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Tom Cruise did that motorcycle stunt in ‘Mission: Impossible’ on Day 1 — here’s why

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More than half a year before the release of the upcoming movie “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One,” Paramount Pictures made sure audiences got to see Tom Cruise once again risking his life.

Cruise’s mind-blowing stunts have become a signature of “ Mission: Impossible ” films, each one seemingly topping the next. The key stunt in the franchise’s seventh installment involves Cruise driving a motorcycle off the edge of a cliff, dismounting and parachuting into a Norwegian valley. With the drop of its behind-the-scenes footage in December , the studio billed it as “the biggest stunt in cinema history.”

Though the moment has already been watched on YouTube more than 13 million times, and 30 million more times in the film’s trailers, it’s among the film’s most anticipated scenes. After all, we still don’t know how the stunt fits within the plot — What could be so dire that agent Ethan Hunt must jump off a cliff?

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While answers won’t come until the movie’s theatrical release July 12, we now know that the risky stunt was the first thing Cruise did on Day 1 of filming, which began in 2020. And it was all about risk assessment.

In a recent interview with “Entertainment Tonight,” Cruise said they started with the scene, in part, to allow the cast and crew to see whether he would be able to star in the $290-million film. After all, he could either get injured or die — or both.

“Well, we know we’re either going to continue with the film or not,” Cruise said, letting out a laugh. “Let’s know Day 1, what is gonna happen: Do we all continue, or is it a major re-run?”

Cruise added that he wanted to make sure his mind was clear enough to focus solely on the stunt.

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“You have to be razor sharp for something like that; I don’t want to drop that and shoot other things and have my mind somewhere else,” Cruise said. “You don’t want to be waking up in the middle of the night, ‘It’s still, I still, I still,’ and it has that effect.”

Cruise is no stranger to aerial stunts with a high probability of death. The “Top Gun” actor said preparing for the recent stunt “was years of planning,” a culmination of all the training he’s done with motorcycles, cars and aerobatics.

In the franchise’s last film, “Mission: Impossible — Fallout” (2018), Cruise jumped into a helicopter in midflight , taking the controls to chase another helicopter. In the same movie, he parachuted from a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III from 25,000 feet, close to five miles up, becoming “the first actor” to do so in a major motion picture, according to Paramount (most skydiving attempts occur at 10,000 feet).

In 2011 for “ Ghost Protocol ,” the “Jerry McGuire” actor climbed along the exposed walls of the world’s largest building, the Burj Khalifa of Dubai. And in 2015 for “Rogue Nation,” Cruise hung off the side of an Airbus A400M Atlas as it was taking off, a stunt that veteran stunt coordinator and frequent Cruise collaborator Wade Eastwood called “a stressful experience.”

The recent motorcycle stunt, which Cruise had apparently repeated six times, was no exception. Though the film’s computer-generated images make Cruise appear to be jumping off the rocky surface of the cliff, the scene required a large ramp to be built.

While Cruise is seen atop the motorcycle in the behind-the-scenes video, accelerating off the ramp, a helicopter and drone fly overhead to gather footage. The film’s crew, including director Christopher McQuarrie, are huddled in a nearby tent, faces glued to a set of monitors. After he abandons the bike and hangs in the open air, Cruise releases his parachute and the crew erupts in cheers.

“The only thing you have to avoid when doing a stunt like this are serious injury or death,” Eastwood, who has managed stunts for the last three “Mission Impossible” films, said in the BTS video. “You’re falling. If you don’t get a clean exit from the bike and you get tangled up with it, if you don’t open your parachute, you’re not gonna make it.”

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See Tom run. See Tom jump.

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The scene wasn’t the only stressful one to shoot: Cruise said he also worried about a car chase that involved him handcuffed to a small car, steering with one hand while drifting along the cobblestone streets of Rome, with his co-star Hayley Atwell in the passenger seat.

“It’s plenty of challenges,” Cruise said with a wide grin, laughing once again.

“Dead Reckoning” had its world premiere Sunday at the Auditorium Conciliazione in Rome with Cruise and other cast members, including Atwell and Vanessa Kirby , in attendance. “Part Two” is expected to be released in June 2024. Filming wrapped in September for what has been rumored to be Cruise’s final appearance in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise.

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Tom Cruise just performed his most dangerous stunt yet – riding a motorcycle off a cliff and BASE jumping

By Caitlin O'Kane

December 21, 2022 / 10:00 AM EST / CBS News

Tom Cruise has performed another daring stunt for the "Mission: Impossible" film series. 

He called this one the most dangerous thing he's ever attempted. Shot in Norway, the stunt required Cruise to ride a motorcycle off a cliff and BASE jump — something he said he's wanted to do since he was a kid. 

Cruise, 60, is currently working on the two-part "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning" film. He's known for performing his own stunts, but this one took years to plan, he said in a video shared on Twitter. 

So excited to share what we’ve been working on. #MissionImpossible pic.twitter.com/rIyiLzQdMG — Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) December 19, 2022

In the video, writer and director Christopher McQuarrie said Cruise put together a "master plan" using experts to help execute the stunt.

He had a year of sky diving training, during which he was doing 30 jumps a day – more than 500 skydives, said Wade Eastwood, the film's stunt coordinator. He also had motocross training, doing over 13,000 motocross jumps. Once he got those skills down, the production team created 3D models to try and predict how Cruise would fly through the air during the stunt so they could film it.

Then, it came time for Cruise to execute the stunt — driving a motorcycle up a long ramp, which lead to a cliff, launching off of it and BASE jumping to the bottom. Cruise first jumped out of a helicopter over the cliff to practice, before attempting the full stunt for the cameras.

"The only things you have to avoid while doing a stunt like this are serious injury or death," BASE jumping coach Miles Daisher said. "You're riding a motorcycle, which is pretty dangerous, on top of a ramp that's elevated off the ground, so if you fall off the ramp, that's pretty bad. You're falling, so if you don't get a clean exit from the bike and you get tangled up with it, or if you don't open your parachute, you're not going to make it."

The behind-the-scenes video show Cruise not only execute the stunt once, but six times in one day. 

"Pretty much the biggest stunt in cinematic history," said BASE jumping coach John DeVore. Viewers can see the final product when part one of the film premieres July 2023. The "Mission: Impossible" series is from Paramount Pictures. (Paramount is also the parent company of CBS.)

Cruise has performed countless hair-raising stunts, including jumping off of scaffolding while filming "Mission: Impossible 6" in —  a stunt that left him injured and limping. 

Cruise has been in Europe filming the seventh and eight "Mission: Impossible" films for several years. The seventh movie was scheduled to premiere in November 2021, but the COVD-19 pandemic shut down production and was pushed to May 27, 2022,  according to Variety . The date was pushed several time after that, and the film will now premier next year. 

While shooting in the U.K. last year, Cruise, who was traveling by helicopter, needed a place to land,  BBC News reports.  He ended up landing in a family's backyard, and then let their kids go for a ride in the helicopter, making headlines.

Caitlin O'Kane is a New York City journalist who works on the CBS News social media team as a senior manager of content and production. She writes about a variety of topics and produces "The Uplift," CBS News' streaming show that focuses on good news.

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Jason Statham's Next Movie Could Become The Franchise Tom Cruise's Jack Reacher Failed To Be

I really hope this story about kurt russell's tombstone cameo plan for kevin costner is true, peter jackson's lord of the rings movie return is a killer blow for amazon's the rings of power.

