In May, 2025, OTS Magazine, in collaboration with our esteemed Japanese partners Instyle Asia, attended the Asia premiere press conference of Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning at the iconic Toho Cinema in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo. The atmosphere was electric, infused with reverence, nostalgia, and the kind of emotional candor rarely witnessed on such a global stage.

From jaw-dropping anecdotes of wing-climbing at 40,000 feet and deep-sea communication with nothing but hand signals, to heartfelt reflections on legacy, vulnerability, and the pure, undiluted joy of creation, Tom Cruise and his co-stars opened a window into a cinematic world forged through discipline, courage, and love.

In this special feature, we bring you exclusive insights, quotes, and behind-the-scenes revelations from Tom Cruise, director Christopher McQuarrie, and a brilliant cast including Simon Pegg, Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, and Greg Tarzan Davis, who together breathe new life into the beloved IMF team.

At the press conference in Tokyo at Roppongi Hills, Tom Cruise, who plays Ethan Hunt, took the stage and said, "Thank you for the warm welcome. I missed you all. I'm happy to be here in Japan again."

When asked his impression about the premier screening that took place last night, he said, "It was a huge emotion, and I make movies for you all. I will never forget last night."

The press conference began in a warm and casual atmosphere, and the MC asked him, "Why is this series (Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning) so special?" Tom replied, "Making movies is something I've dreamed of since I was a kid. I get to live my dream. I'm always thinking about the audience when I'm on set and preparing. They bring me great joy, and I've dedicated my life to them.

Mission: Impossible series is the first one I produced, and it's my very unique journey. I was also able to take on new challenges as an actor, producer, and storyteller,".

"I love learning, I love challenging myself, I don't ask permission to create something, I just create it,"
"I was a kid at age 4 years old who had dreamed of being in a place like this, dreaming of different cultures, and to be able to experience that to do this for my whole life, that's what I loved and I'm chasing, that's why I never stop working so hard. I will do everything I can to be able to entertain you, to give you all of my heart and all of my soul."

Next, director Christopher McQuarrie took the stage and said, "Thank you all for coming."
Regarding his long-time partner with Tom, he continually said, "I feel like we've been talking together all the time. We've worked on three films, Top Gun: Maverick, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, and Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning” We still spend a lot of time together." He also added jokingly that Tom is "my driver and my pilot."

When talking about the action shot in the latest film, one thing that cannot be left out in their memories is the action scene on a small propeller plane that spins in all directions. Tom said, "When I was climbing the wing (an action scene on the wing of an airplane), the wind pressure was so strong that I couldn't even breathe, and it was quite difficult to move either. I used all the muscles in my body. The pilot trained me, but I was so exhausted, and sometimes I ran out of energy. So I trained every day to get the energy flowing in my muscles. It was the first time I'd ever experienced something like that." 

He talked about what went on behind the scenes in the film's most difficult shot.

Additionally, one of the highlighted scenes in the film is the 'underwater' live action. During the filming of that shot, director McQuarrie and Tom dived deeply into the sea together, communicating with each other by using hand signals for that scene. Usually, when we shoot an underwater scene, the director will stand outside and he will give direction to the actor through the staff. McQuarrie said, "Through that method, you can't recognize the space, so you can shoot only 6 shots a day, which takes a long time and doesn't allow us to do what we want. For this film, I dived under the sea with Tom by myself, so we were able to shoot about 24 shots a day".

Simon Pegg, who plays Benji Dunn, Pom Klementieff, who plays Paris, Hayley Atwell, who plays Grace, and Greg Tarzan Davis, who plays Degas, all came to Japan for this special Asia premiere and stepped on the stage at the press conference.

Hayley said, "I'm really happy to be here. It was wonderful to watch the film first time with my Japanese fans last night." 

Simon said "Hello" in Japanese, and added, "It was a great honour to be able to watch the film with you all. I fell in love with it. Thank you."

Pom greeted the audience and said, "Hello. I was looking forward to sharing this film with all people in Japan. I love this country. I love you all." 

