Tom Cruise might be returning for Mission: Impossible 9 as the franchise’s latest update is a good sign that the series will continue. The Mission: Impossible movies have become one of Hollywood’s biggest action franchises in recent years, but that did not stop reports from mounting about it coming to an end sooner than later. Paramount announced plans to make Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two as back-to-back entries in the franchise a few years ago. Due to the two movie announcement, it has become common thought that Mission: Impossible 8 will be the last movie in the franchise.
The idea that the Mission: Impossible movies could be nearing the end lined up with reports about Tom Cruise’s future as Ethan Hunt. Various reports have indicated that Mission: Impossible 8 will see Tom Cruise exit the franchise after leading it for over two decades. This intention has never been confirmed by Cruise or anyone else involved in the production. In fact, director Christopher McQuarrie has gone on the record to suggest that Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible exit might not happen with Mission: Impossible 8, but it was not a definitive answer either way. It now sounds like Mission: Impossible 9 could be the reason that changed.
Mission: Impossible 8 Might Not Be The Last Movie Anymore
With Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’s release drawing closer, Christopher McQuarrie has started to imply that Mission: Impossible 8 might not end the franchise. He addressed the possibility of Mission: Impossible 9 happening during an interview with EW by comparing plans for the movie franchise to the plans the IMF team has for their missions. This included him saying, “There’s always a plan, the plan always changes.” The reason given for this suggestion is that Mission: Impossible 8 is still filming and there is a chance the story will end in a place where Mission: Impossible 9 becomes part of the plan.
Tom Cruise returning for Mission: Impossible 9 would break a huge convention in Hollywood. The reason there is an expectation that the Mission: Impossible franchise is ending really solidified once it was revealed the titles for the next two entries include Part One and Part Two in the titles. Two-part movies have traditionally been saved for final entries in the franchise. Harry Potter, Hunger Games, and more have used this tactic to help split the final chapters of a story into two movies. It seemed that Mission: Impossible was doing the same with its official titles for the seventh and eighth films.
Mission: Impossible 9 Happening Would Be A Huge Surprise
Christopher McQuarrie might be leaving the door open to Mission: Impossible 9 happening with Tom Cruise returning, but it would still be a surprise if the movie actually happens. For starters, Tom Cruise is 60 years old as he films Mission: Impossible 8 and pushes his body to new limits to achieve his latest practical stunts. With the next two movies containing his most daring stunt work to date, the idea that he will need to try and beat them in Mission: Impossible 9 when he’s even older will be difficult.
There is also a chain reaction that comes with Tom Cruise making Mission: Impossible 9, as his care for the franchise means he would choosing to play Ethan Hunt more instead of tackling other projects. Losing the long-running franchise would be risky, but he also has Top Gun 3 and other projects that could easily help him continue to excel as a box office star. Of course, if Cruise and McQuarrie believe they have a great idea for another adventure, Mission: Impossible 9 could happen after all.