With Chris McQuarrie's
Mission: Impossible - Fallout set to open in just a few short weeks,
Variety has obtained some early tracking data, which conservatively estimates that Tom Cruise's latest will open in the $48 million to $65 million range.
However, many box office pundits are predicting that the high level of awareness and expected positive word-of-mouth will help carry the action blockbuster to the upper end of that spectrum, presumably to $60 million, which would be the largest opening weekend in the franchise's storied history.
For comparison's sake, Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation opened to $55.5 million back in 2015 while Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol opened to $44.1 million in 2011 over the Christmas holiday, although it should be noted that Ghost Protocol was released in IMAX a week early, so its combined opening weekend was approximately $57 million. The first three films were consistently strong performers with Mission: Impossible opening to $45.4 million in 1996, Mission: Impossible II opening to $57.8 million in 2000, and Mission: Impossible III opening to $47.7 million in 2006.
The Mission: Impossible films, like all Tom Cruise films, have traditionally performed admirably overseas and generally tend to have extremely long legs at the box office, which is always a good sign. Rogue Nation and Ghost Protocol ultimately grossed over $682.7 million and $694.7 million worldwide, respectively.
As we await Thursday's red carpet world premiere, a handful of press members were able to see the highly-anticipated film yesterday and we've gathered a few of the reactions 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 Erica Sloan
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
Mission: Impossible - Fallout lights the fuse July 25 in the U.K. and July 27 in the U.S.