Next Two Mission: Impossible Films Officially Delayed

Daniel Craig may be done playing James Bond, but Tom Cruise continues to be super spy Ethan Hunt for the Mission: Impossible series. While the next film was set to come out late this year, it looks like the pandemic has forced a change of plans.

Entertainment Tonight reports that Paramount Pictures has delayed Mission: Impossible 7 and 8 from its last set release dates of September 30, 2022 and July 7, 2023 to July 14, 2023 and June 28, 2024 respectively. Their statement reads, “after thoughtful consideration [we] have decided to postpone the release for Mission: Impossible 7 & 8 in response to delays due to the ongoing pandemic… We look forward to providing moviegoers with an unparalleled theatrical experience.”

With the Mission: Impossible films known for their bombastic setpieces, Paramount is probably expecting to make big money off of this movie, and they couldn’t risk the unsafe conditions of movie theaters right now. Despite critical acclaim, films like Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story and Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel floundered in the box office. Nowadays you need a character like Spider-Man to make sure people would risk the cinemas.

If anything, Cruise fans will still be able to catch the actor in Top Gun: Maverick which is set to come out on May 27. Rumor is also going around that he’s going to play an Iron Man variant in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but we’ll have to wait and see if any of the rumors are true.

For now, Mission: Impossible 7 is set to hit theaters on July 14, 2023.