We were surprised as everybody else when it was announced that Christopher McQuarrie had signed on to write and direct two “Mission: Impossible” sequels. In the months before ‘Fallout’ was released, the filmmaker kept insinuating that his time spearheading the Tom Cruise-starring franchise were behind him. And if that was the case, then McQuarrie would have gone out on top, with his first two entries being perhaps the best of the lot.
But here we are, in 2019, with the writer-director prepping work on not one, but two separate films, shooting back-to-back, no less. And as we see in a new interview with Empire, it appears that McQuarrie is well aware of the mess he got himself into by suggesting this plan. Some might say that this mission might just be…impossible. (Sorry, I had to.)
“I pitched the idea of making two movies, and now I have to justify why it’s two movies,” the director said. “You’ve got to earn that. You’ve got to make something that swallows the last three movies whole. I’m freaked out now. We’ve talked ourselves into something. Holy shit.”
Obviously, he could just use the old ‘Bond’ trick and go to the moon, right? Well, McQuarrie doesn’t think so, and for good reason.
“Here’s the problem with going to the moon: how do you fall from the moon?” said the director, referencing his star’s affinity for falling great distances for a stunt.
If this were anyone else other than McQuarrie talking about this predicament, we might be worried. But as mentioned above, the director has already done it twice, and in spectacular, box office blockbuster fashion. So, why not do it two more times?
Of course, he could also look at the example set by Joe and Anthony Russo. The Russos recently released their second ‘Avengers’ film, ‘Endgame,’ and it was nothing short of a monster success for the duo. So, it’s not unprecedented for quality filmmakers to return to fan-favorite franchises, and quickly churn out two sequels. And at least McQuarrie only has one major movie star to satisfy with “Mission: Impossible.”
The two, as yet untitled, ‘M:I’ sequels are scheduled to arrive in theaters on July 23, 2021, and August 5, 2022, respectively.