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning  continues the franchise's trend of outlandish, unbelievable stunts with a motorcycle cliff jump involving Tom Cruise, but how did the cast and crew film the scene? The previous entry,  Mission: Impossible - Fallout , had Cruise learning to perform a HALO jump in camera and how to fly a helicopter for its over-the-top stunts. Previous Mission: Impossible  movies saw Cruise clinging to the side of a plane as it took off, or running down the side of the world's tallest building, proving his immense dedication to his craft.

Therefore, with  Mission: Impossible   7 , fans of the franchise were left wondering how Cruise and  director Christopher McQuarrie would top the already amazing stunts performed in the series thus far. With the added caveat of the next two  Mission: Impossible films being a two-parter, a first for the franchise, speculation began on not just the stunts and action details but what the story would entail as well. However, the trailer for  Mission: Impossible 7  provides some insight into the next big stunt: a motorcycle jump off a sickeningly high cliff.

Related:  Mission: Impossible 7 Can Pay Off A Cut Ethan & Ilsa Scene & Plot Point

As with all of Tom Cruise's productions, his dedication to authentic, in-camera stunts came into play here. He and the rest of the crew had to do an immense amount of preparation for the stunt, performing it six different times in their strive for greatness. Tom Cruise, a regular for dangerous stunts , trained heavily during pre-production to prepare for the jump. His preparation included doing over 13,000 motocross jumps and over 500 skydives. Given Cruise's previous action experiences involving all manner of different vehicles, one would excuse him for under preparing. However, with Cruise doing over 30 helicopter dives each day during pre-production in order to prepare for the base jump section of the fall, it's clear this wasn't the case and he remained as committed as ever. The feat involved Cruise riding the motorcycle off a cliff, before transitioning into a free fall and base jumping with a parachute. In order to achieve this, and make sure it didn't go horribly wrong, the crew of  Mission: Impossible 7  (meaningfully titled  Dead Reckoning )  digitally tracked each of the practice runs using a GPS attached to Cruise's back. Different variables, such as the wind, were tracked accordingly so the crew could figure out the best way to shoot the jump, and also so they could keep Cruise from any potential harm.

Due to the intense nature, and potential danger, of the stunt, it was filmed during the very first day of principal photography. Cruise outlined some of the ways the stunt could have gone wrong (via  Empire ):

“If the wind was too strong, it would blow me off the ramp... The helicopter [filming the stunt] was a problem, because I didn’t want to be hammering down that ramp at top speed and get hit by a stone. Or if I departed in a weird way, we didn’t know what was going to happen with the bike. I had about six seconds once I departed the ramp to pull the chute and I don’t want to get tangled in the bike. If I do, that’s not going to end well.”

Luckily, this  dangerous Mission: Impossible 7  motorcycle stunt went off without a hitch. Cruise's intense preparation and training, as well as the professionalism of the rest of the cast and crew saw that the day went smoothly, capturing the franchise's latest death-defying sequence without any major issues. Tom Cruise put his dangerous motorcycle jumps to the test, driving off the Norweigan mountaintop on which the sequence was filmed, with camera-mounted drones and helicopters catching the fall and base jump all on the first day of shooting.

If Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie have proven anything on  Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation , Fallout,  and now  Dead Reckoning , it's that their eye for breathtaking stunts hasn't faltered. Whether this motorcycle jump will be the main stunt of the film, or if the duo has anything else hidden up their sleeves remains to be seen. However, if this one sequence is anything to go by, it proves that  Mission: Impossible 7   will be another stellar entry in one of cinema's greatest modern action franchises .

Next:  Mission: Impossible 8's Cruise Sendoff Explains Returning Character Mystery

Key Release Dates

Mission: impossible - dead reckoning part one, mission: impossible - dead reckoning - part two.

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Watch Tom Cruise complete ‘biggest stunt in cinema history’ with death-defying jump

Tom Cruise is soaring to new heights.

The legendary actor appears in a new video from the making of the upcoming “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” that gives fans an “extended behind the scenes look at the biggest stunt in cinema history ,” according to Paramount Pictures’ description of the clip on YouTube.

The video, which runs more than nine minutes long, opens with a breathtaking overhead view of a mountain in Hellesylt, Norway, with Cruise explaining that he will ride a motorcycle off of a cliff that turns into a base jump.

“I’ve wanted to do it since I was a little kid,” he says.

Director Christopher McQuarrie says Cruise helped facilitate the stunt by getting together a team of experts in various fields to make sure it goes off without a hitch.

There are clips of Cruise skydiving and riding a motorcycle on a motorcross track built specifically for the stunt, while viewers learn how different models were constructed to properly gauge the angle Cruise would be diving off the bike. There was even a GPS chip to keep track of all of his jumps and gather a wide range of data, including how the wind would affect each jump.

“I have to get so good at this that there’s just no way that I miss my marks,” he says.

“You train and drill every little aspect over and over and over and over again,” he adds while we see clips of him diving and riding his motorcycle.

And Cruise apparently did just that, performing more than 500 dives and 13,000 jumps on the motorcycle.

Around the 7-minute mark, Cruise takes off on the motorcycle, driving off a ramp and then pulling a parachute to the ground below in a mind-blowing effort.

“This is far and away the most dangerous thing we’ve ever attempted,” McQuarrie says.

You can see for yourself how the stunt looks on the big screen when “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” opens in theaters July 2023.

Drew Weisholtz is a reporter for TODAY Digital, focusing on pop culture, nostalgia and trending stories. He has seen every episode of “Saved by the Bell” at least 50 times, longs to perfect the crane kick from “The Karate Kid” and performs stand-up comedy, while also cheering on the New York Yankees and New York Giants. A graduate of Rutgers University, he is the married father of two kids who believe he is ridiculous.

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Tom cruise speeds off a cliff in ‘mission: impossible – dead reckoning: part one’ trailer.

The seventh installment in the billion-dollar action-spy franchise returns familiar faces and sets Ethan Hunt (Cruise) up for more high-octane stunts.

By Jackie Strause

Jackie Strause

Managing Editor, East Coast

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Ethan Hunt’s next mission is going to cost him dearly.

The new trailer for Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning: Part On e reveals more of what Tom Cruise has in store when he returns to the IMF agent role he originated in 1996.

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“Your life will always matter more to me than my own,” Ethan tells agents Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg). “None of our lives can matter more than this mission,” says Luther, to which Ethan replies, “I don’t accept that.”

The logline for Part One reads: “Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands. With control of the future and the fate of the world at stake, and dark forces from Ethan’s past closing in, a deadly race around the globe begins. Confronted by a mysterious, all-powerful enemy, Ethan is forced to consider that nothing can matter more than his mission — not even the lives of those he cares about most.”

Christopher McQuarrie, who has directed, written or produced a number of Cruise films, directed and co-wrote the script with Erik Jendresen; he also produces with Cruise. Executive producers are David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Tommy Gormley, Chris Brock and Susan E. Novick.

Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga, Henry Czerny, Shea Whigham, Greg Tarzan Davis, Charles Parnell, Frederick Schmidt, Cary Elwes, Mark Gatiss, Indira Varma and Rob Delaney round out the cast.

