Tom Cruise Challenges Director with Plane Wing Stunt in Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning

Legendary actor Tom Cruise has truly pushed the boundaries of what's possible with the Mission: Impossible series, and he's taking it to new heights with the eighth installment, Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. In a fascinating twist, Cruise shared that director Christopher McQuarrie challenged him with stunts that seemed genuinely impossible. To drive home the difficulty, McQuarrie himself took on the stunt to understand the challenges firsthand.

During a press conference in Tokyo for the film, Cruise recounted, "And then we talked about story and [McQuarrie] was like, 'Okay, I want you to go from here to here in a couple of seconds.' I was like, 'I can't do that.' He's like, 'Okay, well, I want you to do this and this.' I was like, 'I really can't do that.'" McQuarrie chimed in, describing the stunt as simple yet challenging, saying, "Anything you'd describe, [he'd] say, 'No, you actually can't do that.' And I don't hear 'can't' from him."

Cruise, renowned for his daring stunts in the M:I series, emphasized the physical limitations he faced. "I said, 'Just in terms of the speed, because the force of the air, for me to move quickly on the wing was… You just can't do it,'" he explained, detailing how a "20-minute tutorial" helped McQuarrie grasp the challenge. "You're limited by the physics of how fast the aircraft is traveling and the force of the wind, that was utterly brutal. So I just said, 'Listen, I think the best thing is if you just do it. Go out, sit in the airplane, go out on the wing, and feel it. Feel the pressure. So, here I am, training him."

McQuarrie found the experience exhilarating, noting, "It was great, actually. Yeah, it was a lot of fun. I would definitely do it again." Cruise also revealed that his preparation for this stunt spanned years and hinged significantly on selecting the right aircraft.

Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning is set to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, running from May 13 to May 24, 2025. Following its debut, the film will hit theaters worldwide on May 23, 2025, promising audiences another thrilling chapter in the iconic franchise.