Glen Powell and Tom Cruise have quite a bit in common. It’s no secret that Powell looks up to Cruise as one of his biggest heroes — whom he now considers a good friend — but he has also said he wants to model his career off of what the action icon has built over the last few decades. Powell doesn’t, however, want to follow directly in Cruise’ footsteps, especially when it comes to leading the Mission: Impossible franchise.
The trailer for the eighth installment of the series, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, arrived this week and made it clear that this would be the final story for Cruise’s Ethan Hunt. There has been some speculation that Powell could potentially take over for Cruise as the lead of the franchise, in order for Mission: Impossible to continue into the future. Unfortunately for fans who hoped that might be a reality, Powell has no interest in taking on that role.
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Speaking to ESPN’s Pat McAfee, Powell was asked about the idea of following Cruise into Mission: Impossible.
“My mom would never let me do that,” Powell said of leading Mission: Impossible. “That’s the worst gig in town, everybody knows that. That’s a death trap.”
Of course, Powell is referring to the infamous stunt performances that Cruise has delivered in Mission: Impossible over the years. He has notably done his own stunts for the films, and his partnership with director Christopher McQuarrie has led to each of the recent entries trying to pull off even bigger and more difficult stunts. Most actors are clearly not envious of the danger and time required to make those films like Cruise does.
There aren’t any plans for Powell to join or replace Cruise in the Mission: Impossible franchise, but they are working together to usher another popular film series into the future. Top Gun: Maverick hit theaters a couple of years ago and absolutely shattered box office records here in North America. It should come as no surprise that there’s a third Top Gun film already in the works.
Powell joined the long-awaited Top Gun sequel as a pilot named Hangman, who seemed out of the gate like a potential villain, but he grew into one of the movie’s breakout characters. It’s already been confirmed that Hangman will be back for Top Gun 3, with Powell once again starring alongside Cruise and fellow Maverick alum Miles Teller.