MOVIE NEWS – Top Gun 3 and the next Mission: Impossible are a big challenge for Tom Cruise, but he has a much bolder film in development.

Action star Tom Cruise has become synonymous with death-defying action scenes in his films, but a film in development could prove to be even more daring than Top Gun 3, the next Mission: Impossible movie, or any other film the actor has appeared in so far. Even though he’s over 61 years old, Cruise continues to push the boundaries of what a movie star can do when it comes to his own dangerous stunts. Cruise’s realistic stunts and action have been a defining feature of his films for decades, and his dangerous pursuits are expected to continue in the as-yet-unconfirmed Top Gun 3.

After the recent success of Top Gun with Top Gun: Maverick and the first installment of Mission: Impossible, Cruise is expected to have his hands full with acting and behind-the-scenes roles in the upcoming films of the aforementioned blockbuster franchises. However, Tom Cruise has another film in early production that makes the action sequences of his recent films seem tame. With the upcoming film, Cruise and his team want to go to places where no other Hollywood movie star has been – this challenge goes far beyond the ambitions of Top Gun.

In the early fall of 2022, Universal Pictures announced that it had approved a joint film between Tom Cruise and director Doug Liman, in which Cruise would actually be sent into space. This was unprecedented in American films, but the suggestion that Cruise save the day in space did not require much discussion. Universal Pictures president Donna Langley confirmed in an interview with the BBC that the studio is backing the project and its reportedly $200 million budget:

“Tom Cruise is going to take us into space. He’s going to take the world into space. That’s the plan. We have a great project that we’re developing with Tom that’s going to do exactly that. He’s going to go up to the space station on a rocket, shoot, and hopefully be the first civilian, who takes a spacewalk outside the space station”.

According to the film’s draft, most of the action takes place on Earth, but a dangerous threat forces Tom Cruise’s character to travel into space and perform a heroic deed that will save the world. The goal would be to film on the International Space Station and make Cruise the first civilian to take part in a spacewalk outside the station as part of the film. Tom Cruise has recently been cautiously optimistic about his space movie, as there are still many hurdles to overcome before the project can begin filming.

Tom Cruise won’t be the first person to shoot a movie in space

If the movie goes as expected, Tom Cruise would be the first American actor to shoot a movie in space. However, he will not be the first person to ever accomplish this feat. The Russian film The Challenge has already overtaken him in this award. Set for release in April 2023, The Challenge is about a surgeon who is sent into space to try to save an injured astronaut. The film was partially shot aboard the International Space Station and is considered the first film to have scenes shot by a professional filmmaker in space. For two weeks, Russian cosmonauts and actors worked together to create the 35 minutes of footage that was used in the final product.

The Challenge was a huge box office hit in Russia, debuting with the highest-grossing opening day in Russian history. The film’s success serves as a financial omen for what could be in store if Tom Cruise’s space movie production were to move forward. Given that one of the most famous actors in the world would be delivering a performance that no other actor in Hollywood had ever attempted, this ambitious idea would surely be a blockbuster and one of Tom Cruise’s best films. For an actor who has seemingly conquered every earth-shattering physical feat on the planet, it only makes sense that he would leave Earth and embark on his most daring adventure yet.

Source: BBC