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Tom Cruise says 'Mission: Impossible 7' motorcycle stunt was shot on the first day of production so everyone knew if they could keep going or if it needed a 'major rewrite'

• Tom Cruise said the motorcycle stunt was done on the first day of shooting so everyone knew how to go forward.
• "Do we all continue or is it a major rewrite?" he told Entertainment Tonight.
• The director told Empire that doing it early also let production figure out how to use the stunt in the plot.

Tom Cruise says there's a simple explanation for why his thrilling stunt of driving a motorcycle off a cliff was completed on the very first day of production on "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1" — there would need to be a major change to the story if it wasn't successful.

"We know either we will continue with the film or we're not. Let's know day one!" Cruise told "Entertainment Tonight" (at the 2:00 mark). "Let us know day one what is going to happen: Do we all continue or is it a major rewrite?"

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"I was training and I was ready," Cruise continued. "You have to be razor sharp when you're doing something like that. It was very important as we were prepping the film that it was actually the first thing. I don't want to drop that and go shoot other things and have my mind somewhere else. Everyone was prepped. Let's just get it done."

The stunt is the latest thrilling moment in the "M:I" franchise that has seen Cruise do everything from hang onto the side of a plane as it takes off to perform a HALO jump with a broken ankle.

Though those stunts were all extremely dangerous for Cruise to pull off, this one might be the most death-defying to date for the superstar.

The stunt has Cruise driving a motorcycle off a cliff in Norway. Then in mid-air, he disposes of the bike and free-falls until he opens his parachute.

To train for it, Cruise did 500 skydives and over 13,000 motocross jumps. And that wasn't just so Cruise had the skill and comfort to pull off the stunt; the training also made it possible for director Christopher McQuarrie and his crew to map out camera angles to capture it. 

McQuarrie recently told Empire a stunt like this has to be done at the start of production because then plot points can be written into the movie as to why Cruise's character Ethan Hunt jumped off the cliff in the first place.

"Doing that on day one gave us all the time in the world to understand why he was doing what he was doing," McQuarrie said. "If we sat around and tried to figure out these movies the old-fashioned way, you'd never find it, simply because it's such a living, breathing thing."

Cruise ended up doing the stunt six times on the first day of shooting. That meant a lot of cleanup.

Insider has learned from a source close to production that after each jump, a team at ground level in Norway was responsible for recovering and disposing of all the broken pieces of motorcycle that shattered on impact before the next jump was attempted.

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Tom Cruise Explains Why This ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ Stunt Was the Most Dangerous of His Career

The actor jumped a bike off a ramp over a cliff, then released a parachute. You know, for fun.

With each successive Mission: Impossible movie, Tom Cruise has made a habit of putting his life in danger for the sake of audience entertainment. This all really began with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol , for which Cruise dangled off the tallest building in the world for a high-flying set piece that made viewers positively nauseous. For Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation , he attached himself to the outside of an airplane while it lifted off a runway. And for Mission: Impossible – Fallout , he both dangled below a helicopter and also flew a helicopter himself for the thrilling finale set piece. But for Mission: Impossible 7 , he’s outdone himself.

You may recall that set photos revealed Cruise riding a motorcycle up a ramp, flying off a cliff, and then immediately pulling a parachute to safely make his way down to the ground. That is indeed one of the central set pieces of Mission: Impossible 7 (for which Rogue Nation and Fallout filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie returns), and now Cruise is pulling back the curtain on why it’s the most dangerous stunt of his career.

RELATED: Tom Cruise Rides a Train in New 'Mission: Impossible 7' Image, Talks Pandemic Filming

Speaking to Empire, Cruise broke down the challenging logistics of riding a motorcycle off a cliff:

“If the wind was too strong, it would blow me off the ramp,” he explains. “The helicopter [filming the stunt] was a problem, because I didn’t want to be hammering down that ramp at top speed and get hit by a stone. Or if I departed in a weird way, we didn’t know what was going to happen with the bike. I had about six seconds once I departed the ramp to pull the chute and I don’t want to get tangled in the bike. If I do, that’s not going to end well.”

The actor and producer said the pressure was on, largely because he pushed to resume production safely on Mission: Impossible 7 during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to get people back to work and ensure theaters would be supplied with a big blockbuster to lure folks back to theaters:

“All those emotions were going through my mind,” he says. “I was thinking about the people I work with, and my industry. And for the whole crew to know that we’d started rolling on a movie was just a huge relief. It was very emotional, I gotta tell you.”

This will surely make for a hell of a behind-the-scenes documentary, so here’s hoping McQuarrie and/or Paramount Pictures had someone onhand to chronicle the challenging production of Mission: Impossible 7 , which is being shot back-to-back with Mission: Impossible 8 . Filming is still ongoing at this moment in time, but McQuarrie and Cruise have a bit more time to put the finishing touches on the first sequel before it hits theaters – M:I 7 ’s release date was recently delayed to May 27, 2022.

KEEP READING: Tom Cruise Says He Was Told to Lose the Smile While Filming Death-Defying Stunts

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Watch Tom Cruise ride a motorcycle off a cliff for dangerous Mission: Impossible stunt

The team behind the upcoming action sequel call it "the biggest stunt in cinema history."

Christian Holub is a writer covering comics and other geeky pop culture. He's still mad about 'Firefly' getting canceled.

Tom Cruise has done it again.

Shortly after jumping out of a plane while thanking fans for supporting Top Gun: Maverick this year, Cruise and the team behind his next Mission: Impossible film have released a new behind-the-scenes clip highlighting one of the action sequel's most impressive stunts. The stunt finds Cruise riding a motorcycle off of a cliff before performing a base jump.

"I've wanted to do it since I was a little kid," Cruise says in the video. "It all comes down to one thing: The audience."

Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One writer/director Christopher McQuarrie adds that the stunt required coordination between different disciplines. As such, Cruise put together "a master plan" with input from a variety of specialists so he could practice both motocross and base jumping.

Cruise apparently performed more than 500 sky dives and over 13,000 motocross jumps to prepare for the stunt, and this video features footage of many of them.

Recording such an intricate stunt requires proper technology. McQuarrie says that "even two years ago, the cameras didn't exist" to capture Cruise's feat on film, but now the team has them in hand. The team also relied on computer simulations to determine the right angle to build their ramp.

"How do we involve the audience? I just want to give them that thrill," Cruise says.

"Pretty much the biggest stunt in cinema history," base jumping coach John DeVore says. "Tom Cruise just rode a motorcycle off a cliff six times today."

Watch the epic video above. Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One is set to hit theaters in July 2023, with the sequel following in 2024.

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

Related content:

• Tom Cruise wishes fans 'safe and happy holidays' before jumping out of plane on Mission: Impossible set
• Breaking down the trailer for Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
• Val Kilmer celebrates 'perfect' Top Gun: Maverick cast for EW's 2022 Entertainers of the Year

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Tom Cruise Rides His Motorcycle Off a Cliff in Action-Packed 'Mission: Impossible 7' Trailer

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One is in theaters July 12.

Tom Cruise undertakes some of his most daring stunts yet in his latest action movie.

On Wednesday, Paramount Pictures released the trailer for Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One , showcasing Cruise's Ethan Hunt as he embarks on his latest mission.

Footage from the trailer previews Hunt's clash with a villain played by Esai Morales during another globe-trotting adventure that threatens the entire Impossible Missions Force team.

