Mission Impossible 6: Christopher McQuarrie confirms he will direct Tom Cruise in action sequel

Christopher McQuarrie is set to return to the Mission: Impossible franchise for its sixth instalment, after his impressive stint at directing this year's popular sequel Rogue Nation. Unsurprisingly, Tom Cruise will be reprising his role as super-skilled secret agent Ethan Hunt and will likely be joined in the movie by M:I veterans Simon Pegg and Jeremy Renner.

There have been no updates as to whether Rogue Nation cast member Rebecca Ferguson will star again as British Intelligence agent Ilsa Faust, even though she was a firm fan favourite in the previous film.

McQuarrie confirmed his involvement on his personal Twitter account, somewhat cryptically writing: "Mission: Accepted #MI6." According to The Hollywood Reporter, he will write, direct and produce, as he did for the fifth instalment.

His return is likely down to the fact that Rogue Nation fared so well at the box office, making $682.3 million (£452m) worldwide to date. Paramount Pictures is set to finance the sequel, with Cruise acting as producer alongside Bad Robot's JJ Abrams and Skydance Production's David Ellison and Dana Goldberg.

The 47-year-old is fast becoming a well sought-after name when it comes to making action movies on, in particular thanks to his recent successes Rogue Nation and 2014's Edge Of Tomorrow, also starring Crusie. While he may not have directed the latter, McQuarrie co-wrote the screenplay with Jez Butterworth and John-Henry Butterworth.

Edge Of Tomorrow was well received by critics but it was its passionate slow-burning almost cult-like following that rendered it one of the biggest films of the year.

McQuarrie's previous writing credits include: Valkyrie and Jack Reacher, both of which also starred Cruise: The Tourist, with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie; and 1995's The Usual Suspects, for which he won an Oscar for his original screenplay.

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