Tom Cruise has delivered a furious COVID-19 safety rant on the set of Mission Impossible: 7 after crew members appeared to ignore social distancing rules.
The 58-year-old has gone to great efforts to ensure that filming for the latest instalment of the long-running action franchise goes ahead, despite strict coronavirus restrictions.
In audio obtained by The Sun, Cruise can be heard shouting and swearing at two employees he says are sitting too close together at a computer screen, telling them: “If I see you do it again, you’re f****** gone.”
Cruise is renowned for doing nearly all his own MI stunts
He goes on to tell them that Mission Impossible is the “gold standard”, leading the way in getting the film industry back to work.
Cruise says: “I’m on the phone with every f****** studio at night, insurance companies, producers, and they’re looking at us and using us to make their movies. We are creating thousands of jobs you motherf******. I don’t ever want to see it again, ever!
“And if you don’t do it, you’re fired, if I see you do it again you’re f****** gone. And if anyone in this crew does it – that’s it, and you too and you too. And you, don’t you ever f****** do it again.”
An unapologetic Cruise says he is working for “the future of the industry” and that he refuses to see his set shut due to non-compliance with COVID rules.
He warns staff it is their responsibility to follow the rules and that it’s important because he “trusts” and “cares about” them.
Cruise’s movie began filming across Europe earlier this year, but production stopped due as the pandemic spread across the continent.
Rebecca Ferguson as Ilsa Faust and Cruise as Ethan Hunt in the last instalment
In September, Cruise reportedly paid around half a million pounds to hire cruise ships to house the production crew in Norway and keep them safe during the shoot.
In October, a number of them were reported to have tested positive for COVID-19 while filming in Italy.
During his tirade, Cruise name-checks studios Universal, Paramount and Warner Brothers – all of whom have been facing tough decisions over the release of their latest films.
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Mission Impossible is currently filming at Warner Bros Studios in Leavesden in Hertfordshire, and is distributed by Paramount Pictures.
Just this week, Warner Brothers released the Wonder Woman sequel in UK cinemas, despite tens of millions of people being in Tier 3 – including Londoners – meaning trips to the cinema are impossible.
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The last instalment of Cruise’s spy franchise, Mission Impossible: Fallout, was released in 2018 and its stars including Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby will all be returning for the new chapter.
Sky News has contacted Cruise’s management for comment.
Mission: Impossible 7 is due to for release in UK cinemas in November 2021.