The trailer teases Cruise and Morales' fight on top of a moving train, as well as a full look at Cruise's now-famous cliff jump from a motorbike stunt as Ving Rhames ' character Luther warns Hunt not to value saving the rest of the team higher than completing their mission.

"I don't accept that," Hunt says in response to the warning, as the trailer ends with him jumping from a destroyed train car before its falls to a body of water below.

In the new movie — the seventh in the Mission: Impossible franchise and its first entry since 2018 — Hunt and his team are tasked with tracking down "a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands," an official synopsis for the film reads promising, "a deadly race around the globe" throughout the movie.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"Confronted by a mysterious, all-powerful enemy, Ethan is forced to consider that nothing can matter more than his mission – not even the lives of those he cares about most," the synopsis adds.

Aside from Cruise, Rhames and Morales, the latest Mission: Impossible movie features a large ensemble cast including Hayley Atwell , Simon Pegg , Rebecca Ferguson , Vanessa Kirby , Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga, Henry Czerny, Shea Whigham, Greg Tarzan Davis, Charles Parnell, Frederick Schmidt, Cary Elwes , Mark Gatiss, Indira Varma and Rob Delaney.

The movie is written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, a longtime collaborator of Cruise's who directed the previous two Mission: Impossible films and wrote Top Gun: Maverick . McQuarrie, 54, is also making the upcoming sequel Dead Reckoning Part Two , expected to release in 2024.

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‘Mission: Impossible 7’: Tom Cruise Drove a Bike Off a Cliff 6 Times to Nail Shot

CinemaCon 2021: The action star did a year of motocross and base jump training for one insane stunt

When Paramount is about to release a “Mission: Impossible” film, Tom Cruise usually shows up at CinemaCon to show off behind-the-scenes footage of his latest insane stunts. Though he wasn’t in Las Vegas, Paramount did show off what Cruise has spent the pandemic doing: riding a motorcyle off a giant cliff in Norway. Cruise did a year of base jump and motocross training for the stunt, with director Christopher McQuarrie building a track just for him to get the hang of the bike. “I have to get so good at this that there’s no way I will miss my marks,” he said. “Don’t be careful, be confident!” McQuarrie and his team then had Cruise jump the bike off a cliff into a foam pit while testing state-of-the-art drones that weren’t even around when “Mission: Impossible: Fallout” was filmed. CGI and telemetry was used constantly to get a sense of how far Cruise would fly off the motorcyle to make sure the camera was set up just right. And then, when it came time to go to the massive cliff to film the scene, Cruise performed the death-defying stunt six times, having to memorize how fast to launch the bike and at what point in his descent into the rocky cliffside to deploy his chute. If it isn’t clear yet, Cruise will do anything for his craft.

Cruise returns to the film for more death-defying stunts, as does director Christopher McQuarrie, who directed the last two films in the franchise and is already at work on “Mission: Impossible 8.” He’s joined by a returning cast that includes Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Simon Pegg and Angela Bassett, but newcomers to the franchise include Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff and Cary Elwes.

Anticipation is high after the release of 2018’s “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” which was by far the best reviewed movie in the long-running action series and was also the highest grossing movie of the bunch, earning $791.6 million worldwide.

It’s also been a long time coming for “MI7,” which started filming before the COVID-19 pandemic way back in March 2020 and managed to continue despite some delays and a now infamous rant from Cruise about the crew members being lax on COVID-19 safety protocols.

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Tom Cruise rides off a cliff, trashes train in new 'Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One' trailer

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

Your mission, should you choose to accept it? Watch the new trailer for Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One , which you can see below. Conveniently, it will not self-destruct in five seconds.

Tom Cruise 's seventh film playing super spy Ethan Hunt finds the IMF team of Hunt, Ving Rhames' Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg 's Benji Dunn, and Rebecca Ferguson 's Ilsa Faust's going up against both Esai Morales' antagonist and a character played by Guardians of Galaxy franchise star Pom Klementieff.

"She is somebody who, at the start of our story, is partnered with Esai and represents this malevolent force that Ethan is opposed to," McQuarrie recently told EW .

In the footage, Cruise's Ethan rides a motorcycle straight off a cliff before (hopefully) pulling his parachute, as well as trashing a speeding train — two of the adrenaline-junkie stunts previously teased for the movie.

Mission: Impossible – Fallout actress Vanessa Kirby once again portrays arms dealer Alanna Mitsopolis (a.k.a. The White Widow), while Henry Czerny reprises his role of government agent Eugene Kittridge, which he played way back in the very first film in the franchise. This time, Kittridge partners with characters played by Shea Whigham and Cruise's Top Gun: Maverick costar Greg Tarzan Davis.

"Shea and Tarzan represent the government," says McQuarrie. "They're allies with Henry Czerny in the story and are the opposition to Tom and to the IMF."

Christian Black/Paramount Pictures and Skydance Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One'

The director confirmed to EW that MCU actress Hayley Atwell has a major role in the film but declines to elaborate too much on its nature.

"The less I tell you about Hayley Atwell, the better," said McQuarrie. "Hayley represents a stranger in a strange land — she's somebody who does not come from this world, she's not a spy, she's not an agent. If anything, she's an agent of chaos, and is something of a random element that's thrown into this story."

The Mission: Impossible franchise has become famous for its practical stunts. This time around, Cruise repeatedly rode a motorbike off a cliff while McQuarrie trashed a 70-ton train.

"At the start of this movie, I said to Tom, 'What do you want to do?'" recalled McQuarrie, who directed the previous two films in the blockbuster franchise, 2015's Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation and 2018's Mission: Impossible – Fallout . "He said, 'I want to drive a motorcycle off of a cliff. What do you want to do?' And I said, 'I want to wreck a train.' We're enormous fans of Buster Keaton, John Frankenheimer, David Lean, all of these filmmakers who at one time or another had a fabulous train wreck. I thought, I've earned that, I want to wreck one too."

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is released in cinemas July 12. Watch the film's new trailer above.

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly 's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

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Watch Tom Cruise Jump a Motorcycle Off a Cliff in the New Mission: Impossible

Tom cruise is one wild dude, and we thank him for it..

There are few people more committed to the bit than Tom Cruise . He’s a man that doesn’t believe in extensive use of CGI – or stunt doubles – in his movies. He’s there. He’s doing the jump, flying the plane or, in this case, riding the motorcycle off a cliff. We thank him for his service in this endeavor.

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In the runup to his latest flick: Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, Paramount Pictures has blessed our eyes with a new video that catalogs Cruise’s preparation for the movie’s biggest stunt which – you guessed it – involves Cruise riding a motorcycle off a cliff.

In this video, we see Cruise jump out of numerous planes and helicopters (he apparently did 500 skydives to get ready). The video says he also did over 13,000 motocross jumps on dirt bikes. That is some serious repetition, but I suppose this is a pretty serious stunt. If anything goes wrong, the best case scenario is that you end up like Goose, and you do not want to end up like Goose. But now it’s time. Preparation is over. Tom’s gotta jump his motorcycle off a cliff.

The video ends as you would likely expect. Cruise successfully does the jump off a Norwegian mountain and lives to tell the tale. We know this because he is still alive.

What really got me going was the fact that he did the jump six times in one day. Does this man have a death wish? I don’t know about you all, but if it were me, the second we got the shot I would be out of there. Go again? Are you kidding me, Tom? Baby, you need to stay safe. I want a third Top Gun .

