Mission Impossible Movies in Order: Release and Chronological
The Mission Impossible movies in order are eight films, from Mission: Impossible (1996) to Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025), and the release order and the chronological order are exactly the same. Tom Cruise plays Ethan Hunt in all eight, so you can work straight down the list by year without skipping around.
Mission Impossible Movies in Order of Release
Mission: Impossible (1996)Directed by Brian De Palma
Mission: Impossible II (2000)Directed by John Woo
Mission: Impossible III (2006)Directed by J.J. Abrams
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)Directed by Brad Bird
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
Mission Impossible Chronological Order: Same as Release
- Mission: Impossible (1996)Directed by Brian De Palma
- Mission: Impossible II (2000)Directed by John Woo
- Mission: Impossible III (2006)Directed by J.J. Abrams
- Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)Directed by Brad Bird
- Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
- Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
- Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
- Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025)Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
About the Release Order
The Mission Impossible movies in order of release run from 1996 to 2025, eight films in all, and every one stars Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt. The full list by year, with US release date, director and runtime, is:
- Mission: Impossible (1996), directed by Brian De Palma, released May 22, 1996, 111 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible II (2000), directed by John Woo, released May 24, 2000, 123 minutes. Many people search for it as Mission Impossible 2.
- Mission: Impossible III (2006), directed by J.J. Abrams, released May 5, 2006, 126 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011), directed by Brad Bird, released December 16, 2011, 133 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015), directed by Christopher McQuarrie, released July 31, 2015, 131 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible: Fallout (2018), directed by Christopher McQuarrie, released July 27, 2018, 147 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One (2023), directed by Christopher McQuarrie, released July 12, 2023, 164 minutes.
- Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025), directed by Christopher McQuarrie, released May 23, 2025, 170 minutes.
Five directors share the eight films. The first four each had a different one: Brian De Palma, John Woo, J.J. Abrams and Brad Bird. Christopher McQuarrie then directed the last four, Rogue Nation, Fallout, Dead Reckoning Part One and The Final Reckoning, which is why the later films feel so much more of a piece. The gaps between releases ranged from two years to six, with the longest wait between II and III, and the budget climbed from $80 million for the 1996 film to $350 million for The Final Reckoning, according to Box Office Mojo. For the wider picture of the series, see our Mission Impossible movies hub.
Is there a ninth film to add to the list? As of November 3, 2026, no studio or trade source has announced one, and The Final Reckoning was marketed as the final film. One rumor is circulating: Yahoo Entertainment reported on February 19, 2026 an anonymous email, shared by the gossip account DeuxMoi, claiming Chloe Zhao is in talks to write and direct Mission: Impossible 9. The article says the claim cannot be verified, and Paramount, Cruise and Zhao have made no statement, so treat it as unconfirmed. We track the latest in Mission Impossible 9.
About the Chronological Order
The Mission Impossible chronological order is identical to the release order, because each film continues Ethan Hunt's story after the one before it and no film is set earlier than another. That makes the release list the answer to both searches, and it starts with the 1996 film.
The story begins in Prague, where Mission: Impossible (1996) sees an operation go wrong and leave Ethan as the only survivor of his team, forcing him to clear his name and find the real mole. Mission: Impossible II sends him after the engineered virus Chimera and its cure, Bellerophon, with the thief Nyah and his old ally Luther Stickell backing him up in Sydney. In Mission: Impossible III, Ethan has stepped back from field work and is engaged to a nurse named Julia, until his former trainee Lindsey Farris is captured and he goes after the arms dealer Owen Davian. Benji, played by Simon Pegg, is in the cast of every film from III onward.
Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol breaks Ethan out of a Moscow prison, and after the Kremlin is bombed the IMF is disavowed. Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation follows with the IMF shut down and folded into the CIA, which leaves Ethan a fugitive hunting the Syndicate, a secret group of rogue former spies. Mission: Impossible: Fallout then opens two years after Solomon Lane was captured, with his remnant group, the Apostles, trying to buy three plutonium cores, and it brings back Julia (Michelle Monaghan) from III as well as Lane (Sean Harris) from Rogue Nation.
