Recently the trailer of Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning’ was released by the makers. The film marks the end of the long-running ‘Mission Impossible’ series that has emerged as one of the top franchises of Hollywood. The film series found its inception in 1996 and is coming to an end with its last title on May 23, 2025. In the trailer for ‘Mission Impossible 8,’ Tom Cruise takes fans on a nostalgic ride and performs exhilarating death-defying stunts. While fans gasp at Cruise’s dedication, Bollywood fans of Akshay Kumar couldn’t help but draw comparisons between ‘Khiladi 420’ and ‘Mission Impossible 8.’

In one of the sequences from the trailer Cruise’s Ethan Hunt performs a gravity-defying stunt and hangs from an airborne plane, raising the stakes. While several netizens are in awe, fans of Bollywood Khiladi point out that Akshay Kumar did it two decades ago. In a Reddit post going viral, fans have dropped comments like Akki inspired Ethan Hunt. The post features a picture from the 2000 film ‘Khiladi 420’ which is juxtaposed with the plane sequence shot from the ‘MI: 8’ trailer. In the film, Akshay also performs a stunts mid-air on a similar plane.

The new Mission Impossible trailer reminded me of a jaw-dropping stunt Akki had done back in Khiladi 420
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Reacting to the thread, one user wrote, “Akshay did it before it was cool, and definitely before Cruise!”. Meanwhile, another hilariously noted that Bollywood’s Khiladi is “Ethan Hunt’s inspiration.” Echoing similar sentiment, another penned, “Akshay setting trends for Tom Cruise.” Moreover, several fans got nostalgic and commented that the Bollywood star should resume doing such high-stakes actioners. “Maybe Cruise is the reason we need another Khiladi movie. Enough of Selfie and Bachchan Pandey already!” Another wrote, “Akshay needs to do another proper action Khiladi movie.” Additionally, one fan wrote, “Tom Cruise has all the budget, but Akshay had the guts. Respect to both legends.”

This isn’t the first time that Bollywood cinephiles have compared Akshay Kumar with Tom Cruise. They have often attracted comparison as Akshay has also performed a plethora of high-intensity stunts and action sequences. Moreover, the budget has also been a topic of conversation previously. Back in the day, Akshay also reflected on the issue. The actor told ANI, “The amount spent on the stunt is our budget for 2-3 films. And not just the shoot expense, just the amount spent on the practice for the scene. It’s not like we cannot do it. We can do it if we want to.”

Also Read: ‘Mission Impossible 8’ trailer: Tom Cruise’s final bow as Ethan Hunt

Meanwhile, ‘Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning’ releases on May 23, 2025. Veteran director Christopher McQuarrie who has helmed every title of the film series will return at the helm. Meanwhile, the film also stars Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby, Pom Klemetieff, Shea Whigham, Angela Bassett, Esai Morales, Henry Czerny, Holt McCallany, Nick Offerman and Greg Tarzan Davis. ‘Mission Impossible 8’ follows ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.’