Tom Cruise gets emotional as Mission: Impossible The Final Reckoning receives five-minute standing ovation at Cannes: ‘The big-screen experience is why we do it’

Standing ovation at @festivaldecannes for #MissionImpossible – The Final Reckoning! #Cannes2025 pic.twitter.com/bzBHLlSYQm

— Mission: Impossible (@MissionFilm) May 15, 2025

Following the screening, both Tom and McQuarrie delivered heartfelt speeches, expressing deep gratitude to fans and collaborators. “This response is why we do it. You are why we do it. The big screen experience is why we do it,” Tom said. He then turned to McQuarrie, adding, “Grateful for my friend every step of the way — what you’ve done, how you’ve expanded it, how we just went beyond our expectations. Your absolute care, your talent. You’re an amazing human being. It’s been a real privilege, a real pleasure, and I look forward to making a bunch of other kinds of movies with you.”

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McQuarrie echoed the sentiment, praising the cast and crew’s resilience: “I want to thank this extraordinary cast. It wasn’t just showing up to work every day. This film was made during a pandemic and through two industry strikes. These two films were made over a period of seven years, amid great uncertainty and long gaps. Their faith, dedication, and unquestioning devotion made it possible. This is the most extraordinary cast in the world.”

Here’s Tom Cruise taking in the (still going) MISSION IMPOSSIBLE standing ovation at Cannes pic.twitter.com/IiMkNFBdLV

— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) May 14, 2025

Mission Impossible The Final Reckoning review

International critics have begun weighing in. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian awarded the film a glowing five out of five stars, calling it “world-saving Tom Cruise signs off with a wildly entertaining adventure.” The New York Times described it as “Tom Cruise defies all,” while Variety praised it as “Tom cruise flies high in a thrillingly doom-laden series grand finale.” However, not all reviews have been unanimously positive. The BBC criticized the film as “a miserable, apocalyptic tract,” while some fans on social media have described it as a “mixed bag,” citing heavy exposition and uneven pacing.