Impossible Missions Force

Lore & Background

In *Mission: Impossible – Fallout*, the IMF is a small, elite team operating under the authority of Secretary Alan Hunley, a former CIA director who took the helm after the events of *Rogue Nation*. The team consists of field agent Ethan Hunt, computer hacker Luther Stickell, and technician Benji Dunn. They are tasked with preventing a nuclear attack by the Apostles, a terror-for-hire group, and their leader, Solomon Lane. The IMF's methods are improvisational and high-risk, as seen when Ethan chooses to save Luther instead of securing plutonium cores in Berlin. The team operates with minimal oversight, often clashing with other agencies like the CIA, whose director, Erika Sloane, insists on embedding her agent, August Walker, with the team. The IMF's loyalty is to the mission and to each other, as demonstrated when Hunley defends the team against accusations that Ethan is the real John Lark. The film ends with Sloane praising Ethan for caring about every individual life, highlighting the IMF's core value of protecting the innocent.

In Their Own Story

Two years after capturing rogue British agent Solomon Lane, Ethan Hunt and his IMF team—Luther Stickell and Benji Dunn—are tasked with recovering three plutonium cores stolen by the Apostles, a terror-for-hire group. The mission goes wrong in Berlin when Ethan chooses to save Luther, allowing the Apostles to escape with the cores. The CIA, under Director Erika Sloane, forces agent August Walker onto the team. In Paris, Ethan and Walker infiltrate a nightclub to intercept a plutonium sale. MI6 agent Ilsa Faust kills a man she believes is John Lark, the extremist buyer. Ethan assumes Lark's identity to meet arms broker Alanna Mitsopolis, who gives him one core and demands he free Lane from a police convoy. Ethan deviates from the plan, crashing the truck carrying Lane into the Seine to protect the police. The team brings Lane to London for an exchange, but Walker is revealed to be the real John Lark. Walker kills Hunley and escapes with Lane. The team tracks them to a medical camp in Kashmir, where Lane has planted two nuclear bombs. Ethan hijacks a helicopter, crashes it into Walker's, and kills Walker by impaling him with a cargo hook. Ethan disarms the detonator, and Sloane has Lane returned to MI6, freeing Ilsa. Ethan apologizes to his ex-wife Julia for the danger he put her in, and she expresses gratitude for his efforts to safeguard the world.

Reader's Guide

The Impossible Missions Force in *Mission: Impossible – Fallout* is a small, deniable team operating under the IMF Secretary Alan Hunley. The team's primary goal is to prevent a nuclear attack by the Apostles and their leader, Solomon Lane. Key operatives include Ethan Hunt (field agent), Luther Stickell (computer hacker), and Benji Dunn (technician). The team often works with MI6 agent Ilsa Faust. The IMF's methods are improvisational and high-risk, as seen when Ethan deviates from the plan to save a police convoy. The team faces opposition from the CIA, which embeds agent August Walker to monitor them. The IMF's success depends on the loyalty and sacrifice of its members, as demonstrated when Hunley dies defending the team. The film's climax involves the team working together to defuse two nuclear bombs in Kashmir, with Ethan ultimately disarming the detonator after a helicopter chase. The IMF's impact is profound yet unseen, as Sloane's narration praises Ethan for caring about every individual life.

Did You Know?

• The IMF in *Fallout* is led by Secretary Alan Hunley, a former CIA director who became the IMF Secretary after *Rogue Nation*.
• The film's script was based on a 33-page early outline or treatment, not the final shooting script.
• Tom Cruise broke his ankle during a stunt, delaying filming for several months and inflating the budget.
• The film's climax was set in Kashmir, near the Siachen Glacier, where the Apostles orchestrated a nuclear detonation, using a measles outbreak as a cover story.
• *Fallout* grossed $791.1 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film in the *Mission: Impossible* series.