Jeremy Renner finally reveals real reason he left Mission: Impossible

Jeremy Renner has finally explained why he left the role of William Brandt in Mission: Impossible, but it’s nowhere near as controversial as you may think.

Renner appeared as William Brandt in two back-to-back Mission: Impossible movies, 2011’s Ghost Protocol and 2015’s Rogue Nation.

Brandt was initially met with some derision from fans because he was seemingly being proposed as a replacement for Cruise’s Ethan Hunt, but he eventually won many over. Now Renner has revealed he was originally meant to do more Mission: Impossible but chose to focus on his young daughters instead.

“I love those guys. I love Tom so much.” Renner tells The Independent. “We had so much fun, and I love that character a lot. It requires a lot of time away. It’s all in London. I had to go be a dad. It just wasn’t gonna work out then.”

Renner doesn’t rule out a return in the interview, though. With his daughters now older, he says he’d return to Brandt if they asked.

The Brandt character could feasibly return. While he did not return for Mission: Impossible – Fallout, it was said his character had simply retired. Brandt was heavily rumored to return in some fashion for the franchise’s anniversary outing, Dead Reckoning, but it wasn’t meant to be.

There’s still a chance he could appear, though, as the next Mission: Impossible film is slated for release next year. With no end in sight for the long-running spy franchise, there’s plenty of room for Brandt to return in the future.

Renner will next be seen in Season 3 of the Paramount+ drama Mayor of Kingstown, his first major work since his devastating snowplow incident. He’s also been hinting at an MCU return, and was recently announced to appear in the upcoming mystery flick Wake Up Dead Man: A Glass Onion Mystery.