Now’s a good time to crack a joke about how if you want something done right, you’d better call Tom Cruise, because no other man (or woman) is up for the task.
A couple of weeks ago, a massive fire broke out on the set of Mission: Impossible 7, currently shooting at an abandoned airbase in Oxfordshire, UK. During a trial run for what is said to be the most expensive stunt sequence ever filmed in the country, a dirtbike exploded upon landing and nearly set the entire set ablaze.
It all went down without a glitch with Tom Cruise in the saddle, as the video below can confirm. The Daily Mail says that the stunt sequence is believed to cost somewhere around £2 million (roughly $2.6 million) and sees Cruise and stuntmen run down the 650-foot (198-meter) ramp before being launched in the air at 500 feet (152 meters).
The stunt performed by Cruise in the video below is the same one that the professional stuntman tried to do earlier this month. His bike should have landed on the ground, while he fell on cardboard pillows. The bike ended right next to him and caught fire, which, in turn, ignited the cardboard.
Cruise didn’t have such issues, as both he and the bike were secured by wires. For a little taste of behind-the-scenes movie magic, the video below will give you it: it shows Cruise speeding down the ramp before launching in the air. Both the actor and the bike are then hoisted up by the wiring and presumably brought down to safety.
As per the same media outlet, this will be the last time Cruise will be doing such dangerous stunts, as he’s set some sort of deadline for himself: no more life-risking stunts after the age of 60. Tom is 58 as of the time of writing and shooting for MI7 is still underway, which would mean (if the rumor is accurate) he won’t have time to do any more stunts in his next movie.
So let’s enjoy it while it lasts because, apparently, no one is quite as good at it as Tom Cruise is.
It all went down without a glitch with Tom Cruise in the saddle, as the video below can confirm. The Daily Mail says that the stunt sequence is believed to cost somewhere around £2 million (roughly $2.6 million) and sees Cruise and stuntmen run down the 650-foot (198-meter) ramp before being launched in the air at 500 feet (152 meters).
The stunt performed by Cruise in the video below is the same one that the professional stuntman tried to do earlier this month. His bike should have landed on the ground, while he fell on cardboard pillows. The bike ended right next to him and caught fire, which, in turn, ignited the cardboard.
Cruise didn’t have such issues, as both he and the bike were secured by wires. For a little taste of behind-the-scenes movie magic, the video below will give you it: it shows Cruise speeding down the ramp before launching in the air. Both the actor and the bike are then hoisted up by the wiring and presumably brought down to safety.
As per the same media outlet, this will be the last time Cruise will be doing such dangerous stunts, as he’s set some sort of deadline for himself: no more life-risking stunts after the age of 60. Tom is 58 as of the time of writing and shooting for MI7 is still underway, which would mean (if the rumor is accurate) he won’t have time to do any more stunts in his next movie.
So let’s enjoy it while it lasts because, apparently, no one is quite as good at it as Tom Cruise is.