PICTURE EXCLUSIVE: Tom Cruise shoots high-octane opening scenes for Mission: Impossible 7 as he performs stunts on a motorbike and drives a smoking car… after coronavirus forced production to relocate from Italy to the UK
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Tom Cruise is fully back to work on production of Mission: Impossible 7 after the blockbuster was forced to halt production in Italy and relocate to the UK due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
The Hollywood star, 57, was seen doing his own stunts in Dunsfold in Surrey, England, at a test track previously used for BBC motoring show Top Gear.
The actor donned protective gear to perform stunts on a motorbike before getting behind the wheel of a car and speeding it around the tarmac, smoke billowing from it as he went.
Seventh gear! Tom Cruise is fully back to work on production of Mission: Impossible 7 after the blockbuster was forced to halt production in Italy and relocate to the UK due to the global coronavirus pandemic
Back to work: The Hollywood star, 57, was seen doing his own stunts in Surrey, England, at a test track previously used for BBC motoring show Top Gear
Well-equipped: The actor donned protective gear to perform stunts on a motorbike; he also seemed in high spirits as he got to work
Cruise was seen performing a wheely on the bike, clad in a black bomber jacket and crash helmet.
He seemed in high spirits as he straddled the bike and chatted to a member of the crew, as he waited to take to the tarmac for the dramatic sequence.
For the car, he donned a beanie hat, and was seen in the driver’s seat with another man, in blue.
He stepped out in a black top, jeans and aviator shades as he made his way from vehicle to vehicle.
Geared up: Cruise was clad in a black bomber jacket and crash helmet for the bike scenes
Ready, set, cruise: For the car, he donned a beanie hat, and was seen in the driver’s seat with another man, in blue
Loving it: He stepped out in a black top, jeans and aviator shades as he made his way from vehicle to vehicle
Test track: The crew were on location at Top Gear’s old track in Dunsfold
Wheely great! Cruise was seen performing a wheely on the bike as he raced along the concrete
Own stunts: Cruise – who has fronted all six, and now the seventh, Mission: Impossible films, has always performed his own stunts
In February Cruise was forced to hole up in a luxury hotel in Venice after the filming of Mission: Impossible 7 was halted after the outbreak of coronavirus in Italy.
The actor had been due to begin filming in some of the most picturesque and popular parts of the floating city but production was put in limbo after authorities put a total lockdown in place in order to stop further spread of the deadly disease.
It is likely that Cruise and his co-stars have relocated to Buckinghamshire’s Pinewood Studios following the disruption.
Disruption: In February Cruise was forced to hole up in a luxury hotel in Venice after the filming of Mission: Impossible 7 was halted after an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy
Setback: Mission: Impossible 7, which will be directed by Christopher McQuarrie, is set for a summer 2021 release, but the halt on filming could delay the release
He’s off: The actor offered one more wave before climbing into the helicopter ahead of his journey on Thursday morning
When asked whether he was shooting the franchise’s seventh installment, co-star Simon Pegg told BBC Radio 6: ‘[We’re] not in Venice, that’s where I’m supposed to be.
‘Paramount were very cautious and sensible I think and pulled the production out of Venice.
‘It’s a big group of people, we were shooting carnival sequences and it was just unwise to remain so we bugged out.
‘I think it would be indelicate to complain about anything other than the fact that there was a lot of disruption for everyone.’
Mission: Impossible 7, which will be directed by Christopher McQuarrie, is set for a summer 2021 release, but the halt on filming could delay the release.