Tom Cruise goes to new heights for Mission: Impossible film

LOS ANGELES • Filming the latest Mission: Impossible movie was no cruise for Tom Cruise, who had to do more than 100 jumps to nail an action scene.

On Sunday, Cruise, 55, posted a video on Twitter detailing the risky "Halo jump" stunt.

Halo - high altitude, low open - is used by the military to penetrate enemy-held territory, with soldiers jumping from a plane at a height of 7,620m and triggering the parachute's release only at an altitude of under 610m.

The video shows Cruise prepping for the scene with demanding rehearsals in a specially designed wind tunnel.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, a further complication came from the need for perfect lighting to film the scene.

There were only three minutes a day suited for the task.

Cruise had to leap out from a plane going at about 260kmh and aim to land at a specific spot while plunging to the ground at about 320kmh.

No wonder, then, that it took "over 100 jumps to get the scene", said Mission: Impossible - Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie in the video.

Cruise also broke his ankle in another action sequence while filming the movie that is set to be released on July 27.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 05, 2018, with the headline Tom Cruise goes to new heights for Mission: Impossible film. Subscribe