Screenwriter Drew Pearce talks Mission: Impossible 5

British screenwriter Drew Pearce is developing quite the reputation in Hollywood as of late; he's already broken the $1 billion barrier with this year's superhero smash hit Iron Man 3 (as well as polishing the scripts for Pacific Rim and Godzilla) and next up on his slate is another franchise sequel Mission: Impossible 5, which is set to reunite star Tom Cruise with his Jack Reacher director Christopher McQuarrie. During an interview with IGN, Pearce spoke about scripting the latest instalment in the blockbuster spy series...

"The challenge is pretty clear, which is that you have to be better than the four which came before you and they've already used a bunch of ideas that are probably really good for a Mission Impossible movie. I think it's also kind of exciting because you learn from those four. Definitely as far as I'm concerned and - Chris McQuarrie who's directing it and Tom who's very involved, as is J.J. Abrams - and I think elements of the first Mission, we loved the actual gang in first Mission. If you look back now, it's an incredible array of actors and the way it refreshed was really good, and I think Ghost Protocol just nailed tone. Brad [Bird] is a kind of genius of action, and I think the Bhurja sequence is a modern classic."

Mission: Impossible 5 is currently without a release date, although 2015 would seem a good bet, seeing as every other franchise is set to drop a new instalment then.