Tom Cruise has accomplished an impossible mission – by getting Westminster Abbey to agree to him filming inside the iconic landmark for a new Mission Impossible film.
The 60-year-old action star has been busily filming the seventh and eighth chapters of the Mission Impossible film series back to back for the past two years – with many months of production still to go.
However, the crew working on the action flick – who suffered an earful back in 2020 when Tom blew his top over Covid rules being flouted – think they have the jewel in the crown of the franchise for the eighth instalment.
The film, expected to be titled Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two, and which is due for release in June 2024, is set to include scenes filmed inside the 1,269-year-old Cathedral which is located in Westminster.
A source told The Sun: “Tom is really on one at the moment in terms of going bigger and better. There are literally no compromises.
“So when he wanted to film inside a church for the new Mission film, it had to be Westminster Abbey. They turn down almost every request, so it’s an incredible nod to Tom and to the production team to say yes.
“It will make an extraordinary filming location and sets the tone for just how big this film is going to be. The budget is enormous, of course, but the ambitions are even bigger.”
Tom was recently seen buttering up the royal family at the UK premiere of his current hit film Top Gun: Maverick.
The pint-sized Hollywood star was seen beaming alongside Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, at the red carpet launch of the film.
While it is unclear how Tom and the Mission Impossible team secured permission to film inside Westminster Abbey, it is likely they would need permission from HM The Queen to do so.
Films that have tried to film inside the iconic Cathedral in the past have been denied access.
The 2006 film The Da Vinci Code, starring Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou, was famously denied the right to film inside the building for the mystery thriller.
Instead, the producers of that film settled on filming inside Lincoln Cathedral – which was also used as a double for Westminster Abbey in the film Young Victoria in 2007 and the Netflix film The King in 2018.
While the final two Mission Impossible films continue in production, they are long overdue.
Part one of the finale two parter had originally intended to be released in July 2021, but was subsequently moved to November 2021, then May 2022, and ultimately to July 2023.
While part two was due to be released in August 2022 before being moved to July 2023 and ultimately to June 28 2024.
The Covid-19 pandemic was the main cause for the delay of the films being released two years - and counting - behind schedule.
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