Jeremy Renner has expressed his wish to return to the beloved action franchise nearly a decade after he left the film series. Starring alongside Tom Cruise in the 2011 film Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, the Marvel star took on the role of IMF agent William Brandt. While he reprised his role in the subsequent sequel, the character has since been missing from the franchise.
Renner, who reportedly turned down the offer to return for another film, recently opened up about why he left the film series as he shared that he would love to return as William Brandt in the future if given the opportunity.
Jeremy Renner Expresses Interest in Returning to Mission: Impossible Franchise
In a recent conversation with Collider, Jeremy Renner reflected on starring alongside action star Tom Cruise in the Mission: Impossible franchise. He expressed his fondness for his co-stars and the film series while sharing that he was supposed to return for future movies.
“I was supposed to do more with them,” he said before adding, “I love those guys. I love Tom so much.” However, despite everything, he decided to leave the film series to spend more time with his family and children.
He said,
We had so much fun, and I love that character a lot. It requires a lot of time away. It’s all in London. I had to go be a dad. It just wasn’t gonna work out then.
However, with his daughter growing older, the actor has shared that he could return as William Brandt in the potential future installments. “Maybe now that my daughter is older that could happen. I’d always jump into a Mission: Impossible anytime and back into Brandt,” he said.
An eighth installment in the film series is currently in development with Cruise. While the movie was said to be the last film in the franchise, Christopher McQuarrie has earlier shared that he does have plans for future installments as well.
Not only does it leave the door open for Renner’s return to the series, but the Marvel star, significantly known for portraying Hawkeye in the MCU, could also lead the franchise after Cruise, as he was previously speculated to do after Ghost Protocol.
Jeremy Renner Almost Replaced Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible
When Jeremy Renner initially joined the cast of Ghost Protocol, there were speculations about the actor potentially replacing Tom Cruise as the lead of the franchise. Renner himself hinted at this potential, telling MTV, “It’s a franchise to potentially take over,” while discussing his future.
The film’s cinematographer, Robert Elswit, later shared how the makers had considered shifting the spotlight away from Cruise’s Ethan Hunt. In a conversation with Light The Fuse Podcast, he shared that initially there were plans to introduce a new IMF Mission unit with a new lead, potentially Renner with Ethan Hunt transforming from an agent to the role of Secretary.
The original version of this movie was at the end of it Tom Cruise stops being Ethan Hunt the agent and becomes Ethan Hunt the Secretary. The whole version of this was they were gonna put another IMF Mission unit together with another actor.
If the studio had chosen the Hawkeye star as the new lead of the Mission: Impossible series, Renner could have potentially replaced Tom Cruise as the franchise’s frontman. While this prospect remains uncertain, the Oscar-nominated actor could still return with a Brandt-focused storyline following Mission: Impossible 8.
The Mission: Impossible franchise is available to stream on Paramount+.
The untitled eighth installment in the franchise is scheduled to release on May 23, 2025.
