[Image one: closeup on someone’s hand opening a can of Coca-Cola. Image two: Landscape photo of Yellowstone National Park, two mountains in the background and a buffalo in the lower right hand corner.]
'Mission: Impossible 7' director Christopher McQuarrie explains the thinking behind the death of that major character: 'It was one of the ea
"It was one of the earliest conversations. We were on the set of Top Gun, we were already talking about it," says the filmmaker, referring to last year's Joseph Kosinski-directed Top Gun: Maverick, which McQuarrie co-wrote. "We knew that that emotional arc was of a certain emotional tone... Ilsa is a wonderful character, and a character of which I am enormously proud, and Rebecca is an actor of such unmitigated power and presence."
He continued, "And yet, where we had gone with the character from Rogue to Fallout...[the] place you took that character would either make less of her, it would suddenly become frivolous... or she would just become a romantic interest, and it was never about creating a character who was defined by her love story with Ethan Hunt. Their relationship transcends a traditional loving story... They're doomed to be together and yet doomed never to be together... It felt like that story was looking for its resolution and so we said this has got to happen."
McQuarrie goes on to explain that his and Cruise's decision to conclude Faust's story dovetailed with their desire to give a sense of genuine stakes to the movie.
"What really needs to happen in the story is the stakes have to be real, they can't be implied," says the director. "We have to have the courage to let [Ethan] fail and it has to cost, the mission has to cost, and without that, the villain simply will not have a threat…what you're seeing in the escalation of the story is what it costs Ethan personally in Venice."
When asked if the pair had considered the possibility of killing off Simon Pegg's Benji Dunn or Ving Rhames' Luther Stickell, the director said "we explored them all" before ominously pointing out that the recent film is, after all, just Part One of the tale.
I’m just so disappointed. I’ve only seen the film once, but for me, McQ’s and Tom’s poor execution of all they’re claiming they’ve achieved with her death undermines all that is/was Ilsa Faust. This reads as though they really couldn’t think of any alternatives to her ending up with Ethan. As if they felt an independent woman like Ilsa must ultimately end up with the guy or be sacrificed for the greater good.
I hope he’s bringing us down this pathway to get us off the scent, rather than this “we knew people wouldn’t understand what we were doing” nonsense. Part One was mostly enjoyable until her death; however, Ilsa was a ghost for most of the film and then she was a ghost.
Would love to know what Rebecca genuinely thinks of the final edit of the film. Even if she knew Ilsa would meet her end, did she feel McQ and Tom did right by her?
Ilsa Faust has become a fan-favorite Mission: Impossible character, which is why her past should be told.
The Mission: Impossible franchise has always been Tom Cruise’s baby. It was his creation that spawned a movement in 1996. The franchise had faced a weird tonal trajectory until Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol in 2011. Cruise maintained the “movie star” charisma, except he added a strong supporting cast around him. Additions like Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg became fan-favorite characters. It was not until Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation that the franchise changed once again.
Rebecca Ferguson's mysterious “Ilsa Faust” became a fan-favorite character. Her consistently shifting allegiances made her a compelling character for viewers to follow. Making her so compelling did not involve creating a romance with Ethan Hunt. Instead, she was a character who could hold her own in a man's world. Ilsa’s past as an ex-MI:5 operative is something the films have briefly and barely touched upon. With such a rich history, she deserves a chance to have her story told. Rebecca Ferguson deserves her chance in a prequel story.
Ilsa Needs a Prequel
Her fate is supposedly sealed in Dead Reckoning Part One, but it provides filmmakers with a unique opportunity. Not much is known about Ilsa’s origins before her introduction in Rogue Nation. Early in the film, audiences are meant to believe she is an antagonist in Ethan’s story. Her continuously shifting allegiances shroud the character in a never-ending mystery. That mystery is part of Rebecca Ferguson’s charm and magnetic on-screen presence in this series. She applies rare energy to a typically bombastic Tom Cruise performance.
Ilsa is a character that is always playing both sides whenever she appears. Eventually, she grows into a full-fledged member of the IMF team. In Dead Reckoning, she embraces a love that the character never previously knew. Her time as a rogue, stateless agent teases a past of violence. That violence can be portrayed in a prequel focusing on her early life and how she became a stateless operative.
She’s adrift for a purpose that she finds by the ending of Dead Reckoning Part One. Ilsa made the heroic sacrifice (aka her death) for her new “family,” but audiences have not seen what came before this point. The darkness of her past could make her redemption in the Mission: Impossible series feel earned.
Her fate in Dead Reckoning Part One closes a mere chapter of her journey. That does not mean audiences know much about how she got where they first met her. Viewers have seen her adventures with Ethan but not how she became the ruthless mercenary. A spin-off could show her training to become the brutal assassin that viewers know she becomes. To become that killer, Rebecca Ferguson has to be ready for the training that comes with it
It Can Tackle Different Genres
Rebecca Ferguson has been very vocal about the possibilities of Ilsa spin-offs. While she has admitted that a spin-off is “not needed,” it is not impossible. Ilsa’s past is rich with mystery and intrigue. The film could be a straightforward spy prequel following her time in MI:5. That can eventually morph into her “betrayal” of the agency.
Making a prequel story can also allow Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) to return as the primary antagonist. Showing Ilsa’s change in loyalties would enable Ferguson to show range for the character. This would also allow for some incredibly fun and action-packed fight sequences.
Ferguson has publicly shown off her Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning training. Her “cold-hearted” early life could make the character different. Audiences know she becomes kind-hearted, but viewers deserve her origins. Seeing what Ilsa had to do for Solomon Lane could test her morality. That arc could make her an entirely fleshed-out and well-rounded character. Learning about her darkness could make her known arc in the Mission: Impossible movies feel earned. Giving the character a chance to shine could recontextualize and humanize her.
Seeing Ilsa’s journey from “villain” to hero can make her death feel earned. She is someone that is implied to be looking for redemption. Ilsa’s time with Ethan grew into a blooming romance. Ferguson and Cruise sell those moments of chemistry, but it still does not tell us anything new about her. Giving her an origin story could also include a love interest. Even if she lost her “loved one” in a mission, or he betrayed her, it could sell the organic romance with Ethan even more. No matter the genre’s explored, Ilsa still has stories to tell in the MI world.
It is still unclear if Dead Reckoning - Part One and Part Two will be the last in the series. If that is the last in the series, it does not mean this world is out of stories to tell. Making her on the run from her own government could be akin to the very first Mission: Impossible. The story already has a committed leading actor who can handle the preparation.
At the same time, it can give the Mission: Impossible franchise new character depths to explore. An actor of Rebecca Ferguson’s caliber can deliver a prequel unlike anything else in the Mission: Impossible series.
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