Anyway, if you’ve got 10 spare minutes, you really should check this video out. I know it got me primed and ready for a new Mission: Impossible. Oh, also Top Gun: Maverick is about to hit Paramount Plus, and I cannot be more excited. I am certifiably Tom Cruise-pilled.

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Tom Cruise Actually Rode a Motorcycle off a Cliff for a Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Stunt

Tom Cruise is known for performing his own stunts, and he has done some doozies for the Mission: Impossible series. Memorable moments include his 25,000-foot skydive, climbing the world’s tallest building, and clinging to the side of a flying plane. But there is one stunt that Tom Cruise admits he has dreamed of doing since he was a kid but hasn’t pulled off until now: riding a motorcycle off a cliff and parachuting down .

Did Tom Cruise do his own motorcycle stunts in Mission: Impossible?

Tom Cruise performs all his own stunts. The Mission: Impossible franchise has become a vehicle for Cruise’s increasingly wild skydiving, rock climbing, and motorcycle riding stunts . Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning is no exception, with protagonist Ethan Hunt jumping a motorcycle off a cliff before deploying his parachute.

Tom Cruise starred in the first Mission: Impossible film adaptation back in 1996. That movie featured some impressive action set pieces. But as film audiences demanded more Mission: Impossible movies, Cruise used the franchise to attempt the biggest sets in cinema history–himself.

When asked by the Hollywood Reporter why he attempts dangerous stunts himself, Cruise said, “No one asked Gene Kelly, ‘Why do you dance? Why do you do your own dancing?'” Obviously, performing his own stunts is part of Cruise’s identity as an actor and leading man. Check out a few of the wildest stunts from past Mission Impossible movies in the video below:

Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning will be the seventh film in the franchise and a sequel to 2018’s Mission: Impossible — Fallout. Paramount plans to launch it in theaters on July 14th, 2023. The final film in the franchise: Dead Reckoning Part Two is targeting a summer 2024 release. Part One’s notable stunts include launching a steam locomotive off a destroyed bridge, a vintage biplane chase, and riding a motorcycle over a cliff before parachuting to safety.

Dead Reckoning outdid all other Mission: Impossible stunts

Tom Cruise admitted that he has dreamed of riding a motorcycle off a cliff and parachuting to safety since he was a kid. When Paramount and Cruise agreed that Dead Reckoning parts one and two would be his final outing as Ethan Hunt, Cruise knew it might be his final chance to make this dream come true. But the stunt would require him to merge two skills he had never used in tandem: motorcycle jumping and base jumping.

Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie had two distinct challenges in pulling off the motorcycle jump/base jump stunt: pulling it off safely and catching the action on camera. They selected a tall cliff in Norway and Cruise began preparing.

Firstly, Cruise refreshed his extensive parachuting expertise with over a year of advanced skydive and base jumping training. He also dove in Norway, getting used to the wind and weather. He even jumped along the cliff for the movie, leaping out of a hovering helicopter. Next, the film crew built Cruise a motocross track, and he practiced jumping bikes until he could clear an 80-foot tabletop.

While Cruise was practicing his motocross jumping skills, the film crew began to collect data. They attached a GPS tracker to Cruise and experimented with how far he and the bike would fly if he hit the jump at various speeds, or held onto the bike for different amounts of time. They would later use this data to place drone cameras in the perfect spot in the air to get the shot.

Tom Cruise actually rode a motorcycle off of a cliff while filming Mission Impossible number seven

Finally, the film crew also built a massive ramp off the cliff in Norway. They actually began principal photography with the cliff jump stunt. Cruise began with some warmup jumps from a helicopter, getting used to steering his parachute away from the cliff. Then he linked all his new skills together, riding a motocross bike off of the jump, letting it fall away, and pulling his parachute.

During that day of filming, Cruise completed the entire stunt several times so the director could capture it from different camera angles. Next, learn how James Bond used Coca-Cola to pull off the No Time to Die motorcycle jump or see behind the scenes of the upcoming Mission: Impossible motorcycle stunt for yourself in the video below:

This Dramatic Fast and Furious Stunt Is Actually Realistic

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Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.

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Tom Cruise jumped a motorcycle off a cliff in Norway, but what bike was it?

The action star was in norway filming a stunt for next year’s 'mission impossible 7'.

Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines for September 8

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what's clicking today in entertainment.

Tom Cruise can fly, and not just when he’s making “Top Gun” movies.

The action star was in Norway this past weekend filming a stunt for next year’s “Mission Impossible 7” that involved riding a motorcycle off a gigantic ramp built on top of a mountain and parachuting from the bike as it fell to the ground.

The 58-year-old wasn’t wearing a helmet and repeated the feat four times, according to the Associated Press. But what about that bike was he riding?

GEIR OLSEN/NTB Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images

It’s hard to tell at the distance he was photographed from, but he previously practiced for the stunt on smaller setup in August in the U.K. while attached to safety lines, with photos revealing that he was riding a lightly modified red white and black Honda CR450R.

He also tried out one painted silver , and when you zoom in on the shots from Norway, that appears to be what he was on.

The CR450R is primarily used for motocross and supercross racing and more than capable of jumping off a ramp, if not landing at the bottom of a cliff, while a street legal version with lights called the CR450L is also available.

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Tom Cruise Was Desperate to Drive a Motorcycle off a Cliff in Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning

Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise carried out their dream stunts in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.

Director Christopher McQuarrie has revealed how eager action hero Tom Cruise was to drive off a cliff in the latest Mission: Impossible outing, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One . Speaking with EW , the filmmaker not only says how much Cruise yearned for this death-defying stunt, but he also revealed how he himself was equally desperate to destroy a train.

"At the start of this movie, I said to Tom, 'What do you want to do?' He said, 'I want to drive a motorcycle off of a cliff. What do you want to do?' And I said, 'I want to wreck a train.' We're enormous fans of Buster Keaton, John Frankenheimer, David Lean, all of these filmmakers who at one time or another had a fabulous train wreck. I thought, I've earned that, I want to wreck one too."

And drive off a cliff Tom Cruise will in a stunt that has been described by Christopher McQuarrie as " the biggest stunt in cinema history .” While we currently have no idea what kind of world-saving antics will lead to Cruise’s IMF agent Ethan Hunt risking life and limb, we do know that it will involve Cruise first leaping out of a helicopter before driving a motorcycle at high speed off a ramp and off the edge of a cliff. The actor then ditches his ride, watching it fall to the ground, before falling himself into a base jump.

The sequence is sure to be one of the most exciting, not just in the movie, but in the whole of the Mission: Impossible franchise. With the only sequence likely to beat it being one in which Cruise battles enemies atop a speeding train before the locomotive is, according to McQuarrie, wrecked.

RELATED: Mission: Impossible: Tom Cruise's 5 Best Stunts in the Franchise, Ranked

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Will Land in Theaters in July

Written, produced, and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One follows on from the events of Mission: Impossible – Fallout and once again finds Tom Cruise leading the way as unstoppable secret agent Ethan Hunt. The sequel also finds the likes of Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Frederick Schmidt, and Henry Czerny reprising their respective roles from the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One will add several new faces to the roster, with Captain America star Hayley Atwell playing a mysterious character named Grace. A character that Christopher McQuarrie has called a "destructive force of nature." The rest of the supporting cast includes Esai Morales as the main antagonist, Shea Whigham as a man trying to track Ethan Hunt, and Pom Klementieff as an assassin hunting Ethan and Grace, with Mariela Garriga, Greg Tarzan Davis, Charles Parnell, Rob Delaney, Cary Elwes, Indira Varma, and Mark Gatiss cast in undisclosed roles.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is scheduled for release in the United States on July 12, 2023, by Paramount Pictures with a further sequel, Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part Two , set to be released on June 28, 2024.

