Tom Cruise‘s Ethan Hunt returns for the first part of the series send-off this July in “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.” The penultimate film in the franchise sets up the stakes for “Dead Reckoning Part Two” next summer, with the usual IMF crew, and Hayley Atwell, Esai Morales, Shea Whigham, and Cary Elwes also on board this time. But what about the cast of next year’s film?
Well, Deadline reports that Christopher McQuarrie has another new cast member for the “M:I” finale: “Ted Lasso” star Hannah Waddingham. Plot details for the upcoming film are still under wraps, as is Waddingham’s role. But it’s a big coup for the actress, who’s seen her star rise thanks to “Lasso,” “Sex Education,” and “Hocus Pocus 2.” Waddingham also has another actioner upcoming, 2024’s “The Fall Guy” with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt.
But “Dead Reckoning Part Two” may be the most high-profile project of Waddingham’s career yet. The actress joins other newcomers for the final “M:I” installment, like Holt McCallany, Nick Offerman, Mark Gattiss, Charles Parnell, Janet McTeer, and Mariela Garriga. The film bows on June 28, 2024, and as the send-off to Cruise’s most extravagantly action-packed films, expect the star and McQuarrie to pull out all the stops for the grand finale.
But “Dead Reckoning Part One” comes first, hitting theaters on July 14. And after “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” put up record numbers for the franchise (not to mention Cruise’s box office success with “Top Gun: Maverick” last year), expect “Dead Reckoning” to be one the summer’s biggest movies. In the meantime, Waddingham has “Ted Lasso” Season 3 premiering on Apple TV+ now and “Sex Education” S4 hitting Netflix later this year.