Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning actor Greg Tarzan Davis speaks about what he has learned from Tom Cruise over the years. Following up 2023’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, The Final Reckoning is slated to be the last installment in the Ethan Hunt-led franchise. It is set for release on May 23, heading into Memorial Day weekend, where it will face off against the Disney live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch. In addition to Davis and Cruise, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning features a leading cast including Simon Pegg, Hayley Atwell, and Ving Rhames.
In an interview with ScreenRant, Davis reveals the main lessons he has learned from Cruise during his time working on the franchise. Davis started by speaking about his Mission: Impossible character, Degas, who is “the first character to actually openly question if Ethan’s actually doing the right thing.” He compared this thought process to how he and Cruise approach real life. Davis said that he “align[s] with” how Cruise thinks about “learn[ing] storytelling.” Check out the full quote from Davis below:
ScreenRant: The Final Reckoning is your third film with Tom Cruise, and hopefully, there will be a fourth with Top Gun 3. How has your partnership with him evolved from your first collaboration to this film?
Greg Tarzan Davis: It’s kind of cool to sit there and think about how Degas and Ethan are similar characters. He thinks the way Ethan thinks, as far as caring for people and, “Am I making the right choice?”
In Dead Reckoning, we see him question that like, “Yo, we doing this or not? I don’t really know, you hear me?” But he’s the first character to actually openly question if Ethan’s actually doing the right thing. Then in Final Reckoning, we see him actually team up with Ethan, and he’s on the right side.
I think Tom and I, in real life, just question things too. I’m like, “Okay, how should you do this or how should you do that?” And what Tom does in real life, I align with it. If I want to learn storytelling, then this is how I should probably be learning. If I want to be a movie star, this is what I should be doing. If I want to be a better human being, this is what I should probably be doing. I think art imitates life in that regard.
What This Means For Mission: Impossible
Degas Will Have Character Growth
Davis made his Mission: Impossible debut in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, but that was actually his second time working with Cruise. The actors’ first collaboration was in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, where Davis played Lt. Javy ‘Coyote’ Machado. At 31 years old, Davis is still up-and-coming in his career, so it makes sense why he would turn to Cruise for guidance on how to approach storytelling and life. Cruise is an influential person to work with so early on in one’s career, and Davis was lucky enough to get to do it three times.
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Mission: Impossible 8 – Release Date, Cast, Story, Trailer & Everything We Know About The Final Reckoning
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As for his character details themselves, Davis points out an interesting element of Degas. In general, many characters in the Mission: Impossible franchise have been unquestioningly supportive of Ethan, even if his plans might be crazy. Degas, however, is a CIA agent who thinks critically about Hunt’s actions and motives. Given this background, it will be interesting to see Degas evolve in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, where audiences will “see him actually team up with Ethan.”
Our Take On Greg Tarzan Davis’ Work With Tom Cruise
How Much Will He Work With Cruise Again?
Image via Paramount Pictures
While Top Gun: Maverick was not Davis’ first role, it was certainly his breakout part within the film industry. He has had an interesting career trajectory, as he went from playing supporting, recurring roles on TV series to playing a role in one of the highest-grossing movies of all time. His next two movies were Mission: Impossible films, creating a multi-year streak of working with Cruise. As Davis continues his career, it will be interesting to see how many more times he works with Cruise and if he stays in blockbuster filmmaking.