Warning: This post contains spoilers for Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One.
The most recent Mission: Impossible pulled off a pretty neat trick: Despite being the first part of a twofer, it managed to find an ending that was both a cliffhanger and satisfying on its own. Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt managed to outwit sneaky baddie Gabriel (Esai Morales), but only for now. Surely that dude’s still up to no good. But fans of the two-and-a-half decades-old franchise will have to wait quite a bit longer for Part Two — though it won’ t be called that.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount has decided to bump the second half of Dead Reckoning nearly an extra year. Originally it was due next summer, on June 28. Now it won’t come out until May 23, 2025. What’s more, it will no longer be called Dead Reckoning — Part Two, presumably because Part One underperformed at the box office. Its replacement title has yet to be unveiled.
The likely culprit for the bump? That the AMPTP, which represents the studio heads, have not resolved the SAG-AFTRA strike. Part 2 was one of many productions that had to halt mid-stream when the guild first hit the picket lines in July. While the WGA strike ended in late September, the studios are still duking it out with the actors’ union.
As it happened, Tom Cruise tried to intervene in the strike before it began, pressuring studio heads to listen to actors’ fears over how AI could impact their livelihoods. He was also concerned about stunt performers.
The eighth Mission: Impossible isn’t the only Paramount picture that’s been bumped. A Quiet Place: Day One moved from March 8, 2024 to that film’s original slot, which is again June 28.
(Via THR)
