Tom Cruise hints at the future of Mission: Impossible
Tom Cruise has no plans to retire from Ethan Hunt any time soon.
The 61-year-old actor has said he wants to move on Impossible Mission films until he was Harrison Ford’s age, comparing his franchise to Ford’s Indiana Jones.
Cruise told that Sydney Morning Herald: “Harrison Ford is a legend. I hope I can still get there. I have 20 years to catch up with him.”
He continued: “I hope to be able to continue Impossible Mission Movies until I’m his age.”
Cruise was 34 when he first played super spy Ethan Hunt in 1996 Impossible Mission. The character was two years younger than the actor.
In the years that followed, he starred in seven sequels, the most recent of which is titled Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One – coming out later this week.
By comparison, Ford was 38 when he first played against Indiana Jones in 1981 Hunter of the lost treasure.
In the fifth and most recent addition to the franchise, he was 80 years old. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinywhich was released on June 28th.
Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
(Paramount Pictures/Skydance)
Cruise now seems to have ruled out any notion that the upcoming sequel Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two — due out sometime next year — will be his final appearance in the role.
At 61, Cruise appears to be in excellent health. He continues to perform his own extreme stunts for the action franchise and does so in Mission Impossible 7.
In the new film, Cruise can be seen speedflying – a sport in which participants use a small paraglider wing to quickly descend from great heights, such as mountains.
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Cruise trained for years for the sequence, which has been described as one of the most dangerous the actor has ever shot. The crew is said to have watched him in “complete horror” as he flew at breakneck speed.
Elsewhere in the interview with Sydney HeraldAddressing his recent social media post, Cruise urged moviegoers to check out two of his summertime box office competitors: Barbie And Oppenheimer.
(© 2023 Paramount Pictures)
The two films – directed by Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan respectively – are slated to hit theaters on the same day (July 21).
“I want to see both Barbie And Oppenheimer,” he said. “I’ll see them open this weekend. Friday, I’ll see Oppenheimer first and then Barbie on Saturday.
“I grew up watching movies on the big screen. That’s how I do it and I like the experience. It’s immersive, and having that as a community and as an industry is important.”
First reviews for dead reckoning are mostly positive. In a four-star review of the film: The IndependentFilm critic Clarisse Loughrey writes: “The film is a reflection of its star – a powerful, extravagant, thoroughly dated work, full of ingenuity and craftsmanship.”