Every Choice Has Led to This goes the tagline, and so strap in (or, I guess, don’t?) to what’s sure to be an epic-epic finale for the Mission: Impossible series of movies, as we know it. I mean, it’s got to conclude now, surely?

*cue Michael Caine looking across a busy cafe and winking at someone who once looked familar*

And I’ve got to say, I’ve loved these films since 1996 gave Tom Cruise the opportunity to bring to life his version of Ethan Hunt and, quite frankly, is there anyone else now we could associate with the franchise, the movie escapism, the thrill-seeking plots, the Cruise running technique – and let’s not forget the unbelievably real, real stunts involved, often performed by the main man himself.

And here we are, at Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, or Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One I’d assume, with everything and more at stake and the eighth film in a saga that’s seen such directors involved as Brian De Palma, John Woo, Brad Bird, and then Christopher McQuarrie – which has largely been the last 10 years for the classic Cruise-McQuarrie-Combo.

And dare I list the talent involved over the years? Yeah, a little bit, these films have seen the likes of Henry Czerny, Emmanuelle Béart, Jean Reno, Ving Rhames, Kristin Scott Thomas, Vanessa Redgrave, Dougray Scott, Thandiwe Newton, Richard Roxburgh, John Polson, Brendan Gleeson, Rade Šerbedžija, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Michelle Monaghan, Billy Crudup, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Keri Russell, Maggie Q, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton, Michael Nyqvist, Vladimir Mashkov, Josh Holloway, Anil Kapoor, Léa Seydoux, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby, Henry Cavill, Alec Baldwin, Hayley Atwell, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga, and Shea Whigham – and that’s just off the top of my head – try saying all those as you motorcycle and skydive off the top of a random cliff face over a valley.

Right then, here’s your trailer and thanks for staying with me – see you at the Movies and, most definitely, the IMAX!

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – THE FINAL RECKONING IS ONLY IN CINEMAS ON 23 MAY 2025