Some have compared "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" to "Mad Max: Fury Road." Both were a relentless barrage of practical effects that barely had any exposition and backstory. Their goals were to grab your attention and not let go of it. Whereas the previous installment of the Mission Impossible franchise, "M:I - Rogue Nation," was a more elegant, and refined spy movie that had the best action sequences of the series, "Fallout" went for broke with some of the most astonishing action sequences of the decade.
Christopher McQuarrie has just come off from making the two best Mission: Impossible. Yes, Brad Bird's "Ghost Protocol" has to be part of the conversation as well, but I now believe that what McQuarrie and Cruise have done to elevate action to sheer art with these last two installments is nothing short of groundbreaking for the major studio blockbuster. I presume more studios will now be trying to one-up McQuarrie's M:I films by using more practical effects because, quite frankly, audiences have shown that they want their action to be delivered with the kind of realism CGI cannot replicate.
With all that being said, McQuarrie's statements about not ever wanting to make another "Mission: Impossible" movie last year, right after the release, of "Fallout," are understandable, it was probably a dreadful thought for the 50 year-old director to even fathom going through another physically-demanding production. After all, the M:I films have garnered the reputation around the industry as the most arduous of shoots, which is why McQuarie is the only director of the franchise to have directed two films.
The McQuarrie quote [Empire Podcast]:
“Eddie Hamilton [Editor on ‘Fallout], every day in the editing room was like, ‘Come on, man, it’s obviously a trilogy you’re coming back, you have to finish it, you didn’t kill Lane,’ and I was like, ‘It’s somebody else’s problem.’ Tom [Cruise] has asked, the studio has asked, and I was like, ‘You know maybe I’ve got an idea for…’ and then the reviews came out and I was like, ‘Get outta here. Just stop.’ I felt so bad for the director of ‘Mission 6’ and I feel even worse of the director of 7. I’d rather have leprosy than be in the position of the person having to confront the pressure of the hyperbole of this movie on their first day of shooting the film. It’s too much to confront. I’d need a long nap before I could contemplate it.”
It was also a question of quitting at the top for McQuarrie, He thought that expectations for the seventh outing would be too high to be met, or that the pressure was just not worth it. Basically, he didn't seem to want to push his artistic chops any further with this franchise. He set a limit and then he was done.
Well, he's had a sudden 180 the last week, McQuarrie has announce that he has signed back on to return to write and direct the next two films in the franchise, with both films being shot back-to-back, with the first installment due for release in summer 2021 and the second coming out in summer 2022. Tom Cruise also has “Top Gun: Maverick,” due for release Summer of 2019.
The short version: "Woman Unknown" was a compromise. The jury deadlocked over "Possible Love" and "NAZA," not able to com to terms, fell back on their #3, May el-Toukhy's film.