After Tom Cruise Jumped Off A Cliff For Mission: Impossible 7, The Director’s Tease For Movie 8 Has Me Nervous

The Mission: Impossible franchise ups the ante after every movie with even more daring stunts and bigger set pieces, and Tom Cruise is at the center of it all. Recently at CinemaCon , Paramount provided the audience with a behind-the-scenes look at Mission: Impossible 7 , which is described as one of the biggest stunts in the film, which involves Tom Cruises jumping off a cliff with a motorcycle. Not only did Tom Cruise jump off a cliff with a motorcycle , but he also did it multiple times to presumably get the perfect shot. After Cruises motorcycle cliff dive for Mission: Impossible 7 , the director’s tease for movie 8 has me nervous.

Director Christopher McQuarrie gave a cryptic teaser about Mission: Impossible 8’s stunts, and it should have us all concerned for Tom Cruises’ physical well-being. After all, he's an actor known for doing insane stunts, including other projects like Top Gun: Maverick . During the Mission: Impossible 7 CinemaCon Panel, Christopher McQuarrie commented about the motorcycle cliff jump and what to expect in Mission impossible 8 , saying:

The only thing that scares me more is what we’ve got planned for Mission 8.

Christopher McQuarrie basically implies that, per tradition, the stunts will be even wilder in Mission: Impossible 8 . TOm Cruise has performed many dangerous stunts, and the motorcycle stunt joins a long lineage of escalating dangerous situations Tom Cruise puts himself in. Cruise is relentless and seemingly up for anything if it will benefit the movie. In Mission: Impossible - Fallou t, Cruise broke his foot mid-action sequence and kept going, and they ended up using his injury to make the film better.

Let’s hope that Christopher McQuarrie is careful with his star because they are truly pushing the limits of action filmmaking. Tom Cruise has discussed how exactly things could have gone wrong with his motorcycle stunt, and it sounds absolutely terrifying. The behind-the-scenes footage shown at CinemaCon of the motorcycle stunt has revealed some insane facts and has us excited for what’s to come.

Hayley Atwell is set to join Tom Cruise and the crew in Mission: Impossible 7 , adding another great performer in the mix who will shake things up for Ethan Hunt and his squad. Rebecca Ferguson has shared a sweet post confirming she has wrapped filming, indicating MI7 is on schedule despite all the delays. It’s starting to feel like the movie is actually coming out, and the wait will surely be worth it.

2022 is shaping up to be a fantastic movie year with multiple big releases, and Mission: Impossible 7 is arguably the most anticipated movie of the upcoming year. There’s plenty of time to rewatch the Mission: Impossible franchise and marvel about Tom Cruise doing increasingly dangerous stunts.

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Tom Cruise Accidentally Ruins Couple’s Hike Before Jumping Off Cliff In New Video

Tom Cruise reportedly arrived at the top of a mountain, apologized to a couple of hikers, then promptly jumped off a cliff in a breathtaking new video.

As if in a movie,  Tom Cruise   appeared on a mountainside via chopper, said a few amiable words to a couple of bystanders, and then charmingly glided off a cliff into the void. The Top Gun: Maverick star , 60, reportedly touched down on High Crag in the English Lake District via chopper, where Penrith, UK couple Sarah and Jason Haygarth were hiking with their dog, Edward. Tom seemed to have addressed them as though this were totally normal.

“Sorry for disturbing your peaceful walk with all the noise,” Tom said, per The U.S. Sun . “I like your dog.” Sarah then reportedly asked, “Are you really going to jump off there?” Tom indicated that yes, he was, as he ran toward the edge. “See you later, folks,” he shouted as he gracefully leapt off the cliff in full paragliding gear. The surreal scene was captured on video, which you can SEE HERE . It’s assumed that he was filming scenes for a seventh installment in the Mission: Impossible series of films.

Other images showed the exuberant couple smiling as a black helicopter hovered above the mountainside. Sarah reportedly told the outlet that the Risky Business icon was “as cool as a cucumber” as he flung himself off the cliff, while Jason noted that “Before this, the most famous person I ever met was [English journalist] Richard Madeley .” He also said that he saw Tom in a bathroom, adding, “This tops that by a country mile.”

Tom is famous for doing his own stunts in films like Top Gun and the Mission: Impossible franchise. During a a 2013 interview on  The Graham Norton Show,  Tom explained why it’s important to him to perform his own stunt work. “It has to do with storytelling,” he said, per Screenrant . “It allows us to put cameras in places that you’re not normally able to do.”

Tom Cruise Poses For Photo With Kids Bella and Connor for First Time in Nearly 15 Years

Tom cruise was seen spending some quality time with kids isabella “bella” kidman and connor cruise, whom he shares with ex-wife nicole kidman. it’s the trio’s first public outing in 14 years..

This family moment will take your breath away.

Tom Cruise made his first outing with his eldest children Isabella "Bella" Kidman Cruise , 31, and Connor Cruise , 29, in nearly 15 years last December when the trio saw the Tampa Bay Lightning face off against the Florida Panthers. 

And in true pics or it didn't happen fashion, they commemorated the NHL game by posing for a group photo, which also included former NFL player Derrick Brooks .

It's a rare glimpse into Tom's family's time as both Bella and Connor—whom he shares with ex-wife Nicole Kidman —prefer to remain out of the public eye. In fact, the last time the three were seen publicly together was in 2009 when they attended a soccer game in Los Angeles. 

Both Connor and Bella also tend to keep a low profile on social media, with the artist sharing an occasional selfie amid her work. As for Connor, he last shared a selfie in June while with his pals in Florida.

However, over the years, Tom—who is also dad to Suri Cruise , 18, whom he shares with ex-wife Katie Holmes —and Connor have attended sporting events together, cheering on Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Dodgers and Maryland Terrapins.

But it's no surprise that Connor and Bella prefer to stay out of the limelight, as Nicole and Tom agreed it was best for the kids since they were young.

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"I'm very private about all that," the Moulin Rouge actress—who is also mom to daughters Sunday Rose Kidman Urban , 15, and Faith Margaret Kidman Urban , 13, with husband Keith Urban —told Australian outlet Who in 2018. "I have to protect all those relationships. I know 150 percent that I would give up my life for my children because it's what my purpose is."

Keep reading to see more glimpses of Bella and Connor over the years.

Say Cheese!

Tom, Bella and Connor pose with former NFL player Derrick Brooks when they saw the Tampa Bay Lightning face off against the Florida Panthers.

Connor is seen golfing with friends in June 2023.

Connor goes golfing in April 2023.

Connor appears on a fishing trip in 2019.

Connor attends the Diesel Womenswear Fall/Winter 2023/24 fashion show during Milan Fashion Week in February 2023.

Bella appears in a 2021 selfie.

Connor shared this childhood pic of himself with Bella on Instagram in 2019, writing, "Day 1 homies."

"Throwback time," Connor captioned this childhood pic of himself and Bella, which he shared on Instagram in 2016.

