Although Henry Cavill has tried his hand at lighter comedic action fare with Argylle and Enola Holmes, his performance in Mission: Impossible — Fallout remains one of his best. As the perfect foil for Tom Cruise’s death-defying Ethan Hunt, Cavill’s role as August Walker, the deceptive CIA agent who gave Hunt all he could handle, matched his physically imposing stature withstellar acting chops.
With the two stars reportedly reuniting for an upcoming movie, Cavill has the chance to steal Cruise’s thunder once more. Mission: Impossible — Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie is working on Broadsword, an epic World War II action thriller described as having a “hard edge” (via Empire). Although Cavill’s reported attachment to Highlander and Voltron sounds promising, Broadsword could become the action star’s best feature to date.
‘Broadsword’ Is a ‘Mission: Impossible — Fallout’ Reunion That’s Years in the Making
In 2020, two years after Mission: Impossible — Fallout was released, Tom Cruise and writer/director Christopher McQuarrie began conjuring ideas for future collaboration. Determined to do something with more bite, they nicknamed their upcoming project The Gnarly Movie, according to Empire.
Of course, action movies rarely get gnarlier than the brutal bathroom brawl pitting Cruise’s and Cavill’s characters against one another in the sixth Mission: Impossible entry. Now, with Cavill, Cruise, and McQuarrie joining forces for the upcoming Broadsword, “The Gnarly Movie” with a “hard edge” has a real chance to make MI: Fallout look like, well, Enola Holmes.
Written by McQuarrie and Erik Jendressen, Broadsword is described as an epic World War II action thriller that follows a U.S. Marine Sergeant whose plane crashes in France. The lone survivor of his unit teams up with a strong-willed French woman who accompanies him across rough terrain and perilous landscapes as enemies close in. Cruise has been tapped to play the Marine, with Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie En Rose) cast as the French woman. As of October 10, 2026, Cavill’s role is unknown.
‘Broadsword’ Could Become Henry Cavill’s Best Action Thriller To Date
According to Production List, Broadsword is in post-production as of late April 2026. Filming took place in London and France in 2025, though no release date has been set. Regardless of when it comes out, the material allows Cavill to raise his action-movie profile and truly showcase his physical gifts. With McQuarrie, Jendresen, and Cruise fully aware of Cavill’s abilities after working on Mission: Impossible — Fallout, they’ll undoubtedly orchestrate harrowing action sequences that go beyond the epic bathroom brawl and climactic cliff battle.
Although unconfirmed, some reports claim Cavill’s character in Broadsword will serve as a brother-in-arms to Cruise’s Marine, but nothing has been substantiated. Still, one of the most encouraging aspects of the production team is Jendresen’s experience writing for the 2001 HBO series Band of Brothers. Working on the all-time greatest WWII miniseries and the definitive small-screen counterpart to Saving Private Ryan instills confidence that Broadsword will become the next great war epic.
Moreover, Broadsword marks a rousing return to the brutal action fare Cavill has largely avoided since the 2024 box-office disappointments Argylle and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. All of it adds up to what could be Cavill’s most promising big-screen action role to date.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
