S Poddar
The teaser for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning has only fueled speculations about the future of the supposed incredibly much-beloved film series, with Tom Cruise. Originally titled as Dead Reckoning Part Two, this next installment is now posed to be the possible finale of the action-filled adventure, with hints of it possibly being the last mission for Ethan Hunt. Set to debut next July, the movie can also end the series of one enjoyed since 1996.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, the seventh film installment, had opened with worldwide box office results at an underwhelmingly lower tally of $570 million but with an investment budget of $291 million; Paramount has adapted this in its plan for the second film in the series. Instead of the “Part One and Part Two” theme, they chose a title that could have more attention: The Final Reckoning. Now to be framed as the last installment, the movie is likely to become the costliest in the franchise so far, with a budget reportedly at $400 million, which makes it one of the most expensive movies in film history. Yet this could go against what Cruise initially wants with this franchise.
For years, he has expressed a desire to keep making Mission: Impossible films-long after his peers in action films have been happy to wrap things up. In a 2023 interview, Cruise said he would be happy to keep playing Ethan Hunt long after most people have stopped acting in the franchise: “Harrison Ford is a legend.”. I hope to still be going. I’ve got 20 years to catch up with him. Hope to keep making Mission: Impossible films until I’m his age.” Beyond the end of the series of the Mission: Impossible, the movie promises a star-studded cast, and many of the familiar faces will return.
Long time partners Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg are returning, and so are some newer additions Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff. Angela Bassett and Vanessa Kirby are back, with new addition Hannah Waddingham. The returning stars plus the new characters seem to indicate the movie will continue to develop the complex plotlines with high stakes the fans have enjoyed. The new installment is also speculated to make an appearance at the Cannes Film Festival-a great selection that could indeed provide a global stage for what might be the last bow of the series. Long the platform for the most significant movie premieres, a Mission: Impossible screening certainly promises to create quite some water-cooler excitement and hype ahead of its summer bow.
Tom Cruise, on the other hand, does not leave himself much time to rest between Mission: Impossible projects.
He is working on a new film for acclaimed director Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the bearded genius behind strikingly visual and intense films such as The Revenant and Birdman. This new endeavor also features Sandra Hüller and John Goodman, another attempt at making Tom Cruise’s filmography ever more audacious. He’s also tipped to star in a possible sequel to *Days of Thunder, so it seems that to add to his seemingly endless list of possible future roles, Cruise doesn’t intend to leave the world of action cinema anytime soon. The summer of next year will include a plethora of blockbuster releases with *Jurassic World Rebirth* featuring Scarlett Johansson, a new Superman reboot written and directed by James Gunn, and some live-action adaptations of the beloved animated films including Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon.
A crowded field, but each of these big-money productions will have to fight for attention. If The Final Reckoning is everything it promises in its title, it may bring serious emotional heft to viewers – and by fans, a gratifying conclusion to a long-standing series, placing the thing firmly within the canon of action cinema. For now, the Mission: Impossible faithful must remain wondering whether The Final Reckoning will truly be the last case for Ethan Hunt, or if this is instead a tactical play to keep the fire burning under a franchise that has defined Tom Cruise’s career. Only time and summer box office will tell.