Connor appears on a fishing trip in 2018.

Connor appears at The Pool After Dark at Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City New Jersey in February 2016.

Connor celebrates his 21st birthday at The Pool After Dark at Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City New Jersey in February 2016.

Connor DJs in the booth at Temple Nightclub in San Francisco in January 2016.

Tom and Connor watch the Maryland Terrapins play against the Connecticut Huskies during the NCAA Women's Final Four Semifinal at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida in April 2015.

Connor attends the Emirates marquee during Stakes Day at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Australia in November 2013.

Tom and Connor attend Game Four of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in October 2013.

The siblings appear at Connor's 17th birthday party benefiting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, at the Hyde lounge at Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles in January 2012.

Tom, Connor and Jeffrey Katzenberg attend an NBA game between the New Orleans Hornets and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles in March 2011.

Tom and Connor attend a game between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in June 2010.

Tom and Connor attend Game Two of the Western Conference Finals between the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2010 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles in May 2010.

Mae Whitman Is Pregnant, Shares She’s Expecting First Baby

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Help! I Rescued a Man Who Fell Off a Cliff. I Never Imagined It Would Change My Life In This Way.

I’ve healed in all ways but one..

Dear Prudence is Slate’s advice column.  Submit questions here .

Dear Prudence,

While trail running in a remote part of a national park a few years ago, I came across a man who fell off a cliff and sustained multiple serious injuries. I ended up coordinating a helicopter rescue and took care of him all day, while he was in incredible distress until he was airlifted out. He survived but does not have the life he once had. I worked with my therapist and have found healing. I resumed my outdoor activities, the sound of a helicopter doesn’t send me into a panic attack anymore, and life is great. My husband has been very supportive throughout the journey. (I am a woman in my 30s, if this helps with the picture.)

BUT, one thing that changed completely for me since the accident is my taste in TV shows and movies. My husband and I used to love watching shows like The Walking Dead , Dexter , Game of Thrones , etc. We also watched adventure movies, comic book movies, and thrillers. But now, I cannot watch anything that even has a bit of blood, gore, violence, or suffering. I even have a hard time watching animal shows if it involves animals hunting other animals. The Joker ? Forget it! Something really flipped for me in which I can’t tolerate that sort of thing for entertainment anymore. I tried for a while, and it’s not like I have a panic attack or anything, but it’s definitely a hard no. To be clear, I can handle blood or emergency situations just fine in real life. For example, I helped my parents through major surgeries and could look at incision sights without issue. I had to get stitches after falling, and I handled it well.

My husband is supportive of my narrowed genres. We have a profile on Netflix of just standup comedy, dramas, documentaries, and comedies from which we choose when we watch together. But he does mention that he has to watch shows by himself to get his “fix.” He sometimes carves out time during the weekend or when I am working to watch his shows. We both joke that I am now a “baby” when it comes to couch and Netflix time. I do sense his frustration when we are trying to find something to watch together, even though he is really sweet about it. I truly don’t feel like I am missing out, but should I try to work on exposure therapy to enjoy this type of entertainment again? Am I doing my husband a disservice by ending our pastime of watching these shows and movies together? It feels silly to ask because it is just Netflix, and we only watch movies and shows a few days a week. But, to be honest, I can’t help but feel guilty.

—Netflix for Babies

Dear Netflix for Babies,

Whew, what a relief. When I started reading this letter, I definitely thought you were going to tell me you were in love with the man whose life you saved. By comparison, having less than complete Netflix queue compatibility is a non-issue. The trail-running incident is clouding some much-needed perspective. Your situation mirrors that of many couples who have no history of trauma. One partner might love a classic horror movie marathon while the other simply can’t watch. Similar mismatches in taste have yielded many battles over TV remotes.

The good news: It sounds like you have plenty of stuff to watch together. It’s fine for your husband to watch some of the more violent content when you’re not around and there’s no need to force yourself to enjoy shows that upset you. That said, your ongoing discomfort with certain content could be an indication that you aren’t quite as healed as you think you are, so stick with therapy.

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My husband and I have been together for almost 17 years, we met and started dating in high school. He took a promotion earlier this year that came with a lot more responsibility, more than he was anticipating I think. About eight weeks ago, I noticed he was a little more withdrawn, more tired, etc. As someone who battled postpartum, and runs on a higher anxiety frequency than most, I wondered about depression. About five weeks ago, we hit a boiling point, communication stopped almost completely, and intimacy stopped (we have ALWAYS been intimate four to six times per week). It felt like whiplash and so sudden. I asked him point blank if he was having an affair. He denied it, but mentioned how he felt empty about everything right now. I suggested a doctor’s visit, but he didn’t want to do that.

I just found out last week that around that same time, he began engaging in inappropriate communication with a lady at work, including several kisses. Obviously, my world ended when I found out. Neither of us slept that night, and not much sleep since to be honest. He told me he wants to stay and work on our marriage, and I believe him. But he also told me he still doesn’t feel anything. I’m in no way making excuses for poor choices, but I do think he is dealing with some untreated depression and that may have been a catalyst for something so incredibly out of character. He still isn’t interested in therapy or talking to anyone—myself, friends, or a doctor. I LOVE this man. We have the family we’ve been dreaming and praying for. I want to give this a fair shot, but I feel like we can’t do that until he’s able to shake whatever is going on with him. Is there a way I can gently encourage him to see a doctor or to enter therapy? I can’t imagine my life without him, and at the end of the day, I just want him to be happy. He deserves that, as appalling as it sounds he is a GOOD man. I feel like I’m living in some crazy alternative universe right now. The man I built my life with would NEVER do something like this, but I don’t know how to help him fight back.

—Miserable in the Multiverse

Dear Miserable in the Multiverse,

I’m so sorry you’re in this position, but wow, I hate it when the person who’s been cheated on somehow becomes the one doing all the thinking and strategizing about how to fix their partner and the relationship. It’s not fair. Also, dragging your husband to get help is unlikely to get you the results you want. I completely understand that you love him and see all his best qualities and don’t want a divorce (who does?) so I won’t push you to leave. My advice is to try your very best to do… nothing.

Don’t try to convince him that he still has feelings for you. Don’t try to make a therapy appointment for him. Don’t beg him to behave like the good man you believe he is. Don’t change your personality, your appearance, or your beliefs about infidelity in an attempt to hold onto him. He said he wants to work on the marriage, so sit back and see what that looks like. You can even give it a year, if you think he needs time to snap out of this state of mind or get a less stressful job. You’re either going to see that he’s a good man who is going through a hard time but has the capacity to be a better husband, or you’re going to see that he’s a good man who is going through a hard time and cannot hold up his end of the deal. If it’s the latter, it’s going to be painful to accept. But you can take all the energy and enthusiasm you were prepared to use to help him and redirect it to help yourself get through this.

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My mother recently found a ring in my room that was very sentimental to me. She asked me where it came from. It had been given to me by a “friend” who was actually interested in me romantically. I did not tell her who it was, and will not do so here. I was going to wear the ring today, and started looking for it. I searched my room and couldn’t find it, which led me to conclude that she might have thrown it out. How should I confront her, or should I just let it slide? (The ring was not at all expensive but was very important to me.)

