Paramount Nearly Replaced Tom Cruise With Marvel Star in Mission: Impossible

For decades, Tom Cruise has been the face of Mission: Impossible, but there was a time when the studio behind the franchise was seriously weighing a future without him. According to Simon Pegg, studio executives at Paramount once explored the idea of moving forward with a new lead, and their top pick was Jeremy Renner, who was then making waves as a Marvel star and Hollywood ’s next big thing.Studio Doubts and the Search for a New LeadBack in the late 2000s, Cruise’s public image took a hit. His infamous appearance on Oprah Winfrey’s show, where he jumped on the couch professing his love, became a media sensation.“They’re making it seem like I’m losing my mind,”he later said about the fallout. His outspoken views on psychiatry during a Today Show interview also rattled studio heads. These incidents led Paramount to question whether Cruise was still the right fit for their blockbuster spy series. Early drafts of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol even had Ethan Hunt sidelined by a career-ending injury, shifting him into a desk job. This would have paved the way for Jeremy Renner’s character, William Brandt, to step up as the new action hero. The plan was to keep Hunt in the story, but no longer at the center of the action.Tom Cruise’s Fight to Stay in the SpotlightFrom a business standpoint, passing the torch to a younger star made sense. But Cruise wasn’t ready to step aside. According to Pegg, he took matters into his own hands, flying from Vancouver to Los Angeles to confront Paramount’s chairman, Brad Grey, at a party. There, he made it clear he wasn’t going anywhere, effectively shutting down the studio’s replacement plans. After that, Cruise brought in Christopher McQuarrie, a trusted writer, to help reshape Ghost Protocol. The script was rewritten to keep Ethan Hunt as the unstoppable field agent fans loved. The gamble paid off—Ghost Protocol became a massive hit, and Cruise continued to lead the franchise through its most successful years.Mission: Impossible’s Blockbuster LegacyHere’s a look at the Mission: Impossible movies and their impact: Mission: Impossible (1996) – Directed by Brian De Palma, IMDb 7.2/10, Rotten Tomatoes 67%, $457.6M worldwide.Mission: Impossible II (2000) – Directed by John Woo, IMDb 6.1/10, Rotten Tomatoes 58%, $549.5M worldwide.Mission: Impossible III (2006) – Directed by J.J. Abrams, IMDb 6.9/10, Rotten Tomatoes 73%, $399.3M worldwide.Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011) – Directed by Brad Bird, IMDb 7.4/10, Rotten Tomatoes 93%, $694.7M worldwide.Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) – Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, IMDb 7.4/10, Rotten Tomatoes 94%, $688.8M worldwide.Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018) – Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, IMDb 7.7/10, Rotten Tomatoes 98%, $786.2M worldwide.Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023) – Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, IMDb 7.6/10, Rotten Tomatoes 96%, $565.3M worldwide.Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning ( 2025 ) – Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, IMDb 7.2/10, Rotten Tomatoes 80%, $591.3M worldwide. All Mission: Impossible films are available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.

Paramount Nearly Replaced Tom Cruise With Marvel Star in Mission: Impossible

Read also