you to see it. But until then, Benji Dunn signing off.”
