Mission UAE? Is the M:I franchise returning to our shores?

Mission: Impossible director currently in the country

It appears every time a new Mission: Impossible movie begins shooting, rumours circulate of a possible filming stint in the UAE. And it’s no surprise. The last time round, star Tom Cruise surreptitiously teamed up with the nation’s Air Force to film Mission: Impossible ⎯ Fallout’s high altitude parachute jump which appeared in a breath-taking sequence establishing the picture’s breakneck pace. To this day, most DVD covers or streaming thumbnails for 2011’s Mission: Impossible ⎯ Ghost Protocol feature Cruise hanging off the Burj Khalifa.

For the seventh as yet unnamed outing, which has been filming in Europe through the pandemic, there have so far been no confirmed links to the Emirates… until now. Possibly. Director Christopher McQuarrie has been posting scenes from around the UAE on his Instagram account leading to speculation he is scouting locations for the franchise’s next instalment.

A picture of our famous skyscrapers towering over the thick fog we experienced on Thursday and a desertscape on Friday have provoked a flurry of comments.

“Mission Impossible: Mars Inevitable” reads one user’s thoughts in reaction to the dune picture. “#MI7MI8 HYPE” read another’s.

Neither distribution studio Paramount Pictures, Tom Cruise, nor the director have yet made any official comments, but we wouldn’t bet against another Ethan Hunt appearance sometime soon.