Mission: Impossible 7 killed off a major character in a controversial move, but undoing their death in the sequel would ruin Tom Cruise’s franchise.
Calls for Ilsa Faust’s death in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One continues to mount, but that decision would ruin Tom Cruise’s movie franchise. The seventh entry in the action series marked the third consecutive appearance by Rebecca Ferguson as former MI6 agent Ilsa Faust since she debuted in Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation. It did not take long for her to become a standout character and be looked at as a possible franchise lead should Tom Cruise ever stop playing Ethan Hunt. This is why it was expected she’d have a major role in Mission: Impossible 7 and her place in future movies appeared secured.
Director Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise delivered a big surprise with Mission: Impossible 7’s Ilsa Faust death scene. Rebecca Ferguson’s character died fighting Gabriel and saving Grace from meeting that fate. The decision has elicited strong reactions from audiences who did not want to see Ilsa Faust’s time in the Mission: Impossible movies come to an end. That is why there has been some hope that the spy franchise known for delivering a few major twists will reveal in Mission: Impossible 8 that Ilsa is alive. As difficult as it might be to imagine the franchise without her, undoing Ilsa’s Mission: Impossible 7 death would be a mistake.
Mission: Impossible 8 Undoing Ilsa Faust’s Death Would Ruin The Franchise’s Stakes
One of the biggest issues with the idea that Mission: Impossible 8 should undo Ilsa Faust’s death is that it eliminates the fairly real stakes that the franchise currently operates with. While the movies lean into the spy elements and have fun with masks, the stories have always committed to having big stakes that last. These are not the Fast & Furious movies where people come back to life at a whim or a superhero franchise where magic, the multiverse, and other means can bring characters back. Retconning Ilsa Faust’s death in Mission: Impossible 7 to reveal that she was still alive would raise more questions than necessary.
No matter how Mission: Impossible 8 went about revealing that Ilsa was alive, it would open up a loophole for the franchise to have similarly confusing death retcons. Uncertainty about if Ethan Hunt’s original IMF team all died would begin to rise, while every other death from Alan Hunley to August Walker to Lindsey Ferris would also be called into question. It also would be poorly timed if Mission: Impossible 8 kills Ethan Hunt to end Tom Cruise’s time with the franchise. The stakes behind character deaths in the franchise would be eliminated from all previous and future movies with Ilsa’s revival.
Ilsa Faust’s Death Has To Stick For Dead Reckoning’s Story To Matter
The other issue with undoing Mission: Impossible 7’s Ilsa Faust death is that it would make the movie’s story worse. It becomes clear during the movie that someone is going to die as part of Ethan’s attempts to find Gabriel and get both halves of the Key that unlocks The Entity’s source code. The A.I.’s algorithms predict that either Grace or Ilsa will die once everyone gathers at the White Widow’s party as part of the overall plan. Grace originally looks to be the one who will die after she encounters Gabriel on her own. However, Ilsa manages to interfere and take Gabriel’s attention once The Entity takes Ethan off-course.
It is important that Ilsa chose to die saving Grace knowing full well that this could be the outcome of fighting Gabriel. If Mission: Impossible 8 revealed that Ilsa is alive, it would take away the impact of that decision and how it affects Ethan, Benji, and Luther. Gabriel killing Ilsa makes Ethan’s vendetta against the villain even greater in Mission: Impossible 7’s ending. It means that a lot of Ethan’s story is connected to Ilsa Faust dying, and the impact of that loss should last into the sequel. However, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning’s two-part story becomes less effective and coherent if Ilsa was alive.
Ilsa Faust Could Still Return In Mission: Impossible 8 Without Undoing Her Death
Mission: Impossible 8 should not revive Ilsa Faust for the sake of the franchise, but the good news is that Rebecca Ferguson could still return in the sequel without undoing the death scene. Mission: Impossible 7 briefly used flashbacks to explain parts of Ethan Hunt’s origin story and set up narrative threads that are likely to be explored further in the next installment. The decision to finally use flashbacks in a meaningful way in the Mission: Impossible franchise then could work in conjunction with Ilsa’s future. Mission: Impossible 8 could include more flashbacks to show Ilsa’s past, how she acquired half of the key, or explore her and Ethan’s relationship.
Flashbacks are the only realistic way for Ilsa Faust to return in Mission: Impossible 8. Of course, the sequel is not guaranteed to include her in this capacity just because it is an option. Rebecca Ferguson’s return will only happen if it is part of the overall story and whatever we learn about Ilsa factors into the current story. This could include details that make Ilsa Faust’s death in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One even more tragic and permanent. Even if that does not happen, Ilsa’s sacrifice is sure to be remembered throughout Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two.