Tom Cruise has partnered up with Elon Musk and NASA to film the first Hollywood blockbuster in outer space. We have so many questions.
Tom Cruise is clearly a man who loves to take on a challenge. The Hollywood veteran, 57, is known for his tendency to push the boundaries of what is expected of actors. For his wildly popular Mission: Impossible films, we’ve seen him leap between buildings, scale the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, and even strap himself to a damn plane. Why? Well, because why not. I told you the man likes a challenge.
But boy, this latest one is on a whole new level. I mean that literally, because the man’s next ‘mission’ will be to film a movie, in… outer space.
Deadline first announced the news that the actor had partnered up with tech entrepreneur Elon Musk to produce a movie that will be filmed outside the Earth’s atmosphere, with Musk’s SpaceX venture attached to the project. It will mark the first film to be filmed outside the planet, and of course, Cruise will also be the first A-list actor to appear in such a film.
Jim Bridenstine, NASA Administrator, confirmed the news in a tweet:
“NASA is excited to work with Tom Cruise on a film aboard the Space Station. We need popular media to inspire a new generation of engineers and scientists to make NASA’s ambitious plans a reality.”
Few details are known about the film as of yet, but it’s been said that it’s an action adventure, and is not another installment in the Mission: Impossible franchise. We do know that filming will take place aboard the International Space Station, but it’s not clear on how Cruise and the film’s crew members will travel there or how long they’ll spend up there.
It’s a project that is still in early talks, but naturally, there are a lot of questions that one would have about it. The costs of getting Cruise and the crew members onto the Space Station will be through the roof, so my first question is how they’re possibly going to make it all back at the box office. Then there’s the question of how long it will take Cruise to train to like, go out of the freaking planet. He’ll have to learn how to use a spacesuit, adjust to zero gravity, use the bathroom, and so on. Oh, the crew members too.
My guess is that only a small portion of the film will be shot in space, because that’s the only logical explanation I can give myself about the whole thing. But the thing I find most interesting is that they’d actually go to such an effort. It’s an ambitious project, no doubt about it. But we’ve seen some amazing outer space movies like Interstellar, The Martian, even Guardians of the Galaxy, that have all proven the worth of modern CGI in creating a groundbreaking film. So, what’s the point in actually filming on-location in space?
Then again, it’s definitely a great way to attract publicity and build anticipation for the film: the first movie to be filmed in outer space, with none other than Tom Cruise in the lead role. After all, Cruise has proven himself to be an insanely confident actor and stuntman, so props to him and his crazy work. He sure knows how to get people talking about him.
Of course, we’ll get more answers to the project over time. And if this surreal project actually goes forward, well, I can’t say I’m not going to watch it.
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