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The Mission: Impossible franchise has stood the test of time, with eight movies gripping audiences of all ages for close to three decades. The unique premise of each movie took Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt across the world. Every stunt managed to one-up the last, and he doesn't look like he is hitting the brakes any time soon, although Final Reckoning (2025) seems to be the last of the franchise for now.
But before the movies became what they're known for today, many directors almost helmed a Mission: Impossible movie with the hopes of putting their own spin on Hunt's intricate world. However, from sensitive plot points to elements that might not work well for the audience, several reasons saw the movies get shelved.
Disclaimer: All opinions in this article belong to the writer.
From David Fincher to Ben Trebilcook: What happened to these Mission: Impossible movies?
1) David Fincher wanted a darker premise
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Mission: Impossible 3 faced heavy delays in its production because it saw not one, but two directors get replaced during pre-production. The first one was David Fincher, who, after the failure of his other franchise direction, Alien 3, was set to helm the Tom Cruise blockbuster.
The third edition would've taken a dark turn after the action-packed first two, because Fincher wanted to focus on a realistic horror, organ trafficking in Africa.
While it would've been interesting to see Cruise not be as action-packed as he's known to focus more on gritty realism, the premise did not entirely fit the MI universe, and the crew ultimately parted ways with Fincher on creative differences.
In an interview with MTV News, Fincher alludes to producers of franchise movies not having room for creative liberties. He went on to direct a cult classic, Zodiac.
“I think the problem with third movies is the people who are financing them are experts on how they should be made and what they should be," David Fincher said about Mission: Impossible 3.
2) Joe Carnahan wanted the movie to be more punk-rock-inspired
Screenwriter Joe Carnahan was Fincher's replacement, and he worked on a version of Mission: Impossible 3 for 15 months. His script was set to cast Kenneth Branagh, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Scarlett Johansson for supporting roles, but ultimately, his vision to make the third edition a gritty, realistic version compared to its flashy predecessors was not well-liked.
In an interview with Grantland, Carnahan explains how the script kept getting rewritten into something more commercial and blockbuster-centric, and his version, something akin to an "action version of his favorite 70s paranoia dramas like Marathon Man," did not fly with the team.
After waiting for over a year, he decided to walk away from the franchise.
“[My] version would have been a $50 million version, not the $186 million that it was ultimately budgeted for," Joe Carnahan said.
3) Ben Trebilcook's script had a sensitive scene that didn't make the cut
From a now-rejected female Indiana Jones video game idea to almost making it as the director of Mission: Impossible 3, producer and screenwriter Ben Trebilcook is known to shoot with a mixed bag of scripts reminiscent of a film version of Santa Claus.
In his audition of sorts, he submitted an already existing script of his rewritten to include Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt and his life after retiring from the Impossible Missions Force.
However, right after that, 9/11 shook the United States of America. In an eerie coincidence, his script had a sequence similar to the event, so it didn't make the cut.
4) Oliver Stone wanted a more philosophical take on the Mission: Impossible franchise
Oliver Stone's Mission: Impossible II script was helmed by David Marconi, and the screenplay included a supercomputer that can trace every human transaction as the antagonist.
Stone wanted the movie to be a philosophical commentary on the future of technology and its effect on the world, taking away from the franchise's more flashy action sequences and commercially entertaining aspects.
However, the script is reminiscent of Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning, in which Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt fights against an AI that becomes sentient and seeks to take over the world.
So, Stone and Marconi's script, which is up for public viewing in the Cinematic Arts Library at the University of Southern California, might have worked. However, major delays and a no-go from the producers shelved it.
5) Edgar Wright almost directed Mission: Impossible IV
Edgar Wright took over the fourth installment of the MI franchise after J.J. Abrams' exit as director. While there are unanswered questions about the plot, it is safe to say that Ghost Protocol would have taken a different turn, true to Wright's style in movies like Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim, and Baby Driver.
In the Happy. Sad. Confused. podcast with Josh Horowitz, Wright claims:
"Sometimes, if you love a series, you almost don’t want to be the thing that could possibly f*ck it up. I don’t regret passing on [Ghost Protocol] because Brad Bird’s film was f*cking great.”
Moreover, Edgar Wright's tryst with the Tom Cruise action world did not end with an almost movie. During a friends and family screening of Mission: Impossible- Dead Reckoning, it was Wright's idea to include a sound cue for the Entity, which changed the perspective of the movie.
According to Christopher McQuarrie in an interview with Empire, the production team added the sound cue very late, courtesy of Wright.
With the Mission: Impossible franchise having no dearth of storylines and what-if spin-off opportunities, fans will have to wait and see where the franchise goes next, if producers choose another script. Given its money-making potential, it wouldn't be a surprise if a new movie is announced a few years down the line.
Watch every Mission: Impossible movie on Prime Video or Paramount+.
