Tom Cruise is reportedly prioritizing the filming of Mission: Impossible 8 over finishing Mission: Impossible 7 as part of an ongoing dispute with Paramount Pictures.
Cruise won't revisit M:I 7 until he has "a great deal of M:I 8 in the can," a source told The Hollywood Reporter. The actor's decision to hold the seventh Mission: Impossible installment hostage while he focuses on the eighth reportedly stems from his displeasure over the proposed theatrical window for M:I 7. Paramount intends to screen the film exclusively in theaters for only 45 days before making it available on Paramount+, which is much shorter than the three-month run of previous entries in the Mission: Impossible franchise.
Paramount's decision led Cruise to seek out legal counsel, who argued that changing M:I 7's theatrical window was a potential breach of contract as part of the deal between Cruise and Paramount is that the star makes most of his money from box office sales. Initial negotiations between Cruise and Paramount ended in a stalemate and both parties ultimately decided to resume discussions after M:I 7 was complete.
This isn't the first sign of trouble for the upcoming Mission: Impossible sequels. Filming on M:I 7 has been shut down at least twice due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), first in February 2020 and again in June 2021. Director Christopher McQuarrie also came under fire over claims that he requested permission to demolish a historic bridge in Poland for one of the film's explosive set pieces. McQuarrie denied these allegations, insisting that he only asked to destroy specific parts of the bridge that officials had already deemed unsafe.
Plans to film Mission: Impossible 7 and 8 back-t0-back were also scrapped, due to unforeseen scheduling conflicts with another Cruise production, Top Gun: Maverick. Maverick's release was moved to June 2021, which meant Cruise was suddenly required to participate in a lengthy promotional tour around that time. This overlapped with M:I 8's intended shooting dates, quashing hopes that it could be filmed simultaneously with M:I 7.
The premieres of M:I 7 and 8 would later fall victim to the same pandemic-related delay as Top Gun: Maverick. In January 2022, Paramount and Skydance jointly announced they would push back the release dates for both by almost a year each. "After thoughtful consideration, Paramount Pictures and Skydance have decided to postpone the release dates for Mission: Impossible 7 & 8 in response to delays due to the ongoing pandemic," read the official statement.
Mission: Impossible 7 hits theaters on July 14, 2023, while Mission: Impossible 8 arrives on June 28, 2024.
Source: THR