The final pair share one story. Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One introduces the Entity, an artificial intelligence that takes control of a Russian stealth submarine, and it reunites Ethan with Ilsa Faust while Kittridge, played by Henry Czerny in 1996, returns as CIA director. Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning follows directly, with Ethan holding the source code key to the Entity, Gabriel still after it, and a trip to the wreck of the Russian submarine Sevastopol. Because "Part One" is in the title of the earlier film, those last two should always be watched back to back.
Where to Start: Which Mission Impossible Movie First?
My answer is to start with Mission: Impossible (1996) and keep going in release order, because the run is long, with each film between 111 and 170 minutes, and the later films reward the patience. That is my opinion, not a rule, and there are shorter routes if you do not have a free weekend.
Is it necessary to watch the films in order? It could be argued that the first four mostly are not, since each opens on a fresh assignment: Prague, the Chimera virus, Owen Davian, and the Moscow prison break. Ethan Hunt and the faces around him carry over, but the plots do not depend on each other. The last four are a different matter. Rogue Nation introduces the Syndicate, Fallout pays it off with Solomon Lane and brings Julia back from III, and Dead Reckoning Part One leads straight into The Final Reckoning.
If you want one easy on-ramp, perhaps Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol is the best pick, since it assembles a new team around Ethan and works as a self contained caper (it also holds the Burj Khalifa climb that Cruise did himself, according to ET). If you want the shortest route to the current story, watch the four McQuarrie films in order: Rogue Nation, Fallout, Dead Reckoning Part One and The Final Reckoning, 612 minutes in total, or 10 hours and 12 minutes. You would miss where Kittridge, Julia and Luther Stickell first appear, and I think that is a fair trade for a weekend. What I would not do is watch The Final Reckoning before Dead Reckoning Part One.
If you want to know the characters first, our Mission Impossible characters page covers Ethan Hunt, Luther Stickell and Ilsa Faust. Paramount+ lists all eight films in the US as of November 3, 2026, according to JustWatch data on TMDB, so queue them there in the order above, and check where to watch Mission Impossible for the UK and Australia.
Facts
- Mission: Impossible (1996) was released in US theaters on May 22, 1996. Box Office Mojo, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning was released in US theaters on May 23, 2025. Screen Daily, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible: Fallout was released in US theaters on July 27, 2018. The Numbers, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible (1996) runs 111 minutes. TMDB, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning runs 170 minutes. TMDB, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) was directed by Brad Bird. TMDB, checked 2026-11-03
- Christopher McQuarrie directed Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015), a film directed by him, as listed on TMDB. TMDB, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible (1996) had a production budget of $80 million. Box Office Mojo, checked 2026-11-03
- Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning had a production budget of $350 million. Box Office Mojo, checked 2026-11-03
FAQs
What is the correct order of the Mission Impossible movies?
The correct Mission Impossible order is Mission: Impossible (1996), Mission: Impossible II (2000), Mission: Impossible III (2006), Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011), Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015), Mission: Impossible: Fallout (2018), Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One (2023) and Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025). Release order and story order are the same.
In what order should I watch the Mission: Impossible movies?
Watch them in release order, starting with Mission: Impossible (1996) and finishing with Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning. Runtimes range from 111 minutes to 170 minutes, according to TMDB. Dead Reckoning Part One and The Final Reckoning should always be watched back to back.
Is it necessary to watch Mission: Impossible in order?
It is not strictly necessary for the first four films, because each starts a new mission, but the later films build on each other. Mission: Impossible: Fallout opens two years after Solomon Lane was captured, and The Final Reckoning continues directly from Dead Reckoning Part One.
Is Mission: Impossible all movies connected?
Yes, all eight films follow Ethan Hunt, played by Tom Cruise, and recurring characters include Luther Stickell, Benji Dunn and Kittridge. The links tighten over time: Julia returns in Fallout, Kittridge returns in Dead Reckoning Part One, and the Entity story runs across the last two films.
What is the chronological order of the Mission: Impossible movies?
The chronological order of the Mission: Impossible movies is the same as the release order, from the 1996 film through to Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning in 2025. No film is a prequel, so there is no separate story order to follow.
Where can you stream the Mission Impossible movies in order?
In the US, Paramount+ lists all eight films as of November 3, 2026, according to JustWatch data on TMDB. UK and Australian availability varies by film, and Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One is rent or buy only in the UK on that date.
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