Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation is climbing, dashing, jumping and careening into our cinemas, but Tom Cruise already has his eyes on the next **M **prize. According to the man himself – who pulls double duty as star and producer on the franchise – he’s already planning the sixth instalment.
“We’re starting to work on it now,” Cruise told Jon Stewart on Tuesday night’s The Daily Show. “We’ll probably start shooting it next summer.” It is, of course, far too early for any details; and besides, Paramount has made no announcement. But given the seemingly evergreen franchise's status, the glowing reviews for Rogue Nation and the studio’s desire to maintain the franchises it has, we’d been shocked if something wasn’t solidified the minute the new movie opens at the box office, especially if it’s a big hit.
If tradition keeps up, the film will swap out its writing and directing teams – every Mission film has, to date, been tackled by someone new and despite his long friendship and professional relationship with the star, we’d seriously doubt Christopher McQuarrie wants to dive back into the madness so quickly after** Rogue Nation**’s fast, exhausting production schedule. He may, however, be involved with spitballing ideas for the new movie.
A bigger question will be what Ethan Hunt and his team can get up to next time. Each time, Cruise finds some way to best his own insane stunt work, but how is he going to top this film’s plane sequence without getting certified as an astronaut and shooting the next chase scene on the moon?