Tom Cruise, known for his dedication to performing his own stunts, has revealed the toll they can take on his body. During a recent interview included in the bonus content for the digital release of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Cruise discussed a particularly harrowing stunt from MI8, where he was seen hanging onto a biplane. "Oh, this almost broke my back," he stated casually, highlighting the immense physical strain involved.
The stunt, which involved Cruise holding onto a seatbelt while the plane flew upside down, was further elaborated on by director Christopher McQuarrie. He revealed the extreme forces at play, explaining, "This separated the joints in Tom's fingers from the force, so by the time we finished this sequence, your hands were absolutely swollen — oh my God, it was so painful to watch". Cruise himself acknowledged the difficulty, saying, "Oh, that was brutal. That hit, that was a hard one".
McQuarrie also credited Cruise for improvising during the stunt, adding to the danger. "And you improvised that, thank you very much. I appreciate that. You were like, 'I think we're gonna need that,' and I was like, 'I didn't ask you to do that,'" McQuarrie said.
This isn't the first time details have emerged regarding the potential for serious injury on the set of the latest Mission: Impossible film. Cruise previously recounted a dangerous moment during a running train sequence where he stood atop a moving train after jumping from a helicopter. With rigging pipes scattered along the track, Cruise recalled thinking, “There's pipes, you know, the rigging pipes are out there, and I was like, guys, I'm going to go—I might impale my skull on this pipe".
Despite the risks, Cruise remains committed to performing his own stunts, a decision that has defined his career as an action star. He has scaled skyscrapers, dangled from aircraft mid-flight, and performed countless other death-defying feats. While he has sustained injuries, including a broken ankle during Mission: Impossible - Fallout, remarkably, none have been fatal. In July 2024, Cruise was seen with a hand injury while resuming filming for MI8 in London, but he appeared to be in good spirits.
The bonus content featuring Cruise's revelations includes behind-the-scenes interviews, never-before-seen commentary, and unaired footage. Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning is set to be released on October 14 in 4k Ultra HD, DVD, and Blu-ray.
