Nicholas Hoult Lost Roles in ‘The Batman,’ ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ All in a Row: ‘I Got the Call From Tom Cruise’
variety.comZack Sharf Digital News Director What’s it like turning down Tom Cruise? Just ask Nicholas Hoult. In a new interview with The Guardian, the “Mad Max: Fury Road” and “The Menu” star revealed that Cruise personally called him to join the “Mission: Impossible” franchise for its two-part finale, which will kick off this summer with the seventh installment, “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.” Hoult accepted the role, which reports claimed was a huge one as it was the finale’s main villain.
Hoult was cast in “Mission: Impossible 7” in January 2020, but by May 2020 he was exiting the movie and being replaced by Esai Morales.
According to Hoult, his contractual obligation to his Hulu period comedy “The Great” got in the way of him joining the “Mission: Impossible” franchise.
Perhaps it wouldn’t have been such a gut-punch had Hoult not been coming off two rejections from other major Hollywood franchises. “I screen-tested for ‘Batman’ and didn’t get it,” Hoult said. “Screen-tested for ‘Top Gun,’ didn’t get it.
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