Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol

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http://www.aintitcool.com/node/36568

Tom Cruise To Star In Spy Thriller From 24 Writers Surnow and Loceff??
I am – Hercules!!


Tom Cruise continues to recruit from television.

Fresh from hiring “Battlestar Galactica” mastermind Ronald D. Moore to script an unspecified sci-fi movie trilogy, Cruise’s UA has now tapped longtime “24” writer-producers Joel Surnow and Michael Loceff to bang out a contemporary spy thriller for the big screen.

Recall that Cruise also plucked J.J. Abrams from a successful TV career to make his feature directorial debut on "Mission: Impossible III."

Martin Campbell (“Casino Royale”), just set to direct a new Mel Gibson starring vehicle “Edge of Darkness” (the actor's first in six years), will helm also the UA feature, but it’s unknown if Cruise will star in the spy tale.

Neither Surnow nor Loceff have yet seen any of their work in cinemas. Surnow recently developed the fake-newscast comedy series "The Half-Hour News Hour" for the Fox News Channel.

Variety article.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117984835.html?categoryid=13&cs=1

United Artists spies Surnow thriller
Martin Campbell to direct film
By MICHAEL FLEMING

United Artists and Lakeshore Entertainment have set "24" co-creator-exec producer Joel Surnow to develop a contemporary spy thriller that will be directed by "Casino Royale" helmer Martin Campbell.
Surnow will write the film with Michael Loceff, a "24" co-exec producer.

UA, which is run by Paula Wagner and partially owned by Tom Cruise, has made it a priority to find a commercially viable franchise for Cruise, though the studio wouldn't confirm whether the Surnow/Campbell project was specifically designed for the "Mission: Impossible" star.

Lakeshore's Gary Lucchesi and Tom Rosenberg will produce.

Surnow also developed and exec produced "La Femme Nikita," which ran from 1997-2001, and served as producer or wrote episodes for "The Equalizer," "Miami Vice," "Nowhere Man" and "Wiseguy."
"This is an original concept that both UA and I feel will have an impact creatively and commercially," Surnow said.

After directing "The Mask of Zorro" and "The Legend of Zorro," Campbell showed his spy thriller acumen by directing "GoldenEye," and then "Casino Royale," the film that transitioned the James Bond franchise to Daniel Craig.

Campbell will next direct "Edge of Darkness," a drama starring Mel Gibson (Daily Variety, April 29). That film, based on a BBC miniseries that Campbell directed in 1985, is being financed and produced by Graham King's GK Films.

The new project gives UA two plum commercial projects, the other being "Champions," an adaptation of the '60s British TV adventure series that had Guillermo del Toro attached. The helmer will likely have to be replaced, after committing to four years in New Zealand making two films based on J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit." UA parent MGM shares "The Hobbit" with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros.

Slashfilms...
http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/04/30/mission-impossible-4/

Mission: Impossible 4?
Posted on Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 at 2:18 am by: Peter Sciretta


Coming off the box office blunder Lions for Lambs, and looking towards a potential disaster with Valkyrie, Tom Cruise needs another big hit, and he needs it soon. Everyone in Hollywood pretty much assumes that Cruise will push another Mission: Impossible film into production before the release of Bryan Singer’s historical thriller early next year.


Now an insider pretty much confirms our suspicions, telling Life & Style Magazine, “Tom will make M:I 4 once Paramount greenlights the script. There will most definitely be another Mission: Impossible!”
When in the middle of a big career backlash, why choose edgy challenging (read: risky) films when you have a popular action franchise in your back pocket. Plus, foreign markets still love both Cruise and American action movies.

Two different ventures? Coincidence?
I guess we'll see.

 

[Jspider13]

didn't paramount give cruise the boot?

 

[green]

There have been reports of Cruise and Redstone meeting lately.

 

[Darth Elektra]

I'm up for a MI:4!

 

[Dark Donnie]

There have been reports of Cruise and Redstone meeting lately.

Yeah I read about those last week, meetings were confimed.

 

[Prison Mike]

I thought he got married in MI:3. How can he go back since they already did that in the third one? They're just rehashing the same old formula.

 

[Ender Durden]

i swear i heard somewhere that Brad Pitt was going to be the next star, with Cruise producing.

or maybe i didnt, i forget

 

[JaD]

I'm up for it. M:I III was the best one out of them

 

[fabman]

I think Brian DePalma's first was the best...

 

[Prison Mike]

yeah the first was the best, then the third one. The second one was just terrible IMO.

 

[BatJeff7786]

I dunno. The way they ended the third one seemed kinda like it was the last one. I mean, he was on the verge of retiring and he got married. No real sense for Ethan Hunt to keep going. (Unless it's a supporting role and there's "new blood" this time around.)

 

[Gotham]

I loved MI:III, but didn't the third disappoint at the box-office?

 

[Gamma Ray]

I'm in for a quality Cruise movie... Been a while.

 

[the_icon_007]

i swear i heard somewhere that Brad Pitt was going to be the next star, with Cruise producing.

or maybe i didnt, i forget

I read the same thing. Brad Pitt was to take over and Tom Cruise was to be the Peter Graves-type character ("Your mission, if you choose to accept it...").

You're not crazy, I remember it too because everyone was so excited after seeing Mr. & Mrs Smith.

 

[Gotham]

I read the same thing. Brad Pitt was to take over and Tom Cruise was to be the Peter Graves-type character ("Your mission, if you choose to accept it...").

You're not crazy, I remember it too because everyone was so excited after seeing Mr. & Mrs Smith.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14911726/

Never knew they considered him.

 

[Sava]

i'd love it, MI3 was great, these guys know what they are doing, Cruise plus M:I in style of 24 should kick a$$

 

[Gotham]

i'd love it, MI3 was great, these guys know what they are doing, Cruise plus M:I in style of 24 should kick a$$

Are we sure that this is an M:I film?

 

[Kevin Roegele]

i swear i heard somewhere that Brad Pitt was going to be the next star, with Cruise producing.

or maybe i didnt, i forget

That was just a ridiculous rumour because Cruise was at a (relatively) low point at the time, he was tabloid newspaper enemy number one.

Cruise OWNS the rights to the Mission Impossible franchise. No-one can sack him.

 

[Kevin Roegele]

i swear i heard somewhere that Brad Pitt was going to be the next star, with Cruise producing.

or maybe i didnt, i forget

i swear i heard somewhere that Brad Pitt was going to be the next star, with Cruise producing.

or maybe i didnt, i forget

That was just a ridiculous rumour because Cruise was at a (relatively) low point at the time, he was tabloid newspaper enemy number one.

Cruise OWNS the rights to the Mission Impossible franchise. No-one can sack him.

 

[Sava]

Are we sure that this is an M:I film?

no, just a guess.

 

[Erzengel]

I haven't even seen MI:3 yet. Probably won't see MI:4 either.

 

[Movies205]

I love cruise but the mission impossible movies have always been surprisingly mediocre

 

[Sebastos]

I'm up for a fourth.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Hmmmmmm interesting developments. I love the Mission Impossible movies and i thought the third was the best, so I'm all for this.

 

[bullets]

i really enjoyed mission impossible 3 . i would like to see it more focused on a team . i thought the second mission impossible was a disaster.