Tom Cruise ‘passed out’ filming intense stunt in new Mission: Impossible movie

The stunts on Tom Cruise’s new Mission: Impossible movie are so intense that the actor says one caused him to pass out.

Tom Cruise isn’t one to do things halfway.

The actor spoke to Empire about filming the latest Mission: Impossible instalment, The Final Reckoning, which is set to be released in cinemas this May.

During the interview, he revealed just how intense some of his stunts in the movie were to film.

In one scene, shown on the cover of Empire, Cruise can be seen holding onto a 1930s biplane as it flies through the air. True to Cruise’s typical style, he filmed the scene himself.

“When you stick your face out, going over 120 to 130 miles an hour [193km/h to 210km/h], you’re not getting oxygen,” he explained about the scene.

Tom Cruise “passed out” filming new Mission: Impossible movie scenes. Pictures: Paramount Pictures

In the upcoming film, Cruise does his own stunts on a 1930s biplane. Picture: SPLASH / BACKGRID

“So I had to train myself how to breathe. There were times I would pass out physically; I was unable to get back into the cockpit.”

Christopher McQuarrie, who wrote and directed the film along with the previous three Mission: Impossible films, also spoke to Empire, claiming that the work Cruise did for the upcoming movie was remarkable.

“There are stunts in this movie that will melt your brain,” McQuarrie said. “There would be a day in Africa – any day in Africa – where Tom would go out and do something that topped anything he had ever done before.”

Cruise recounts his daring stunts in a new interview with Empire magazine, which features him mid-stunt on the cover. Picture: Empire

Cruise with Mission: Impossible director Christopher McQuarrie. Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures

He teased another dramatic moment in the film, not giving any details besides saying, “I truly want to puke thinking about the stress. It was intense.”

An earlier stunt, one from 2018’s Mission: Impossible – Fallout, also caused issues with Cruise’s breathing – a stunt known as the HALO jump.

Usually conducted by military special forces, HALO stands for “high altitude, low opening.” During the parachute jump, an individual jumps out of a plane at an extremely high altitude, usually 25,000 to 40,000 feet, and doesn’t open their parachute until they’re about 800 feet from the ground. According to the National Air and Space Museum, an average skydiver will only go up to 15,000 feet and deploy their parachute at 3,000 feet.

Cruise performing a stunt on Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One. Picture: Paramount Pictures

The actor has played Ethan Hunt in all seven films, with the eighth instalment, The Final Reckoning, premiering in May. Picture: Paramount Pictures

One of the biggest concerns about the stunt was the possibility of losing oxygen when jumping from such a height. According to The Hollywood Reporter, a special helmet was made to allow Cruise to execute the stunt, which also acted as an oxygen mask and a windshield to protect his face.

“The aircraft is going between these C-17s between 160 and 200 miles an hour [260 km/h to 320 km/h], so at that level of turbulence, we had to find a way to exit the aircraft,” Cruise said in a behind-the-scenes feature for the movie.

“Then it was, we only got one take a day. I spent the whole day training and at night we would get that one take, and if there was one mistake, that was it, the take was gone.”

This article originally appeared in Fox News and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Tom Cruise ‘passed out’ filming intense stunt in new Mission: Impossible movie