Mission: Impossible (film)

Mission: Impossible is a 1996 American action spy film directed by Brian De Palma, and produced by and starring Tom Cruise from a screenplay by David Koepp and Robert Towne and story by Koepp and Steven Zaillian. A reboot of the 1966 television series of the same name and its 1988 sequel series, it is the first installment in the Mission: Impossible film series. It also stars Jon Voight, Henry Czerny, Emmanuelle Béart, Jean Reno, Ving Rhames, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Vanessa Redgrave. In the film, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) seeks to uncover who framed him for the murders of most of his Impossible Missions Force (IMF) team.

Numerous efforts by Paramount Pictures to create a film adaptation of the television series stalled until Cruise founded Cruise/Wagner Productions in 1992 and decided on Mission: Impossible as its inaugural project. Development initially began with filmmaker Sydney Pollack but most of the final screenplay was completed after De Palma, Steven Zaillian, David Koepp and Robert Towne were hired; De Palma also designed most of the action sequences, while Cruise did most of his own stunts. Principal photography began in March 1995 and lasted until that August, with filming locations including London, Pinewood Studios in England, and Prague (a rarity in Hollywood at the time).

Mission: Impossible was theatrically released in the United States by Paramount on May 22, 1996. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for the action sequences, De Palma's direction and Cruise's performance, but criticism for a convoluted plot. The film grossed $457.7 million worldwide, making it the third-highest-grossing film of 1996, while the dance rendition of the original theme song by Larry Mullen Jr. and Adam Clayton became a top-ten hit internationally and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. The film's success led to a long-running film franchise, beginning with Mission: Impossible 2, released four years later in 2000.