Mission: Impossible 7 and Mission: Impossible 8 add Nicholas Hoult (Dark Phoenix) to the cast, and it’s reported he’ll be playing a villain character. Despite there already being six films in the franchise, the Mission: Impossible series continues to surprise and get better as it goes. The most recent film, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, has the highest score on Rotten Tomatoes of the whole series, with a 97 percent. Christopher McQuarrie directed the two most recent films, Mission: Impossible - Fallout and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation. He previously directed Tom Cruise in Jack Reacher. McQuarrie has been pulling double duty for a while now, both writing and directing all of his Mission: Impossible films, and he will continue with the next two films.

Hoult’s addition to the franchise isn’t a huge surprise, as he has also previously worked with McQuarrie. Hoult led the 2013 film Jack the Giant Slayer, for which McQuarrie wrote the screenplay. Hoult’s known for both his work in action films, playing Nux in Mad Max: Fury Road and Beast/Hank McCoy in the X-Men films, and drama films, such as Tolkien and Rebel in the Rye. Mission Impossible 7 is expected to come out on July 21, 2021. Previous casting announcements have included a handful of Marvel actors. Shea Whigham, who is known for Boardwalk Empire and has appeared in Agent Carter, officially joined the cast. Also on board are Guardian of the Galaxy’s Pom Klementieff, and Agent Carter herself, Hayley Atwell. All three actors are confirmed for both Mission: Impossible 7 and 8. 

Both director McQuarrie and Hoult posted the news of the latter’s castingon Instagram. McQuarrie posted a picture of Hoult first, along with the caption, “Say, @nicholashoult, care to raise a little hell?” The confirmation of Hoult’s appearance in the next two films came after Hoult posted the picture on his own account, along with the caption “Love to. Though why stop at a little? @christophermcquarrie #MI78.” His character being a villain is reported by THR.

Mission Impossible 8 is reported to come out on Aug. 22, 2022, just over a year after the seventh film. McQuarrie is filming both back-to-back, and the plot of both films will most likely be intertwined. This also makes sense given so many actors are being cast to appear in both films. No official titles for the films have been released, and Cruise is expected to continue as the lead. The Mission: Impossible series is one of the highest grossing franchises of all time, and continues to prove itself as a mainstay of the action genre, with amazing fight scenes and memorable characters.

Some people argue that Cruise is getting too old to lead an action series, but Mission: Impossible continues to prove that Cruise can keep up with anyone. He manages to look capable and believable while fighting a 35-year-old muscled Henry Cavill in Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Along with being critical successes, his action films continue to dominate the box office. Cruise has established a clear formula for success, with himself as the lead actor. The upcoming movie Top Gun: Maverick will be the ultimate test of this, but if people continue to watch his action films, then there’s no reason to stop.

More: 6 Underground’s Surprise Death References Mission: Impossible

Sources: Christopher McQuarrie, Nicholas Hoult/Instagram, THR

  • Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One Release Date: 2023-07-14 Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning - Part Two Release Date: 2024-06-28