Ethan Hunt can do many things – though a lot of it boils down to hanging off of objects and vehicles in the line of duty – and, it would appear, getting government ministers to alter rules on filming Covid regulations. Or, at least, Tom Cruise can.
At a press conference this weekend, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden announced that big films such as Mission: Impossible 7, The Batman, Jurassic World: Dominion, Fantastic Beasts 3 and Sony's musical version of Cinderella will be able to sidestep quarantine rules for those arriving into the country, provided cast and crew are restricted to "bubble" environment – i.e. only moving between accommodation and sets for shooting. The move came partly after Dowden talked to Cruise. And, more confusingly, the films are only going to be shot in the UK, which would not be the norm for the Mission movies in particular, with their tendency to dart around the world as writer/director Christopher McQuarrie finds places he wants to throw Cruise into physical danger in the name of stunts. However, perhaps, the power of The Tom means this is just another consideration that the franchise can ignore.
"The world’s biggest blockbusters and high-end TV shows are made in Britain," Dowden said. "Our creativity, expertise and highly successful tax reliefs for our screen industries means that we are an in-demand location that in turn delivers a great return for our economy. We want the industry to bounce back and exempting small numbers of essential cast and crew from quarantine is part of our continued commitment to getting cameras rolling safely again." Now all we can picture is the press conference ending, Dowden heading to a corridor and ripping off his face to reveal Cruise. Cue the fuse and light the music! Or something like that.
Meanwhile, here's Simon Pegg telling the latestEmpire Podcastwhat he's heard about the plans for the new Mission, and McQuarrie on his future ideas for work with Cruise.