Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt in a high-stakes finale that ties together nearly three decades of action, AI warfare, and impossible missions.
With “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” hitting theatres on May 23, fans of the franchise are preparing to say goodbye to Ethan Hunt in what promises to be the most explosive conclusion yet. Directed and co-written by Christopher McQuarrie, the film picks up where 2023’s Dead Reckoning – Part One left off — though the “Part One” has since been dropped, the narrative continuity remains strong.
The Mission: Impossible series has always walked a fine line between tightly constructed continuity and standalone storytelling. You could jump into any film and follow the thrills, but The Final Reckoning leans hard into tying up loose ends, digging deep into the franchise’s past to deliver a narrative packed with callbacks, conspiracies, and emotional stakes.
What Happened in Dead Reckoning?
In the previous installment, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) confronted Gabriel Martinelli (Esai Morales), a sinister black-ops operative tied to Ethan’s origins with the Impossible Mission Force (IMF). Gabriel is the agent of “The Entity,” a powerful artificial intelligence that’s been subtly infiltrating global intelligence agencies.
After a dramatic battle atop a speeding train, Gabriel escapes, but Ethan manages to secure a two-part cruciform key — the only way to access or destroy the AI’s source code. That code is hidden aboard the sunken Russian submarine Sevastapol, now buried deep beneath the ocean, in a location unknown to any intelligence service.
Who’s on Ethan Hunt’s Team Now?
The core team includes returning favorites:
- Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), the tech wizard
- Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg), the nervous-but-brilliant field agent
- Grace (Hayley Atwell), a new recruit introduced in Dead Reckoning
Joining them are:
- Paris (Pom Klementieff), Gabriel’s former ally, now turned against him
- Theo Degas (Greg Tarzan Davis), a U.S. intelligence officer
- Jasper Briggs (Shea Whigham), who continues his pursuit of Ethan
Power Players Behind the Scenes
Global consequences demand powerful decision-makers. Watching everything unfold are:
- President Erika Sloane (Angela Bassett)
- CIA Director Eugene Kittridge (Henry Czerny), whose rivalry with Ethan dates back to the original film
- Defense Secretary Serling Bernstein (Holt McCallany)
- Secretary of State Walters (Janet McTeer)
- General Sidmey (Nick Offerman), NSA chief Angstrom (Mark Gatiss), and DNI head Richards (Charles Parnell)
Tying It All Together: What Past Films Connect?
The Final Reckoning calls back to several key moments across the franchise:
- In Mission: Impossible (1996), Ethan’s first major mission pits him against Kittridge. Their uneasy alliance continues.
- The infamous Langley vault scene returns, as Ethan again encounters William Donloe (Rolf Saxon), now posted in Alaska.
- In MI:3, the mysterious “Rabbit’s Foot” is revealed to be part of the Entity’s backstory — a relic of chaos now linked to the AI threat.
- Though Gabriel and the Entity are new players, the ideologies behind earlier villains — Cobalt (Ghost Protocol), the Syndicate (Rogue Nation), and The Apostles (Fallout) — were likely influenced by the Entity’s shadowy reach.
Do You Need to Watch the Previous Films?
Not necessarily. The Final Reckoning does a lot of the heavy lifting in the opening half through expository dialogue and flashbacks. But longtime fans will definitely be rewarded with deeper emotional payoffs and callbacks that tie the saga together.
Whether you’re a franchise veteran or a newcomer, one thing is certain: Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt will go out doing what he does best — running full tilt, defying gravity, and risking it all to save the world.