Sawt Falasteen - Tom Cruise has world guessing as he unleashes 'Mission: Impossible' at Cannes

With some fans fretting that the $400-million epic -- the eighth in the high-octane franchise -- could be the last, Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie have been teasing up the tension by dropping contradictory clues about its future.

What we do know is that Simon Pegg, who has played field agent Benji Dunn in six of the films, is definitely hanging up his Impossible Missions Force badge.

But not before the British actor credited the franchise with saving him from depression and alcohol and helping him get sober in 2010 for his role in "Ghost Protocol".

"I felt very taken care of," Pegg told Variety magazine Wednesday, with Cruise urging him to "get in shape" for the fourth instalment which saw his character promoted from technician to agent.

For his part, Cruise, 62, has been sharing heart-stopping behind-the-scenes footage of the stunts he did for the new movie on social media, including a freefall jump from a helicopter at 10,000 feet (3,000 metres).

He is seen jumping from the chopper high over a South African mountain range and putting himself into a high-speed spin with a camera strapped to his stomach.

The blockbuster is set to ramp up adrenaline levels and promises to lighten the tone at Cannes.

- Shadow of tariffs -

The festival's highly political opening day began with accusations that Hollywood was ignoring "genocide" in Gaza, while the conviction of French screen legend Gerard Depardieu for sexual assault in a Paris court on day one also dampened the mood.

Even Cruise's iron-clad optimism has come under stress with the industry shaken by President Donald Trump's threat to stick tariffs on movies "produced in foreign lands".

With "Mission: Impossible" among Hollywood's most globalised franchises, shot on a dizzying roster of exotic locations from the Arctic to Shanghai, Cruise shut down questions about the issue at a promotional event in South Korea last week.

Asked about tariffs and the franchise's globetrotting shoots, Cruise said tersely: "We'd rather answer questions about the movie. Thank you."

In one glimmer of hope, Trump has said he will make an exception for the James Bond movies -- which are mostly shot in the UK -- because the late 007 Sean Connery once helped him get planning permission for his Scottish golf course.

Cruise's franchise also leans heavily on London studios.

- Highly charged -

Yet it is likely to be all smiles when the indomitable star bounds up the red carpet at Cannes at 6:45 pm (1645 GMT) on Wednesday for the premiere.

A band will be waiting to serenade him with Lalo Schifrin's iconic theme tune from the original Mission: Impossible TV series -- a rather subdued welcome compared to the last time Cruise came to Cannes.

In 2022, he was greeted by a flyover of eight French fighter jets billowing red, white and blue smoke to promote "Top Gun: Maverick".

Fans will find out if this really is the end of the road for secret agent Ethan Hunt when "The Final Reckoning" is released in Europe and the Middle East from May 21. The US and several other countries will have to wait two or three days longer.

However, Indian, Australian and Korean cinemagoers will be able to see it from this weekend.

Director McQuarrie, who wrote the 1995 classic "The Usual Suspects", will also be giving a masterclass earlier in the day at the world's biggest film festival.

Veteran US star Robert De Niro will be talking about his long, illustrious career after being awarded a lifetime achievement at Tuesday's often highly-charged opening ceremony.

The outspoken Trump critic took the chance to blast the US leader as "America's philistine president".

He slammed Trump's film tariff proposal -- which few experts think can be carried through without creating havoc -- as he picked up an honorary Palme d'Or from his friend and sometime co-star Leonardo DiCaprio.

"You can't put a price on creativity. But apparently, you can put a tariff on it," De Niro said in a fiery speech in which he urged "everyone who cares about liberty to organise, to protest.

"In my country we are fighting like hell for democracy," he said, adding that "art embraces diversity. That's why we are a threat to autocrats and fascists."

B.AbuZeid--SF-PST