Tom Cruise has continually redefined the meaning of "impossible" in the Mission: Impossible franchise – but he's truly outdone himself for the eighth installment, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. The star recently revealed that director Christopher McQuarrie presented him with stunts that were physically impossible to perform, leading Cruise to put McQuarrie through the same challenge to prove his point.
"We were discussing a particular sequence," Cruise explained during the film's Tokyo press conference. "McQuarrie kept saying, 'I need you to move from here to here in seconds.' I had to keep telling him, 'That's physically impossible.' He kept pushing with different variations, and my answer remained the same."
"It was actually one of the simplest-looking stunts," McQuarrie admitted regarding the sequence that stumped even Cruise. "I'd propose ideas, and for the first time, Tom kept saying, 'You physically can't do that.' Hearing 'can't' from him was... unusual."
With decades of experience performing death-defying stunts, Cruise knew exactly where the limitations lay. "The physics were working against us," he explained. "The aircraft's speed and wind resistance made rapid movement across the wing physically impossible." After a 20-minute demonstration, Cruise had McQuarrie experience the conditions firsthand. "I told him, 'The best way to understand is to try it yourself.' So we suited him up and put him through the exact same conditions."
Surprisingly, McQuarrie thoroughly enjoyed the experience. "It was incredible," the director admitted. "Absolutely thrilling – I'd do it again in a heartbeat." Cruise also revealed that years of preparation went into this specific stunt, with the right aircraft selection being crucial to its success.
Audiences can witness these groundbreaking stunts when Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning premieres at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival (May 13-24), followed by its global theatrical release on May 23, 2025.
