Why Did Rebecca Ferguson Quit ‘Mission: Impossible’ Franchise?

Why exactly did Rebecca Ferguson quit the Mission: Impossible franchise?

The immensely talented actress is through appearing in films where Tom Cruise runs from things. Now she’s castmates with lovable Timothee Chalamet in Dennis Villeneuve’s Dune adaptations.

Sometimes, actors are just ready to move on. Other times, they have very specific reasons for exiting a lucrative franchise.

Rebecca Ferguson has a solid reason for why she quit Mission: Impossible. And it’s not one that fans might have guessed.

Rebecca Ferguson quit the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise

The gorgeous and talented Rebecca Ferguson has portrayed Ilsa Faust until 2023’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One killed off that character.

Sometimes, actors lament the deaths of their characters. Ferguson has a different take — and feels that it was a natural end for Faust.

Rebecca Ferguson explained why she quit Mission: Impossible in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

“And we were at that point. ‘Mission’ is such a huge dedication, and I’ve done it now, and it’s fantastic,” Ferguson assessed.

“And it’s amazing, and McQ [Christopher McQuarrie] and Tom wrote this incredible character,” she praised.

“There’s just that much you can do with a character, I find,” Ferguson explained. “And I’m entitled to my own opinion on this too.”

Rebecca Ferguson had her own ideas for her ‘Mission: Impossible’ character

“I want her to go rogue,” Ferguson expressed. “I’m interested in the dark side, I don’t want to be a team member, I’m not interested in that. And I felt like that was where we were headed.”

She also acknowledged that “It takes a long time to make ‘Mission’ too. It is blood, sweat and tears doing those.”

Ferguson went on to add: “Since I finished, I’ve done a TV show and two movies, and they’re still doing [the same] ‘Mission’ but, you never know.”

At the moment, Rebecca Ferguson is portrayed the Lady Jessica in Dune: Part Two.

That is a hefty role to fill, as Ferguson walks in the footsteps of Francesca Annis, Saskia Reeves, and Alice Krige who played the role in previous adaptations.

Watching your protagonist son become a genocidal god-emperor is a nuanced role. Ferguson, like her castmates, has done an exemplary job of portraying the character.

What total jerk YELLED at Rebecca Ferguson on set?

Meanwhile, Rebecca Ferguson recently opened up on the Reign With Josh Smith podcast about a toxic former costar. Someone with whom she will never work again.

“I did a film with an absolute idiot of a co-star and this human being was being so insecure and angry because this person couldn’t get the scenes out,” she described vaguely.

“And I think I was so vulnerable and uncomfortable that I got screamed at,” Ferguson recalled, “and I would cry walking off set.”

“This person would literally look at me in front of the whole crew and say, ‘You call yourself an actor? This is what I have to work with?’ I stood there just breaking,” Ferguson detailed.

She also added: “Because this person was number one on the call sheet, there was no safety net for me. No one had my back.”

According to Ferguson, she confronted the actor, suggesting that she act towards a tennis ball (a standard reference spot for CGI like the infamous The Good Wife bar scene)

Obviously, Ferguson did not choose to name the aggressor. Many people began pouring over her work history, keeping an eye out for big name leads.

Fans were quick to rule out Emily Blunt and Ewan McGregor, based upon her positive comments about them in the past.

Some speculated that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson might be the culprit; the wrestler-turned-actor has put out a statement expressing support for his 2014 costar, calling her his “guardian angel.” We don’t know, but the story is about Ferguson advocating for herself — not about the unnamed culprit.