Tom Cruise brings 'Final Reckoning' to Cannes, but won't bid 'Mission: Impossible' adieu yet

CANNES, France (AP) — Three years after flying into the Cannes Film Festival with "Top Gun: Maverick," Tom Cruise returned to the Croisette on Wednesday with "Mission: Impossible — Final Reckoning."

Christopher McQuarrie's latest "Mission: Impossible" installment is the biggest Hollywood tentpole wading ashore in Cannes this year. And its sizable impact at the French Riviera festival prompted shouts of "Tom! Tom!" up and down the Croisette.

Just his arrival outside the premiere, beamed onto the screen in the Grand Théâtre Lumière drew a response. When Cruise stepped out his car, oohs and applause reverberated through the theater. Cruise spent several minutes signing autographs for fans lined up on the Croisette.

Some had wondered whether Crusie might make a more daring arrival. Instead, he and the film’s cast walked the red carpet accompanied by an orchestra performing the “Mission Impossible” theme on the Palais steps. “Bravo!” cheered Cruise.

Though selfies are frowned upon on the Cannes red carpet, McQuarrie took several of the group, including Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg, Angela Bassett and Hannah Waddingham.

Earlier in the day, Cruise joined McQuarrie midway through the director's masterclass talk. There was no press conference for the film, which meant Cruise and company faced no questions from reporters. But Cruise's surprise appearance allowed the 62-year-old star a moment to reflect on his 30 years with “Mission: Impossible.” As to whether “Final Reckoning” is a last hurrah for him, he demurred, calling it “the culmination of three decades of work.”

“I’d rather just people see it and enjoy,” Cruise said.

Whether Cruise has any Cannes stunt up his sleeve this time was much anticipated at the festival. On Sunday, he climbed atop the roof of the British Film Institute in London. When Cruise received an honorary Palme d'Or from the festival in 2022, the "Top Gun: Maverick" premiere included an impressively timed jet flyover.

With McQuarrie, Cruise said he relishes the stunt work in “Mission: Impossible.”

“I don’t mind encountering the unknown. I like the feeling. It’s just an emotion for me. It’s something that is not paralyzing,” Cruise said.

Cruise, McQuarrie and Paramount Pictures, which will release “Final Reckoning” in North American theaters on May 23, are hoping the eighth “Mission: Impossible” installment returns the franchise to box-office heights.

Their previous film, "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One " was considered a box-office disappointment, though it ultimately grossed $571.1 million worldwide. Still, with production budgets close to $300 million for these films, a lot is riding on "Final Reckoning." Cruise has been traversing the world — with stops in Japan, South Korea and England in the run-up to Cannes — to drum up excitement.

Cruise and McQuarrie, as they did around the release of “Top Gun: Maverick” (which McQuarrie co-wrote and produced), have made themselves passionate pitchmen for the big-screen experience. McQuarrie on Wednesday granted: “I worry for the fate and survival of cinema.”

“Streaming is in danger of driving the industry into extinction,” said McQuarrie. “The advantage a filmmaker has entering the world is that he doesn’t have the pressure of an opening weekend.”

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