Greg said, "This is my first time in Japan. I'm so happy to be able to share this film with you all. It was an amazing experience. Thank you very much."

The IMF team has always evolved throughout the series, but when asked about the relationship and his role in the latest film, Simon said, "This is first time for Benji to lead a team, but I had to train the assassin (Paris), the government agent (Degas), and the thief (Grace), and it was very fulfilling".
Tom praised Simon, who has been with him for 20 years since the 3rd film in the Mission: Impossible series. He said, "I watched 'Shaun of the Dead', I thought he was a very talented actor, so I invited him. And he showed his great abilities. He has a great sense of comedy, acting skills, and teamwork. That's why working with him is so much fun. I love him."

Hayley explained about her role, "In this film, she is part of a team, but also fears losing the important teammates. She feels that she needs to work each others for a great task, not just for her own purposes."

Pom said, "In the previous film, she was a lone wolf-like enemy character, but in this series, there are many scenes where she is staying with the other cast. I think we can see more about her human side." 
Gregg deliberately gave a vague answer to avoid any spoilers and said, "In this film, Dega begins to wonder whether Ethan Hunt is really making the right decision."

The production team also set the goal of "making 'Mission: Impossible' on a global scale". When MC asked about the locations where the film took place, Tom and director McQuarrie said, "We shot in various places, including South Africa, Belgium, the UK, and the Arctic Circle. The Arctic Circle, where the film took place, is extremely cold with -40 Celsius, it seems to be particularly memorable for the cast and crew".

After that, the reporters from Japanese media asked questions. First, "While you are shooting the action scenes in this film, was there a moment when you thought, 'This might be impossible?' Tom replied, "Yes, every time. It was challenging every time we shot, but we continued working in that environment."

Director McCarey added, "It was the last scene, a scene where we had to decide the specific camera movement in detail. However, we were in a situation where we didn't have the equipment and technology to shoot the scene that Tom wanted. But when Tom said we could do something about it, the equipment was prepared and the technology was developed the next day. Many things are 'impossible,' but there is always a solution. That is the motto in this film, too,". It was more surprise to hear that there was no camera operator or focus planner for shooting that scene, but Tom adjusted the equipment and controlled everything by himself.

Q: "Where do you get the energy to perform such physical movements? And how can you keep your motivation?"
Tom replied, "Passion and love. This isn't just a job, I think, this is about who I am. I always set goals, and I love a challenge. I don't mind if it's difficult or tough. I never give up. Life is an adventure. I have a lot of different emotions, but that's okay. That's me. I really love entertaining people, and I try not to take for granted how privileged I am to be in this position," Tom said.

Q: "Where does the original idea for the story come from?" Director McQuarrie talked about casting, "When we write a script, we create the roles and then look for actors, but this film ran opposite. We looked for the actors and then wrote the roles for them. So, why are all of you here today? Because you all have amazing abilities, and this series is a very tough one."

He continually said, "The original trigger for this project is emotion. I aimed to make a film with more emotion than the previous series, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning. I think about how to utilize the storytelling I learned from my 6th film, Mission: Impossible - Fallout."

Tom mentioned to director McQuarrie and said, "The moment we met, I knew I would be working with him forever,".

Q: "Have you ever thought that this series has been continuously made for almost 30 years?" 

In response to this question about the history of the Mission: Impossible series, Tom replied, "Of course not. (When the first film was released) I still didn't know how to communicate with the audience. I wanted to gain a deeper understanding of the language of cinema."

I met producers (Sherry Lansing and Stanley Jaffe) at Paramount Pictures when I was 18; they really understood my passion for movies and were very supportive. A few years later, when I told them that I wanted to join Mission: Impossible, everyone said, "Why are you working in a movie, out of a TV series?" However, after working on the first 3 movies, I looked back on it as a whole and wanted to dig deeper into what the audience enjoyed, and I felt like I wanted to continue it. It was the time I met Christopher, and we decided how to evolve it. "

The Japanese premiere of "Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning" took place for 2 days. This press conference is the final event and ended with great success.

--

.

.

.