Still cruising: Tom Cruise premieres new Mission: Impossible adventure in Abu Dhabi

“I’m a cinephile, and I love cinema and the history of cinema and the evolution of this art form,” Cruise told The Associated Press on the red carpet. “I don’t know if the audience will accept (the first Mission: Impossible movie), it’s the first movie I’ve ever made, and I’m doing it because I want to challenge myself in a lot of ways as an actor, as a producer, as a A storyteller.”

“Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1,” the seventh installment in the $3.5 billion blockbuster franchise, features action-packed action sequences and daring stunts performed by 60-year-old Cruise himself and famous.

“We had a lot of fun in these moments,” Cruise said.

The Mission: Impossible series follows the globe-trotting adventures of Ethan Hunt, a special agent of the Impossible Mission Force (IMF), conducting high-stakes covert operations. Imagine a hunt of heart-pounding action, intricate gadgets and Cruise performing deadly stunts at every turn.

Fitting with the current theme, Hunt and his IMF team are tasked with tracking down a powerful new AI weapon in Mission: Impossible – Dead reckoning part one. Scenes include parachuting off a cliff on a motorcycle, throwing a steam train off an exploding bridge, and drifting a yellow Fiat 500 through the winding streets of Rome.

In homage to the local setting, the film incorporates several action scenes from Abu Dhabi. Liwa’s desert landscape, known as “the open place,” sets the stage for intense horseback chases and gunfights. In another scene, Cruise runs across the dune-shaped roof of Abu Dhabi International Airport’s new midfield terminal.

“When you see us shooting a scene in Abu Dhabi, it’s about that culture, that country, and that’s why we keep coming back here,” said Christopher McQuarrie, third Returning to the spy franchise for the first time as a high-octane director.

McQuarrie joined Cruise on the red carpet, along with other new and returning cast members of “Mission: Impossible.” Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff make their series debuts, while Simon Pegg reprises his role as Benji Dunn, a character known for injecting comedy into some of the series’ most tense scenes.