Is Tom Cruise Really Done With ‘Mission: Impossible’ Franchise?

Tom Cruise has another blockbuster hit on his hands with the debut of “Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning.”

According to Variety, the eighth installment of the nearly 30-year-old series owned the grown-up audience Memorial Day weekend, earning $63-million dollars by Sunday with an expected box office of $77-million through Monday.

That’s more than any other installment of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise. 2018’s “Mission: Impossible- Fallout” comes in second with a $61-million opening weekend.

But while the word “final” is right there in the title, is this REALLY the LAST mission for Cruise and his crew?

Cast Members Weigh In on the Future of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ Franchise

The quick answer is: only Tom Cruise knows, and he’s not saying.

In fact, when asked that very question ahead of the film’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 14, Cruise shied away from an answer, saying, “Just let us show the movie tonight. This is like 30 years culmination of this and I think that this is — I’d rather just people see it and enjoy.”

“We’ve had an amazing time doing it and it’s been a lot of fun and just want you all to enjoy it, enjoy this and know everything — the culmination has come to this moment right now and it’s been a lot of fun,” the actor went on to say.

Cruise’s co-stars in the blockbuster don’t have any answers either, but they’re certainly leaving room for hope.

Angela Bassett, who plays Erika Sloane, the CIA director turned President of the United States told PEOPLE, “With Mr. Cruise, you can never count him down or out. He’s always up for an amazing adventure and to give the audience exactly what they’re craving. I would never assume.”

And Simon Pegg, who plays IMF tech turned field agent Benji Dunn, echoed that sentiment, saying, “Never say never, do you know what I mean? That’s a rule I tend to live by.”

Tom Cruise Drops Hint that There May Just Be More to Come

In an interview with Jimmy Fallon on “The Tonight Show,” May 20, Cruise may have dropped a hint that the franchise isn’t finished yet.

While describing the years of development that went into a wing-walking stunt in “Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning,” Cruise said, “If you look at ‘Top Gun,’ ‘American Made,’ ‘Fallout,’ that led into ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ and this leads into this aerial sequence. So, and, I can’t wait like the next time we do an aerial sequence, like, I can’t wait for that.”

Jimmy Fallon asked, “You have another one? Like, crazier than this?” “Yeah, I do,” said Cruise, “I’ve got other ones, yeah I do.”

The Future of the Franchise May Depend on Several Factors

The final trailer for “Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning” starts with Tom Cruise’s voice saying, “This may very well be our last mission, let’s make it count.”

But Cruise’s co-stars say there’s a lot to consider when trying to figure out what Tom Cruise has planned for the franchise.

Actor Simon Pegg told PEOPLE, “The last two together took five years to make,” referring to both ‘The Final Reckoning’ and 2023’s ‘Mission: Impossible- Dead Reckoning.’ 

“So it depends entirely on a lot of things. I don’t think Tom likes the idea of finality. I think even if there isn’t anything that comes after this, you leave the theater feeling like, ‘Oh, maybe there’s more.’ And I think that’s the golden thing, to leave the audience feeling hope rather than despair,” said Pegg.

Actress Hayley Atwell, who plays pickpocket Grace in the franchise, told PEOPLE that there’s a “satisfying closure” that comes with the new movie, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s over. “There is that sense of the emotional end of something that feels like a very emotional closure. And yet, Tom Cruise is never going to slow down. He won’t ever stop. This is who he is,” said Atwell.

As for the film’s director Christopher McQuarrie, he told PEOPLE, “You’d have to ask me after a very long vacation.”

“Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” is in theaters, including on IMAX, now.

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