'Mission Impossible 7': Replacement Of Villain As Nicholas Hoult Goes Out & Esai Morales Comes In

Actor Esai Morales will be the latest bad man in the Mission Impossible series where he will be replacing Nicholas Hoult as the villain in the film. 

Hoult, whose exact role in the film was unknown, had to depart due to scheduling concerns. Mission: Impossible closed down production in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Though it’s unclear when filming will be able to resume, the delay will put Hoult in conflict with a prior obligation, shooting Hulu’s second season of “The Great.” This kind of overlap is likely to affect more productions as Hollywood waits to reopen.

Skydance is co-producing the film.

Cruise is reprising his role as the seemingly indestructible globe-trotting secret agent Ethan Hunt in the seventh and eighth follow-ups. Christopher McQuarrie will write and direct both, which will be shot back-to-back.

Paramount recently pushed back the release date of the seventh installment, which will now debut Nov. 19, 2021. The eighth entry has also been delayed and will hit the big screen on Nov. 4, 2022.

Ving Rhames, Henry Czerny, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Vanessa Kirby are all returning for Mission: Impossible 7, while Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, and Shea Whigham have joined the cast.