Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning has officially brought Tom Cruise’s time in the storied franchise to a close, and the movie has largely been seen as a satisfying conclusion by both fans and critics. However, neither of the last two films were able to compete with the franchise’s box office champ Mission: Impossible – Fallout.
Fallout is far and away the most popular movie in the series, and considering it was written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, who also helmed the last two Mission: Impossible movies, many fans were likely expecting to get more of that. However, the director tells Empire that he very intentionally tried to make Dead Reckoning and The Final Reckoning different movies, in the same way all of the Mission: Impossible flicks have been quite different. He explained…
It’s my job to push the boundaries of this. I know you all want Fallout. Go watch Fallout! I’m not going to make Fallout again. I’m not going to make Rogue Nation again. There’s a bunch of people out there who really want these movies to all feel different, like it’s a different director every time. I hear you, and that’s what I’m pushing to do.
Tom Cruise’s movies.
The first Mission: Impossible was more of a psychological thriller, being the creation of Brian De Palma. The second Mission: Impossible, being a John Woo movie, went harder in the action than any other entry in the franchise. It was when Christopher McQuarrie returned to make Fallout that the pattern of bringing in new directors ended, but it seems he was still very conscious of the history the franchise had; he wasn’t even sure about returning after he made Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation for exactly that reason. This was why he did his best to still make each movie unique, even if they were all his.
I’ll admit, I was one of the people who was honestly a little bummed when it was confirmed that Christopher McQuarrie would be returning for Mission: Impossible – Fallout, and then again for the final two films. One of the things I liked about the franchise was the way new directors brought their own styles to each new film, and I was excited to see what it could mean for future films.
However, while Dead Reckoning and Final Reckoning aren’t that different from each other, they do feel different from Fallout, so McQuarrie did achieve that goal.