—Ring Go Brrrr

I have so many questions! Why is “friend” in scare quotes? Did you return their interest? If not, why did you accept the ring? Did your mom forbid you from being romantically involved with this person? How old are you? Nonetheless, it sounds like there’s not a lot of trust between the two of you, and you believe she’s capable of some pretty invasive and hurtful behavior. If you don’t think it will set her off in some way that will make living under her roof difficult, say, “Hey Mom, remember the ring we talked about the other day? I can’t find it. Have you seen it?” Unfortunately, I’m pretty certain she’ll say she has absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.

In the future, consider finding a safe place outside the home (like a box under the bed at a good friend’s house) to keep items you’d rather she didn’t know about. And use this incident as motivation to start slowly thinking about when and how you might be able to move out and surround yourself with people with whom you can safely be honest about your friendships/relationships, and everything else going on in your life.

Get Even More Advice From the Dear Prudence Podcast

I was having lunch with a gal pal, reminiscing about some old times, when we began to chat about a friend group we’d both lost touch with over the pandemic. The disconnect was deliberate for me: They felt like it was a great time to score some low-cost vacations and no lines at the local restaurants and I…didn’t. This meant turning down multiple invitations over two years until they finally stopped asking. My friend, very seriously, said, “Oh, well you’re better off. The way they talked about you was just awful,” before she clammed up and wouldn’t divulge another word. Part of me says I shouldn’t care, and the other part is just at a loss to think that I’d been wholly unaware! I’ve tried to pry it out of my friend but she’s not budging (I think maybe because she’s still connected to a few of them). Any tips on reframing this for my own peace of mind?

—I’m Better Off

Dear Better Off,

All of us have people who don’t like us. And all of us have been talked about negatively behind our backs. But it’s absolutely unbearable to think about, isn’t it? Just absolute torture. I’m sorry your “friend” (scare quotes because what she did was not at all friendly) shared this totally unnecessary information with you.

I suppose the way to reframe it is to remember that you did indeed have a pretty big disagreement with these people about how to behave during the pandemic— one that reflected deeper values and priorities. And while you probably found their “gotta get back to normal life” choices upsetting, my guess is that they felt judged and even attacked by your more cautious approach. It’s a fair guess that their remarks about you probably originated with their own defensiveness. Maybe they called you paranoid, scared, neurotic, or a bore. But are those the worst things to be called by people who you thought were irresponsible and selfish? Putting aside the debate about proper pandemic protocols, it’s worth considering that people who turned out to be so different from you are not people whose approval you need or want. As uncomfortable as it was to learn that they were disparaging you, maybe the pandemic—and your “friend”—did you a favor by clarifying an incompatibility that could have otherwise gone unnoticed.

More Advice From Slate

My mother married and had me while she was in high school. She is the bravest woman I know, and she raised my brother and me by herself, put herself through college, and has finally married the love of her life after divorcing my alcoholic father and waste-of-space stepfather. Recently, she discovered she was pregnant again at 41. I am 23 and three months pregnant with my first child.

“It was actually something I debated”: The Fall Guy Writer Almost Did the Unthinkable With Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible That Would Have Made Fans Hate Him Forever

T om Cruise’s Mission: Impossible franchise has given fans many remarkable and unforgettable characters over the years, whether they are the protagonists or the antagonists. While each character has made their mark on the franchise, fans obviously have their favorites picked out and Rebecca Ferguson’s Ilsa Faust has a long list of admirers behind her.

Unfortunately, Ilsa met her demise in the latest installment in the franchise, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. Needless to say, fans were absolutely heartbroken including the writer of The Fall Guy, Drew Pearce, who also worked on Rogue Nation’ s story. Ilsa’s death took the writer back to his time on Rogue Nation where for a brief moment he contemplated killing off an important character whose death would’ve sent fans into a frenzy.

Drew Pearce Almost Killed Off an Important Character in Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible

Rebecca Ferguson ’s Ilsa Faust allied with Tom Cruise ’s Ethan Hunt in Rogue Nation and Fallout and quickly became one of the fan-favorite characters in the franchise. Unfortunately, in Dead Reckoning Part One, Ilsa meets her end at the hands of Esai Morales ’ Gabriel leaving both Ethan and the fans devastated.

“You ask him what kind of guy Tom Cruise is”: The Shawshank Redemption Director Showed the Real Side of the Actor After He Turned Down Movie Over Lack of Trust

While talking about her death in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter , Drew Pearce first complimented her performance in the Dune films where she played the role of Lady Jessica then added,

“She’s untouchable. What’s been so good about watching the Dune movies is seeing Rebecca really start to get the recognition that she deserves. In a weird way, she didn’t off of Rogue, but listen, it’s the brave move in Dead Reckoning. You’re like, ‘F-ck, I’m going to miss her.’”

The Fall Guy writer then let the interviewer in on a little secret admitting that he initially wanted to kill off Simon Pegg ’s Benji Dunn while writing the story for Rogue Nation. According to him, it would’ve added the perfect emotional touch to the film since Benji is also another fan-favorite character and a friend of Cruise’s Ethan.

“Weirdly, killing Benji [Simon Pegg] was actually something I debated at the beginning of Rogue Nation. Simon Pegg, if you’re reading, I apologize, but you are the easiest person to fridge in a weird way, because you have one of the longest relationships with Ethan. But I don’t think there’s a political repercussion for fridging him. It’s just an emotional one, which is what you want.”

Luckily, he decided not to go down this path otherwise the fans would’ve been absolutely furious with the writer. Benji went to live on in the franchise and will soon be seen as a part of the eight Mission: Impossible which is currently filming and is a direct sequel to its predecessor.

Director Explained the Death of Ilsa Faust

Probably the worst thing for a fan that has been sucked into a franchise is that there is always a sense of impending doom that one of their favorite characters will die sooner or later. Sure, in an ideal world, characters won’t have to die all the time but in reality, this just raises the stakes for the films, doesn’t it?

“It’s that good”: Doctor Strange Director Puts Tom Cruise’s Most Underrated Movie in Top 5 Thrillers Ever Made That Actor Should Consider Reprising Soon

In a podcast interview with Empire , director and co-writer Christopher McQuarrie talked about why he and surprisingly, Cruise, decided to kill off Ferguson’s character.

He revealed that the idea came to him while working on Top Gun: Maverick. McQuarrie said

“It was one of the earliest conversations. We were on the set of Top Gun, we were already talking about it. We knew that that emotional arc was of a certain emotional tone… Ilsa is a wonderful character, and a character of which I am enormously proud, and Rebecca is an actor of such unmitigated power and presence.”

Since he was so proud of Ferguson and her performance, it seems rather odd that he decided to kill the character. Why? Well, he simply didn’t want Ilsa to become redundant in the franchise’s future.

“And yet, where we had gone with the character from Rogue to Fallout…[the] place you took that character would either make less of her, it would suddenly become frivolous… or she would just become a romantic interest.”

McQuarrie never intended for Ilsa to be defined by her love story with Ethan, no matter how much the fans shipped them together.

“It was never about creating a character who was defined by her love story with Ethan Hunt. Their relationship transcends a traditional loving story… They’re doomed to be together and yet doomed never to be together…It felt like that story was looking for its resolution and so we said this has got to happen.”

Well, while we are still not over Ilsa’s death, we cannot deny that the filmmaker had quite the noble reason behind killing her off.

You can stream all the Mission: Impossible films on Paramount+ and Mission: Impossible 8 releases in theatres on May 23, 2025.