We knew that Chris McQuarrie was Tom Cruise’s boy these days, but I didn’t think it was to this extent.
According to Variety, Paramount, Skydance, and Cruise are ready to make McQuarrie the first MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE director to direct two installments of the series. It is more certain that he’ll return to pen the script, but their intention is to also lock him down as director.
Though I’m a big fan of McQuarrie’s work as a director, I’d be sorta bummed if he comes back for this one. Putting aside my ambivalent feelings towards ROGUE NATION for a second, one of the things I loved about the M:I franchise was how radically different each film felt from the last. The tone was set with the first sequel, where John Woo’s balletic action seemed worlds apart from Brian De Palma’s original, where Ethan Hunt didn’t even fire a single weapon. J.J. Abrams (who took over for Joe Carnahan), Brad Bird, and McQuarrie’s entries all felt unique from one another, even when characters and plotlines overlapped between them. Breaking that trend instantly takes away something that was really cool and signature about this franchise, and finally makes it more studio-y and typical than cinematic.
They also want Rebecca Ferguson to come back, which would also make her the first female lead of more than one M:I, so they’re clearly looking to make this a direct follow-up to ROGUE NATION (because that worked so well for the Craig-Bond run). I feel kinda awful about it, but for the first time since seeing THE WAY OF THE GUN as a kid, I’m hoping that Christopher McQuarrie doesn’t get the job.
They want to get this going by next summer, so expect to hear who the new director will be within the next couple months.
