Back in March, I wrote an article about the craziest stunts Tom Cruise has ever done for a movie. At the time, I jokingly wrote, “It really feels like the Mission: Impossible franchise, which I love with all my heart, is just Tom Cruise jumping from an increasingly higher series of things. Pretty sure by Mission: Impossible 9 he’ll be base jumping from the International Space Station.”

Then a few weeks ago, it was announced that Tom Cruise was teaming up with SpaceX and NASA for a film that would be partly shot in outer space. And while it’s not a Mission: Impossible movie, I still stand by the thing I’ve been joking about for years now.

The movie, an action-adventure (what else?) will be the first narrative feature film partly shot in outer space.

Now, Deadline is reporting that frequent Cruise collaborator Doug Liman has signed up to direct him in the mystery film, which, for now, is an independent venture. Reportedly, this was the plan all along, with Liman both formulating the plan with Cruise and drafting the first version of the script. He’ll also be producing alongside Cruise.

If anyone can pull it off, it’s Liman and Cruise (though some might say other longtime Cruise collaborator Christopher McQuarrie could, too). The pair have a history, having done Edge of Tomorrow and American Made together, and plans for Live Die Repeat and Repeat, the ponderously-titled EoT sequel, in place. Beyond that, Liman is no stranger to action, having also done Jumper, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and The Bourne Identity. He shares the same action-oriented mindset (both are licensed pilots) and the ambitious and demanding personality of Cruise, making them lockstep partners for a project of both high concept and high altitude.

This won’t happen quickly, however. Liman has to finish Lionsgate’s Chaos Walking, and Cruise has Top Gun: Maverick to promote and Mission: Impossible 7 to finish filming before they can turn their attention to this. The movie will also require extensive training in order for Cruise and the other actors, if there are any in those scenes, to be able to withstand outer space flight. Considering Cruise had to get special Navy clearance for certain flight sequences in Top Gun: Maverick, and insisted on casting actors who could withstand the same G-forces as trained Air Force pilots, the jump to space isn’t all that surprising.

Fittingly, today (if you’re reading this on May 27th, that is), SpaceX is launching a Falcon 9 rocket piloted by two American astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center. It’s an historic event, a private-public partnership between SpaceX and NASA that will put the U.S. back into the realm of spaceflight for the first time in a long time. It’s also a test run to see if this movie is even possible. And in a few years, we’ll see Tom Cruise following suit.

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