Christopher McQuarrie’s Top Gun: Maverick, the decision was made to pause after filming on M:I7 completes before returning at a later date to begin work on the eighth instalLment.
To say that filming on M:I7 has so far been a major undertaking is an understatement. Production started out strong back in 2020 before things became complicated. A pandemic, labor controversies, and an on-set rant by the franchise’s biggest star were just some of the setbacks faced. Yet throughout all of this, fans haven’t lost interest in what’s to come – on the contrary, rumors regarding Cruise’s stunts have been circulating since well before even one second of footage was shot. The franchise has gained a considerable reputation over the years for pushing things to the next level, and Cruise in particular is a major reason for this. With each new installment, the stunts become more unique and give audiences more reason to keep returning for more. But of course, the stunts performed by Cruise aren’t without considerable risk, and much on-set anxiety has been felt by the cast and crew throughout the franchise.
The latest example of the sort of fear that Cruise’s daredevil side prompts among cast and crew comes courtesy of Deadline. While providing a sneak peek of some Mission: Impossible 7 footage during this year’s CinemaCon, McQuarrie spoke about how although the stunt Cruise performs in the film in which he rides a motorcycle off a ramp on a Norwegian cliff was frightening, what he’s even more frightened of is what’s planned for Mission: Impossible 8. No further details were given from McQuarrie regarding any of the stunts planned for the sequel, but the fact that it’s already troubling the director is enough. “The only thing that scares me more is what we’ve got planned for Mission 8,” he said.
It might seem to some that at this point, there isn’t much more that Cruise could do in of possible stunts. But Cruise’s determination to constantly raise the stakes seems borderline obsessive by now and just what sort of death-defying risk he’s willing to take in the name of cinema is anyone’s guess. For fans, this has the tricky duality of wanting to see Cruise take his stunt work and the Mission: Impossible franchise to new heights, but also of posing a major risk to the wellbeing and life of one of cinema’s greatest stars. So far, everything has worked out in Cruise’s favor with regard to his stunts, and each time he finds success, the franchise continues to feel like the freshest spy-thriller film series out there.
With two Mission: Impossible films under his belt and two more on the way, one would think that McQuarrie would be well versed in Cruise's daredevil tendencies. However, whenever stunts with very real consequences are involved, it’s completely understandable to never adjust to such risk. From the sounds of it, Cruise’s latest big stunt in Mission: Impossible 7 is his most spectacular one yet and fans are sure to be more eager than ever to finally see what McQuarrie, Cruise, and the rest of the Mission: Impossible cast have in store for them.
Source: Deadline
