Chris McQuarrie Has Been Asked By Tom Cruise To Direct MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 7, But He's Still Undecided
After the critical and commercial success of both Rogue Nation and Fallout, it would be almost a no-brainer for Chris McQuarrie to return for a potential MI7, but it sounds like he has his reservations.
Tom Cruise's latest critically-acclaimed action blockbuster, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, has been absolutely dominating the worldwide box office for the past two weeks, earning well over $329.8 million ($124.8M domestic; $205M foreign) since its theatrical debut on July 27. It's now on course to become the highest-grossing film in the entire Mission: Impossible franchise.
Considering the incredible critical and commercial reception from all across the globe, it's only a matter of time before Paramount gives the go-ahead for Mission: Impossible 7 and while Mr. Cruise will undoubtedly return as the IMF ace Ethan Hunt, it remains to be seen whether he'll be joined by director Christopher McQuarrie, who's helmed and written the previous two chapters in Hunt's journey.
Speaking on the first half of Empire's spoiler podcast for Mission: Impossible - Fallout, McQuarrie reveals that he's already been approached by both Cruise and Paramount to direct a potential seventh installment, but he has his reservations after the incredible reception for Fallout. He explains (via Collider's transcription), “[Fallout editor] Eddie Hamilton, every day in the editing room was like, ‘Come on, man, it’s obviously a trilogy you’re coming back, you have to finish it, you didn’t kill Lane,’ and I was like, ‘It’s somebody else’s problem.’ Tom has asked, the studio has asked, and I was like, ‘You know maybe I’ve got an idea for…’ and then the reviews came out and I was like, ‘Get outta here. Just stop.’ I felt so bad for the director of Mission 6 and I feel even worse of the director of 7. I’d rather have leprosy than be in the position of the person having to confront the pressure of the hyperbole of this movie on their first day of shooting the film. It’s too much to confront. I’d need a long nap before I could contemplate it.”
Following up both Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation and Fallout is no easy task, so it's understandable if McQuarrie has his reservations and wants to step away from the director's chair on top of his game, although it's hard to imagine he won't be involved in some capacity, at least when it comes to developing the screenplay.
While we can hold out hope that he'll ultimately change his mind, he later adds that making a Mission film is not exactly a walk in the park and the last two were especially difficult since they began production without a finished script, so it may be a while before we get any updates on the MI7 director. “The worst part is they’re like you don’t need a script, you don’t need to prep—you’ve done it twice!”
For more awesome intel on Mission: Impossible - Fallout, check out the first half of the spoiler podcast below:
The best intentions often come back to haunt you. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team (Alec Baldwin, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames) along with some familiar allies (Rebecca Ferguson, Michelle Monaghan) in a race against time after a mission gone wrong. Henry Cavill, Angela Bassett, and Vanessa Kirby also join the dynamic cast with filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie returning to the helm.
Mission: Impossible - Fallout features:
Director: Chris McQuarrie
Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt
Henry Cavill as August Walker
Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn
Rebecca Ferguson as Ilsa Faust
Ving Rhames as Luther Stickell
Sean Harris as Solomon Lane
Angela Bassett as Erika Sloane
Vanessa Kirby as The White Widow
Michelle Monaghan as Julia Meade-Hunt
Alec Baldwin as Alan Hunley
Sian Brooke in an undisclosed role
Wes Bentley in an undisclosed role
Frederick Schmidt as Zola
Liang Yang in an undisclosed role
Mission: Impossible - Fallout lights the fuse July 25 in the U.K. and July 27 in the U.S.