It’s a well-known fact that Tom Cruise exercises a lot of control over his projects, whether it be in the creative sense or the financial side of things. This is especially true of those franchises he really cares about — like Mission: Impossible— but who knew that the iconic star is the biggest gatekeeper of his own work?
In a new feature run by The Hollywood Reporter, the outlet claims that when confronted with the prospects of a Days of Thunder series for Paramount Plus, Cruise essentially nipped the idea in the bud. As for Mission: Impossible, it appears that Paramount was indeed interested in entertaining a spinoff show of sorts to strengthen their streaming library, but Cruise once again blocked the process, even though the story was basically inspired by a CBS television show in the early ’60s.
Amid the raging torrent of the Covid-19 pandemic and the widespread industry hiatus it caused two years ago, Tom Cruise fought with distributor moguls to keep things afloat for Mission: Impossible 7. Now, after several delays due to the outbreak of the respiratory disease, MI7 has finally wrapped filming and is currently undergoing post-production, with a July 14 release date.
The report also reveals that Cruise engaged the studio in a legal feud after they told him Mission: Impossible 7 would have a limited theatrical run of 45 days, as opposed to the usual three-month run.
In an age where the powers that be gloss over franchises to maximize profits or cater to focus groups, the Top Gun star appears to be one of the few people with enough leeway to keep it real.