JJ Abrams, in his directorial debut, brought us the third installment in this franchise in which Tom Cruise plays “Ethan Hunt”. He is joined by a great ensemble which include Michelle Monaghan, Maggie Q, Simon Pegg, Johnathon Rhys Meyers, Keri Russell, Billy Crudup, Laurence Fishburne & the late, great Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Ving Rhames returns to his respective role. After one of Ethan’s brightest students is kidnapped & killed, he is forced back into action to complete her assignment which was uncovering & locating a biochemical weapon that was manufactured by an criminal chemist and being sold to the high bidder. This film marks the debut appearance of Simon Pegg’s character who eventually becomes a main staple for the rest of the franchise. Due to scheduling conflicts with Abrams, many of the original actors, who had signed on for this film, eventually left the project entirely. The names included Carrie Ann Moss, Kenneth Branagh & Scarlett Johansson. This was originally going to be directed by David Fincher but he too would leave the project due to creative differences with Paramount.
