Tom Cruise spotted on Mission: Impossible 8 set in South Africa

Tom Cruise looked much more like himself on the set of Mission: Impossible 8, after stunning fans with his unrecognisable appearance last year.

Tom Cruise offered a very warm welcome to fans as he wrapped filming for the day on the set of the new Mission: Impossible movie in South Africa recently.

The Hollywood star, 59, looked remarkably youthful as he waved and smiled to waiting onlookers in Kruger National Park where production for the film has been taking place.

Cruise is reportedly staying in the nearby town of Hoedspruit, Limpopo, near the border with Mozambique.

Filming on the eighth instalment of the iconic action franchise has been under way since late last year, kicking off just weeks after the cast and crew wrapped on Mission: Impossible 7.

Cruise is once again reprising the lead role of Ethan Hunt, and told photographers that he’d love to explore the area in which they’re filming on a safari, but has been working “seven days a week”.

He’s also reportedly learned to fly a World War II military plane for the latest chapter.

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The star had a friendly greeting for fans. Picture: Jannie Nikola Photography/Mega

He’s been working around-the-clock on the new production. Picture: Jannie Nikola Photography/Mega

A source from the set told The Sun: “Tom had started to learn to fly a Boeing Stearman biplane earlier this year for a major stunt scene in Mission: Impossible 8.

“It’s obviously a highly skilled task but as usual he has no plans to cut any corners or bring in a stuntman.”

Cruise wore a big grin as he headed over to his helicopter. Picture: Jannie Nikola Photography/Mega

The insider continued: “Filming has only just wrapped on Mission: Impossible 7 but Tom has not given himself a break.

“And trying to film jaw-dropping scenes with an 80-year-old plane is particularly dangerous.”

Production has been hit with multiple delays and extra costs due to the ongoing pandemic. Picture: Jannie Nikola Photography/Mega

Cruise looked more like himself in his latest outing after leaving fans shocked with his appearance at an LA Dodgers baseball game in San Francisco late last year.

Photographed watching the game alongside his son, he looked noticeably different as he appeared more “puffy” than his Top Gun days.

Fans speculated that the actor had either “gained weight or has a face full of fillers” after the “bloated” photographs spread via social media.

The pictures were shared widely on social media. Picture: Twitter

Back in September, Cruise and his film crew were seen celebrating after they had wrapped up shooting Mission: Impossible’s seventh movie.

Due to the pandemic, filming was fraught with setbacks including multiple Covid outbreaks on set, causing the production to be shut down for weeks at a time.

Mission: Impossible 7 is set for release on July 7, 2023 while the eighth instalment is marked for July 24, 2024.

– with The Sun