MOVIE NEWS – While a legendary female film star could have charmed the audience in Mission: Impossible 7, the costs of digital de-aging overrode the visions of director Christopher McQuarrie.

The latest part of the Mission: Impossible series, Countdown Part 1, takes the audience into the depths of Ethan Hunt’s personal story as never seen before. The film tells a massive story, focusing on the complicated relationship between Ethan and a diabolical terrorist played by Gabriel Esai Morales. A key part of the film’s plot is Marie, Ethan’s love, who tragically dies before the story begins. According to the original plans, Marie would have been played by Julia Roberts, but the high costs of digital de-aging removed this plan from the table.

The film’s director, Christopher McQuarrie, shared in the Empire podcast that Roberts would have played Marie in the 1989 flashback scene. However, he had to abandon the plan when he saw how much the actress’s digital de-aging would cost.

“We wondered what it would be like if Tony Scott were to direct a Mission: Impossible,” the director recalled. “That’s when I thought about who the main characters could have been in 1989. I found the movie Mystic Pizza, where Julia Roberts plays a young girl, even before Pretty Woman. However, when I saw how much digital de-aging would cost, I decided to abandon this plan. In addition to the costs of digital de-aging, we also had to consider the actors’ wages, which would have been higher than the film’s budget could handle. Moreover, if we wanted to de-age three actors in one frame, it would be as expensive as the train we had already finished. And of course, the scene would no longer be in the style of 1989. There’s no point in filming a 1989 Mission: Impossible with 2023 technology.”

Therefore, in the end, Marie was played by Cuban-born Mariela Garriga, and instead of de-aging Tom Cruise and Esai Morales, Morales’ gray beard and hair were dyed. This was clearly a cheaper solution. However, Marie’s character does not disappear entirely, she will return in Countdown Part 2, McQuarrie promised.

Source: Slashfilm