After “Top Gun 2” even more spectacular flying action with Tom Cruise – for “Mission: Impossible 8”!

Whether Oscar masterpieces, cop action films or slapstick comedies: Tom Cruise has celebrated great success with a wide variety of films in the course of his now more than 40-year career. But it landed last year as the biggest of them all — at least in terms of box office earnings: “Top Gun: Maverick” thrilled the masses with spectacular flight sequences and, thanks to immersive action never before seen in movie theaters, nearly $1 .5 billion hit the global box office. And that’s exactly what he now wants to tap into with his most popular franchise: “Mission: Impossible”.

Of “Mission: Impossible 7 – Dead Reckoning part 1starts on July 13, 2023 cult spy Ethan Hunt’s last impossible mission. And the title makes it clear: it won’t be his last performance. Less than a year later, it should already be like this “Mission: Impossible 8 – Dead Reckoning part 2(Theatrical release June 24, 2024) implications. It is therefore not surprising that the shooting for the film after next is already in full swing – such a complex blockbuster takes a lot of time.

Tom Cruise filming on an aircraft carrier

Mission: Impossible 8 is currently being filmed on a US aircraft carrier off the coast of Italy, like now reported. Both superstar Tom Cruise and director and franchise veteran Christopher McQuarrie are literally on board to shoot aerial scenes in the Adriatic Sea. Antonio Parente of the Apulia Film Commission confirmed that Cruise had already arrived in the coastal town of Bari and from there continued by helicopter to the aircraft carrier.

It remains to be seen whether spectacular visuals similar to those in “Top Gun: Maverick” await us. The fact that Cruise is now likely to step back into the cockpit raises certain expectations and promises: With “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” and “Mission: Impossible – Fallout”, McQuarrie not only impressively proved that he is a master of action. The director, whose career began as a screenwriter for The Usual Suspects (for which he even received an Oscar), also wrote the screenplay for the sequel to “Top Gun”. If that means nothing…

“Mission: Impossible 7+8”: Off to Italy!

It is not surprising that Ethan Hunt ends up in Italy in “M:I 8”. Not only does the country offer beautiful landscapes, venerable cities and picturesque original locations, they are also often used by world travelers such as “Mission: Impossible” and “James Bond”. Part 7 was also partly filmed in Italy.

So it makes perfect sense for the country to still feature in the eighth movie — after all, the movie double would be particularly closely linked. In addition, Ethan Hunt also travels a bit around the world this time. Filming also took place in England, Malta, South Africa and Norway.

What exactly Ethan Hunt’s eighth adventure is about is currently being kept a secret. And we assume it will stay that way, at least until the theatrical release of the first “Dead Reckoning” movie. But for us – not least because of what might be the biggest stunt in movie history – it’s undoubtedly one of the really big must-sees of 2023.

What other blockbuster highlights can we expect this year? Our video editor Sebastian has summarized the most promising starts in the following video: