The fourth entry in The Mission: Impossible franchise is remembered for a variety of reasons, including Tom Cruise’s iconic Burj Khalifa stunt and its amazing action. The movie was able to reshape the franchise after the disappointing performance of Mission: Impossible 3.
However, one of the few complaints about the fourth part was its underdeveloped villain, as he wasn’t allotted a reasonable amount of screen time to establish his character. But it was later revealed that it had to do with the casting, as originally Harrison Ford was reportedly considered for playing the antagonist in the movie.
Tom Cruise reportedly nixed Harrison Ford’s inclusion in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
After the colossal success of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, it was revealed that Michael Nyqvist wasn’t the initial choice for the role of Kurt Hendricks. While speaking on the Light The Fuse podcast, the screenwriters, Applebaum and André Nemec shared that Harrison Ford was initially considered to be the villain in the fourth movie.
According to them, Ford was supposed to play the evil scientist and following his removal from the movie, they had to limit the villain’s screen time. It was later revealed that Tom Cruise was reportedly the reason behind the exclusion of Ford from the talks of being involved in the movie.
It was stated that Tom Cruise was reportedly not in line with the idea of facing off against Harrison Ford. He thought that fans wouldn’t want the two actors to clash, considering they are both known for being presented in a positive light in movies. But despite Cruise’s alleged nixing of the actor from the franchise, Harrison Ford didn’t back away from commending the Top Gun: Maverick star.
Harrison Ford commended Tom Cruise for his dedication
While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Harrison Ford shared his viewpoint on Tom Cruise’s dedication to the craft. Considering that both Ford and Cruise are known for physically demanding roles, the Indiana Jones star expressed his appreciation for the Top Gun: Maverick star and his achievements throughout his career. He stated,
“He’s far deeper into physical acting than I ever was. I don’t mind running, jumping, falling down, or rolling around on the floor with sweaty guys. Tom takes it to a whole new level that’s pretty amazing.”
Although Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol turned out extremely successful and laid the foundation for the future of the franchise. But it would have been fun to experience two of the most influential stars of their era colliding against each other.
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is available to stream on Netflix
Source: Light The Fuse
