Tom Cruise will be 60 years old by the time Mission Impossible 8 is released, will have played Ethan Hunt for over quarter-century

The theatrical release of Mission: Impossible 7 and Mission: Impossible 8 has been delayed by Paramount, which means that when the eighth film opens in 2022, Tom Cruise will be 60 years old. The seventh instalment in the franchise was initially set to hit the theatres on July 23, 2021, but will now debut on November 19, 2021.

Meanwhile, Mission: Impossible 8, originally due in theatres on August 5, 2022, will hit the big screens on November 4, 2022, reported Variety.

Cruise first played superspy Ethan Hunt in 1996’s Mission: Impossible, directed by Brian De Palma. By the time the eighth film hits theatres, he’d have played the character for over a quarter-of-a-century.

Also read: Mission Impossible Fallout review: Tom Cruise is willing to die for our entertainment

Filming on the seventh Mission Impossible movie was halted due the coronavirus pandemic. A key action scene originally set in Italy is reportedly being rethought, as the country remains one of the worst to be hit by the pandemic. The 57-year-old actor was about to start filming in Venice, Italy, when the studio pumped the breaks in late February.

Mission: Impossible 7 and 8 were supposed to be filmed back-to-back, under the direction of Christopher McQuarrie, who previously helmed the fifth and sixth instalments in the series, to great critical and box office success. While Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation made $682 million worldwide with a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score, Mission: Impossible - Fallout made a franchise record $791 million, with a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score.

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