Unlike most entries in the franchise, the seventh and eighthMission: Impossiblemovies were divided into two parts. It all began withMission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Onein 2023, and the sequel was simplified toMission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. Said sequel begins slightly after the first part, with the world in chaos after The Entity started stealing data.
With World War 3 looming ever closer, Ethan Hunt and his remaining IMF agents have to take charge and try to find peace among a gallery of opponents who want The Entity for themselves. As is the case in most entries,Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoningis full of choice quotes, so let’s get to them.
8“They Were Gonna Kill You.”
Ethan Hunt
One of the oddest and earliest scenes in the movie finds Ethan and Grace being captured by Gabriel. Gabriel wants the key to The Entity, and Ethan throws Gabriel for a loop by chomping down on a fake cyanide pill to stage an escape.
After rescuing Grace, the camera stays on her as grunts from the assailants and Ethan can be heard for at least a full minute. The camera then pans back to Ethan, who has his shirt torn, is bloody, and then he says this line as if to hide whatever atrocities he just committed to save Grace. It’s played for laughs as if Ethan went allJason fromFriday the 13thon these goons.
7“It’s My Name Now.”
Jasper Briggs
The capturing isn’t done yet because after a bomb goes off, Ethan is captured by Agent Briggs. On the plane ride to an unknown location, Ethan susses out that Jasper Briggs is not his real name. He’s actually the son of Jim Phelps, thevillain fromMission: Impossible, and Ethan thinks that maybe Jasper/Jim Jr. is in it for revenge.
Agent Briggs assures Ethan he has no ill feelings and that whatever his dad did is null and void because he has crafted a new legacy for his name, which is probably a feeling many Juniors have.
6“That’s Your Plan?!”
Admiral Neely
After getting the go-ahead from President Sloane, Ethan is taken to a naval ship where he meets Admiral Neely. He explains that he needs togo into Russian territoryto find a sub and dive into uncharted waters, which is the briefest summary possible.
His plan sounds wild to her, which is when she says this line in defense, as if to say it will never work. It shouldn’t, as most of Ethan’s plans never stay on track, and yet somehow Ethan and the IMF pull it off just like this plan inMission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.
5“If You Want To Poke The Bear, You’ve Come To The Right Sub.”
Captain Bledsoe
Severancefans will get a kickwhen they see Tramell Tillman playing Captain Bledsoe, who is in charge of the U.S. sub Admiral Neely sends Ethan to. He has to explain the plan again, and at first, Captain Bledsoe seems against it before he smiles and says this line.
It’s clear that this sub is full of rebels who like to get into danger and who would follow Captain Bledsoe to the ends of the Earth. Ethan would fit right in with them if he didn’t have more pressing matters to tend to, like training for one of the coldest submersions of his life.
4“Today…I Choose Not To Attack.”
President Sloane
One of the sweatiest scenes in the movie, literally, is when there are only about twenty minutes left before The Entity takes control of the global nuclear missile cache and turns the world ofMission: Impossible – The Final ReckoningintoaFalloutgame.
President Sloane is finally ready to put in codes for major cities around the world to stop their missiles from firing, to mitigate losses from billions to just millions. As she is about to press the button, she closes the lid much to her cabinet’s protest, and instead says this line as if to put all of her faith in Ethan.
3“Whatever You Do, Don’t…Cut The Red Wire.”
Benji Dunn
The team splits up three ways in the final confrontation. Benji, Grace, and Paris go into a server room within the Doomsday Vault to try and make a trap for The Entity. Normally, Benji would handle the programming as he isa gifted hacker.
The problem is Benji was shot, is bleeding profusely, and is on the verge of passing out, even after Paris patched him up. While he is explaining the trap setup to Grace instead, Benji does pass out for a second right before saying something critical about the last wire, which is funny but also nail-biting for the audience, as things are hectic.
2“Only One Of Us Has A Parachute!”
Gabriel
While Benji and his team are setting up the trap and Theo and his team are disarming a bomb, Ethan is chasing down Gabriel in a biplane. It’s one of the best stunt scenes in the series, which is visually fun to watch and anxiety-inducing.
After Ethan jumps onto Gabriel’s plane and breaks it, Gabriel says this line as he is about to escape, cackling like aSaturday Morning Cartoon villain. Unfortunately, Gabriel dies seconds later as he crashes his head on the plane’s tail, which is gruesome but also funny to see a villain die so abruptly.
1“I Knew You’d Find A Way, You Always Do.”
Luther Stickell
Surprise, Surprise,Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoningdoes not end in a nuclear explosion across the world. Benji’s team trapped The Entity, Theo’s team disarmed the bomb, and Ethan was able to upload the original Entity source code and survive.
What Ethan didn’t expect was that the virus Luther made for him had an MP3 message attached. It was a heartfelt goodbye from brother to brother, basically summarizing the entire franchise. No matter what pitfalls the team fell into, Ethan always got them out, and Luther never lost faith.
