I wonder. M:I has backed them into a corner - but if they wait until M:I 8 has been released in 2024…
Wait. „If“?
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To paraphrase Dr. Jones (Henry, jr.): “The M:I films all have the same problem: they’re not James Bond movies”. 
Guess it’ll take some time until people, upon watching something amazing in a movie or in reality, are going to say “This could be from a M:I movie.” instead of “This looks just like it’s from a James Bond movie!” On any party, it’s no problem to start a conversation about James Bond and entertain it for several hours. Everyone has an opinion on them, personal favorites or dislikes or fond memories etc. and lively discussions are likely to ensue. Not sure if one could say the same about M:I. (Those discussions usually end up focussing on Tom Cruise, and that was that).
That is gold standard.
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The thing about the M:I films is I find them highly enjoyable and well produced when I watch them but a couple months later I have forgotten everything about them.
I’m not trying to sound flippant it’s just… the truth…
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Bond as a character and the movies have the advantage of being part of the zeitgeist for 60 years now.
But naturally Bond films have lost the crown as the biggest action movies for quite some time now.
Indiana Jones, Lethal Weapon, Bruckheimer productions, The Matrix and so on forced Bond to compete in the Brosnan era, and that was not the way to go. So the Craig era did not compete in that area anymore, and M:I, after the less successful parts 2 and 3 filled the void, especially with Cruise actually doing the stunts himself. A unique selling point which gave those movies and his own career a needed boost.
It seems that after 7 and 8 Cruise will step down, and being 60 plus will make the risk of severe injury more dangerous, even for him.
Bond films will go on longer than the M:I films which really need Cruise to work. So Bond has the advantage of more longevity and changeable main actors.
I do believe, however, that the next Bond film will have to react to Cruise‘s stunt work. Because while we might want more spy drama, mainstream audiences want more action.
So far, I do get lots of conversations about M:I being superior action films, but these focus on „Cruise is nuts to do this, but he is simply fantastic for doing it“.
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Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If the Brosnan/Craig eras were irrelevant dinosaurs they would not be referenced at all. Especially after the worldwide shutdowns I admire Tom Cruise’s commitment to the cinema experience. It’s something you can tell he genuinely cares about, so I’m thankful he’s keeping the spirit of adventure alive. Whenever he does something he’s all in.
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I have long suspected that Cruise will not retire entirely from the M:I series, but will take on a master operational control role, not unlike M, and will keep his fingers in the espionage game and serve as the puppet master controlling and vicariously leading his team in the field. I also suspect he will occasionally join them, but not do the heavy lifting on their missions. I believe he will continue to produce them even if his own role is slightly diminished.
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Produce, yes. But he has started this expectation for each movie now to feature an even more outrageous stunt performed by himself. Take that away and the movies will attract less viewers.
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True. But the simple fact is he can’t continue to do those into his 60s and 70s. Without his involvement on-screen they will also attract less viewers. Which is why I believe he will stay on in some capacity as a performer before the cameras.
Who knows though, I’m slowly becoming convinced that Cruise may not be a normal human anyway!
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Mission: Impossible - Bond Recognizing
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I actually wouldn’t rule out M:I continuing success after Tom leaves.
They just need to cast the role very carefully, after all…we all know a movie franchise that has been around for 60 years.
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Let Rebecca Ferguson lead the franchise. She’s twenty years younger than Cruise and is M:I’s breakout star.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if Hayley Atwell is also in consideration for a replacement, depending on what her role is in Dead Reckoning. Of course, I thought the same thing of Henry Cavill before the movie came out, and we know how that went.
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But who is doing those stunts by themselves?
I didn’t know Pierce Brosnan was in Mission: Impossible 7.
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Bravo to whoever stayed up for the last 24 hours surviving on a steady stream of Mountain Dew and Hot Pockets to put this together 
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To be historically fair, people said exactly the same when all one saw in the role of Bond was Connery.
50 years down the line, all we have is retrospective awareness that, Bond has continued. The same could be just as true with Mission Impossible.
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Ahahahaha… 
Whoever did that, I owe him a drink. 
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While not MI related, I saw Top Gun at the IMAX in Waterloo yesterday and it is quite possibly the most exciting thing I have ever seen in a cinema.
There were times when I was aware of the very beating of my heart, that I had lost weight due to the heavy perspiring during some of the flight scenes with the result that, upon exiting the cinema, I was utterly exhausted. Dead beat.
This is a stunning achievement which absolutely must be seen on the hugest screen possible to appreciate and enjoy the technical mastery and command of the production crew’s endeavours. Not to concentrate only on things technical, the rest of the film’s emotional beats land beautifully. While the trailer might have lead one to think this was going to be merely a retread and updating of the original from 30+ years ago, the humanity was handled with a very light but poignant touch. Goose’s death, the new love interest, the relationship between Maverick and Goose’s son were perfectly handled.
If it was Cruise who was responsible for keeping this film back from being summarily released to a streaming service, then kudos to him. If others were involved, then fair play to all concerned.
Do not ‘catch up’ with this event on a home screen. It absolutely deserves your full attention, and a strong heart, and a responsibly hydrated form.
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That was amazing! Who’d have thought there was THAT many similarities. Kudos to whoever recognized this and went on to edit the scenes together. WOW!
The only official Bond films left out were Dr. No, You Only Live Twice, Moonraker, A View To A Kill, and Licence To Kill.
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I’d say there’s a difference between 5 years as actor and 16 as actor and head producer who made the films originally as a vehicle for himself…
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