Any mission’s possible for Tom Cruise — even hanging from world’s tallest building

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In this image released by Paramount Pictures, Tom Cruise reprises his role as Ethan Hunt in a scene from "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol." (AP Photo/Paramount Pictures)

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Updated: January 15, 2012 8:16AM

Anyone who knows Tom Cruise — especially those who work with him on the “Mission: Impossible” film franchise — understands that the actor considers doing his own stunts an integral part of what makes him a true action star.

The actor thinks overuse of stuntmen or special effects takes away from the filmgoing experience for fans of movies like “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol,” opening in Imax on Friday (and going wide in regular theaters Dec. 21).

As Cruise, 49, told “Access Hollywood” while promoting the picture in Dubai (where a good portion of the movie was shot), “I want to entertain an audience, and I think people see and feel the difference.” That’s why he and director Brad Bird avoided many of the usual filmmaking tricks when it came to some of the movie’s more dramatic sequences.

In a recent chat with the Sun-Times, Bird said he agreed with Cruise — but that didn’t make him any less nervous.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say that every muscle in my body — and likely those in the bodies of our producers, the studio executives and everyone else connected to ‘Ghost Protocol’ — remained tightly clenched until Tom finished those scenes up there.”

By “up there,” Bird was referring to Cruise dangling near the top of the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai — at 160 stories, currently the world’s tallest building.

“I don’t know of any other actor who is more focused or prepared than Tom,” Bird said. “He’s in superb condition, fitter than many men far younger than he is.”

Part of the actor’s preparation included working out on specially constructed walls — “just so Tom could perfect his climbing skills,” said Bird. At one point, his character, Ethan Hunt, smashes out of a Burj Khalifa window and rappels around to get to another floor quite a distance away.

For Bird — known primarily for his animated films “The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille” and “Up” — the decision to fulfill his long-held desire to make an action thriller hinged largely on the chance to work with Cruise.

“I met Tom a number of years ago, right after I did ‘The Incredibles.’ We spent about two hours just talking about movies and hit it off right away.

“We discovered that we agreed about everything we don’t like and do like about the process of filmmaking.”

So when Bird was given the opportunity to helm this fourth “Mission: Impossible” project, he leapt at it.

Bird also revealed he had to “fight a pretty big battle,” to get the studio to go with his plan to first release “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol” in IMAX, then roll it out later in non-IMAX theaters around the country.

“I firmly believe we have to get back to putting the ‘show’ back in ‘show business.’ We have to put back the pizzazz, the sizzle in the moviegoing expereience.

“I want people who are willing to make the effort to first see this film the very best way they can, and that’s in IMAX. It still will be great in regular theaters, too, but I’m very obsessed with dazzling the audiences whenever we can.

“Remember, ‘Star Wars’ first opened on only 30 or 40 screens, because George Lucas only wanted those first audiences to see it at its very best. I want exactly the same thing for ‘Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol.’ ”