Tom Cruise Set to Star in Christopher McQuarrie's WWII Epic ‘Broadsword'

Last week, I mentioned how Christopher McQuarrie’s “The Gauntlet” was not happening. Also, that project was NOT the “gnarly” R-rated movie that McQuarrie kept hinting he was going to be doing with Cruise.

Instead, we’re getting McQuarrie directing Cruise in “Broadsword,” which sounds way better than “The Gauntlet.” The film is supposed to shoot next year, either before or after Cruise’s Iñárritu film (via Production Weekly). If I had to bet, this will be the next film Cruise shoots.

What is “Broadsword” about? Here’s the synopsis:

The story of an S.O.E. operation in WWIl follows a marine captain who crashes in France and becomes the sole survivor. Against all odds, he must complete his mission amidst the chaos of war.

“Broadsword” will be produced by Warner Bros as part of their recent deal with Cruise. Writing the screenplay are ‘Mission: Impossible 8’ writers McQuarrie and Erik Jendresen. This will also be Cruise’s return to WWII after 2008’s “Valkyrie.”

McQuarrie recently told Empire (via Collider) that after work is completed on “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two,” he and Cruise will move on to their next project, which has been dubbed “The Gnarly Movie” by online fans. McQuarrie added that he wrote the script alongside Jendresen, his co-writer on ‘Dead Reckoning’.

There’s a movie that Cruise and I are talking about doing next or in some probable next, that Erik and I developed together – what has been referred to on the internet as ‘The Gnarly Movie’. It’s that movie that they’re all asking for, and that we want to do.

The film had been previously described as having a “very un-Tom character” and being “hard-edged”. The twist here is that it sounds like it might be a WWII movie. McQuarrie’s presence should not be surprising. Anywhere Cruise goes, McQuarrie follows.

McQuarrie, who won an Oscar for “The Usual Suspects,” made his directorial debut with 2000’s “The Way of the Gun.” Ever since then, he’s become Cruise’s most frequent collaborator, having written and directed action films “Jack Reacher,” “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” and ‘Mission: Impossible 8.” He was also a part of the writing and/or producing team on Cruise films “Valkyrie”, “Edge of Tomorrow”, “Jack Reacher: Never Go Back”, “The Mummy”, and “Top Gun: Maverick.”