As its title clearly suggests, Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning was billed as the last movie in the long-running action franchise, but - spoilers ahead - with Ethan Hunt still alive and kicking when the credits rolled, the story was left open to continue.
While The Final Reckoning was far from a box office flop, it was considered something of a financial disappointment following the massive success of the previous MI movies, and it was generally assumed that Cruise, director Chris McQuarrie and everyone else involved had decided to leave well enough alone and call it a day.
However, a report from DeuxMoi claims that Cruise is eager to light the fuse again, and has reached out to a new writer/director to work on the project.
According to the insider, Cruise has enlisted Chloé Zhao to write and direct the ninth movie in the Mission: Impossible franchise, and the pair have already workshopped a treatment.
DeuxMoi primarily reports on celebrity gossip, but has also broken some pretty big movie-related stories in the past. Still, this sounds more than a little far-fetched to us, so we wouldn't put too much stock in it just yet. If Zhao really is in line to direct a new Mission: Impossible movie, we're sure the trades will pick up on it fairly soon.
Prior to the movie's release, Cruise and McQuarrie were asked if this really was the end of the line for Hunt.
"You gotta see the movie," Cruise replied. "It’s a hard thing for me to discuss at the moment, because it really is something that you have to experience. [But it's] an epic, emotional journey of the entire franchise... It’s Homeric."
McQuarrie added, "It is, I hope, the satisfying conclusion to a 30-year story arc. I’m pretty confident that people are going to feel that the title was appropriate."
The Final Reckoning also stars Hayley Atwell (Captain America: The First Avenger; Agent Carter; Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning), Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible; Pulp Fiction; Dawn of the Dead), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead; Star Trek; Mission: Impossible), Esai Morales (Ozark; La Bamba; Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning), Pom Klementieff (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2; Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning; Westworld), Henry Czerny (Mission: Impossible; Ready or Not; Revenge), Holt McCallany (Mindhunter; Fight Club; Wrath of Man), Janet McTeer (Ozark; Albert Nobbs; Jessica Jones), Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation; The Last of Us; Devs), Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso; Game of Thrones; Hocus Pocus 2), Tramell Tillman (Severance; Hunters; Difficult People)