THE CROWN Actress Vanessa Kirby Secures Lead Role in MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 6

Mission: Impossible 6 is scheduled for release next summer, and it'll be the first time a director — in this case, it's Chris McQuarrie — has returned to make a sequel in this franchise. One of the things McQuarrie did spectacularly well was introduce a wonderful female lead in Rebecca Ferguson's Ilsa Faust, and now it appears that he'll be bringing another leading lady into the spotlight in the still-officially-untitled M:I 6.

Variety reports that Vanessa Kirby is in final talks to play one of the new leads in the sequel, and though details are scarce, the report indicates that the role should be on the same level as Ferguson's last time around. That's a big part, and considering Ferguson is returning alongside franchise stalwarts Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, and of course, Tom Cruise, I'm starting to wonder if McQuarrie is in danger of including too many cogs in the wheel here. I'm not doubting his skills as a writer — Rogue Nation was great, and he's never given me reason to doubt him — but crafting a story with tons of characters like that takes a deft hand. It's definitely doable, especially if most of the supporting players have smaller roles, but it's also something to keep an eye out for.

Kirby stars as Princess Margaret on Netflix's The Crown, and she's appeared in movies like Me Before You, About Time, Jupiter Ascending, Charlie Countryman, and more.

Mission: Impossible 6 starts production next month and will hit theaters on July 27, 2018.