Tom Cruise will gear up for another impossible mission. Today the Oblivion star sealed a deal with Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions to produce and star in Mission: Impossible 5, the sequel to Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.
According to Deadline, the deal between Cruise and Paramount/Skydance is done. Though Cruise is on board, there’s no director or writer set, and no timetable for when Paramount hopes to deliver the film into cinemas. Whoever steps in to write and/or direct will work directly with Cruise and Bad Robot to develop the story.
Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol was a huge hit for the studio and Cruise. With Brad Bird behind the camera and Cruise dangling off the Burj Khalifa on giant IMAX screens, the fourth M:I film earned $209.4 million domestically and a huge $694.7 million worldwide off a budget of $145 million. It’s no wonder Paramount and Skydance were quick to lock in Cruise for another installment while they had the opportunity.
What remains unclear at this time is whether Jeremy Renner will figure into the fifth film’s plans. His character was introduced in Ghost Protocol in a way that suggested he might eventually take over the reigns for Cruise. Ghost Protocol proved to be the highest grossing film of Cruise’s career so sending him packing in favor of Renner, especially after The Bourne Legacy came in behind the Matt Damon-starring Bourne films, would not have made sense.
Deadline’s scoop also suggests that one name being bounced around to direct Mission: Impossible 5 is Christopher McQuarrie. Cruise and McQuarrie teamed up on Jack Reacher which comes out on Blu-ray and DVD tomorrow, so there’s already a familiarity between the star and director that could carry forth into the M:I world.
Expect a Mission: Impossible 5 writer and director – possibly the same person handling both duties – to be announced in the near future.
