MI:3 To Film On Star Trek Soundstages

An item on gossip about star Tom Cruise reveals that his upcoming film Mission: Impossible 3 is slated to be filmed on the old Star Trek soundstages.

Defamer, which had reported in May on speculation that Paramount might be planning to cancel the expensive sequel, now has a report from the studio's Stage 5 that Cruise has been seen near the Mission: Impossible 3 stages, "which are currently being set up in the old Star Trek soundstages."

It would be rather fitting if MI:3 were to become the first production on those soundstages since the cancellation of Star Trek: Enterprise ended more than 18 years of continuous use of that part of the lot by the Star Trek franchise, for there have been many connections between Star Trek and Mission: Impossible over the years.

The original Mission: Impossible, which featured later Space: 1999 stars Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, filmed on sets next to the original Star Trek's. Both shows were produced by Desilu and shared occasional set elements. Bob Justman was a producer for both series. Bain can be seen on one of the original Star Trek blooper reels and cast members from the two series have told many stories at conventions about their interactions.

After Star Trek was cancelled in 1969 and Landau and Bain left Mission: Impossible, Leonard Nimoy (Spock) turned in his Vulcan ears and joined the cast where Peter Graves continued to oversee secret missions.

The story for MI:3's immediate predecessor, Mission: Impossible 2, which also starred Cruise, was written by Star Trek writer-producers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore. Star Trek: Nemesis director Stuart Baird worked as a film editor on the second M:I movie.

Some cast and crew information on Mission: Impossible 3 is at The Internet Movie Database. The item about the Star Trek stages is from Defamer.

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