Mission: Impossible 5, the highly anticipated sequel to the smash hit Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, was originally set to come out in theaters this Christmas. However, due to the presence of a little indie film called Star Wars: The Force Awakens (which opens a week earlier), Paramount opted it would best serve their product if they moved it to a less competitive time frame, settling on July 31, 2015.

Fans are no doubt excited that the next installment in the long-running action franchise will be arriving five months earlier than expected, but the decision presents quite a logistical nightmare for the marketing department. Initially, they believed they would have all year to put together a campaign, and now their time has been cut in half. With so little time to go before the film comes out, when will we see some marketing materials? According to director Christopher McQuarrie: soon.


Those looking for more concrete aspects like an official synopsis will be left wondering what exactly the film is about, but since this is a Mission: Impossible film, that’ll be easy to put together. In all honesty, this was a very candid and appreciated look at the process of making the film, and we encourage readers to check out the full session.

One item of note that will be sure to get fans talking is the revelation that both Patton and Maggie Q passed on the opportunity to return. Throughout the pre-production phase of M:I 5, nothing was said of their potential involvement; in Patton’s case, it was largely expected she would be sitting this one out. She was working on Duncan Jones’ Warcraft and Rebecca Ferguson was cast as a character described as “Tom Cruise’s right-hand woman.”

Still, it’s an interesting bit of trivia that she was considered, as it illustrates how McQuarrie was striving for continuity in the team from one film to the next.

It also shouldn’t come as a shock to viewers that the new movie will have a different feel when compared to its predecessors. Whereas most film series will look to maintain some consistency in their tone, M:I has always been a hodgepodge of filmmaking styles, ranging from the twisty espionage thriller of De Palma’s first installment to the rollicking globe-trotting adventure Brad Bird gave us in Ghost Protocol. In a way, that has helped keep the franchise fresh after all these years, giving audiences something new each time around.

There are more than a few big-budget sequels to some high profile franchises coming out in 2015, many of which have had several months to slowly raise awareness and build anticipation leading up to their theatrical releases.

Paramount will have to work overtime to get M:I 5 up to that level, as the last-minute change removes the luxury of gradual reveals. They need to hit the ground running now, and hopefully McQuarrie’s tweets are just the beginning of a bevy of M:I 5 information this month.

Mission: Impossible 5 will hit theaters July 31.