Seeing Ethan Hunt
in His Final Mission

An exciting era ended when Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning premiered in 2025. This was billed as the last of the franchise, and we finally had to say goodbye to Ethan Hunt. I could only imagine how Tom Cruise must've felt stepping out on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, where the movie screened out of competition.

Sure, he looked good and glamorous, like the rest of the cast, but I'd guess his mind was all over the place. I wish I could've been there to see them in person. I wish I could've been in the same room as he watched his very last Mission: Impossible film.

Cruise had been playing Ethan Hunt since 1996; that's 29 years of his career. I haven't even lasted 15 years in one company before. I can't imagine what it'd feel like to finally let go of a role you've played for almost three decades.

If he did feel some sort of way, he didn't show it when I saw him in person at the movie's US premiere at Lincoln Center in New York City on May 18. It was a lovely May day, and he looked as happy as ever when he posed for the cameras. There's even a lovely shot of him surrounded by his female co-stars from the film.

Whether he was an emotional mess on the inside, I didn't see it. I didn't see it when he was in front of the cameras, and I definitely didn't see it when he interacted with me later that night. I asked him to sign my movie poster, and he was still all smiles when he did.

The rest of the cast looked just as cool. The great Angela Bassett looked like the boss that she is, and she drew as much attention as anyone on that carpet. You'd think she was the main star of the film with how awesome she looked.

Simon Pegg looked dapper, too, and he was nice in person when I asked for his autograph. Pegg appeared in six of the eight Mission: Impossible films, so I'm sure he was feeling some sort of way that night, too. But like Cruise, he barely showed it on his face.

The rest of the cast were just as pleasant, and many of them signed my poster when I asked. Seeing Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, and Nick Offerman thrilled me most, since I loved them in their other work. I almost wish I had brought Marvel and Parks & Recreation posters for them to sign that night, too.

The only thing that bummed me out was that my queen, Hannah Waddingham, wasn't there. I never knew why, especially since she was at the Cannes event, but I didn't care. I still wished I got to meet her and get her autograph that night.

Fortunately, I eventually saw Hannah Waddingham later that year, along with Ving Rhames. It took me a while, but I finally managed to get autographs from nearly the whole cast of this special movie.