Henry Czerny received a mission from filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie and chose to accept it.
That mission? Return as former IMF chief Eugene Kittridge in “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” 27 years after he first appeared in the original “Mission: Impossible” in 1996.
At the “Dead Reckoning” premiere in New York, Czerny said when he first got the call about returning to the “Mission: Impossible” world, he didn’t believe it.
“I think it’s a joke at first because my reps called me and said they want to bring Kittridge back and I’m in the middle of doing my errands in Los Angeles and fighting traffic or shredding old tax documents,” he told Variety. “I think, ‘Okay, what’s going on really?’ They say, ‘Chris McQuarrie wants to talk to you about bringing Kittridge back,’ and I take it seriously. Two days later, I’m on a call with Chris McQuarrie.”
Czerny revealed that that McQuarrie, who began writing and directing the series with 2015’s “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” originally wanted Kittridge back “a couple of installments ago.” In “Rogue Nation,” Alec Baldwin came onboard as Alan Hunley, the director of the CIA, who became Secretary of the Impossible Missions Force in 2018’s “Fallout.” Czerny wouldn’t reveal any of the previous plans for Kittridge’s original return, but said, “I’m thrilled that Alec came and did Hunley, that’s for sure. That was great, I love that.”
In “Dead Reckoning,” Kittridge is back, but this time as the new CIA director. He’s taking over from Angela Bassett’s Erika Sloane, who appears in a photograph in the opening scene with all the heads of national security. (Bassett was unavailable to return due to the COVID-19 production delays, and McQuarrie teased that she, like Czerny, might return: “Angela is too fabulous, you could never ever let Angela get away, so there’s always a plan in the future.”)
Just like the original “Mission: Impossible,” Kittridge is still causing problems for Tom Cruise‘s IMF agent Ethan Hunt. In that film, Kittridge believed Hunt, as the lone survivor of a setup that killed his entire IMF team, was the mole that the agency had been trying to track down and attempted to bring him in. Disavowed by the agency and with Kittridge on his heels, Hunt spends the duration of the film trying to complete the mission and clear his name.
In “Dead Reckoning,” Kittridge wants to control the “Entity,” an all-powerful AI algorithm that could bring the world to its knees, and orders Hunt to secure two halves of a key that will unlock it. But Hunt realizes the Entity is too much for one government organization to handle, so he disobeys commands and crosses the globe to retrieve the keys to secure it himself.
The chase for the keys brings Hunt, Kittridge and the rest of the “Dead Reckoning” cast aboard a train in a thrillingly destructive third act. Fans of the original “Mission: Impossible” will remember the finale of the first movie also took place on a train (and one ill-fated helicopter).
“There are a whole bunch of Easter eggs for people if they’re interested,” Czerny said. “The last time you see him in the first one, he’s on a train, and this one you see him on a train as well with another Vanessa, Redgrave and Vanessa Kirby.”
In the first “Mission: Impossible,” Vanessa Redgrave played Max Mitsopolis, a black-market arms dealer who gave information to Hunt and was later apprehended by Kittridge. In “Fallout” and “Dead Reckoning,” Vanessa Kirby plays Alanna, Max’s daughter, who continues the family business.
In the 27 years between his “Mission: Impossible,” appearances, Czerny says the outrageous stunts have only gotten better and better.
“They’ve honed it down to what you have here, which is incredibly delicious,” he said. “Nothing is extraneous, and they know the craft so well. They know the franchise so very well. What you experience is a very tight, action-packed, heartfelt movie about friendship and what to do when you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place.”
Despite appearing in the start to the epic film franchise, Czerny revealed “Dead Reckoning Part One” is his new favorite entry. “Previous to this one, ‘Fallout’ was my favorite,” he said. “And, due respect to everyone in ‘Fallout,’ this eclipses it. It’s great.”
