SPOILER warning: Details about the ending of Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One lie ahead.
Simon Pegg has been a part of the Mission: Impossible franchise since its third film and over the years, has become an integral part of it. His fast-talking and technically adept character, Benji Dunn, helps Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt accomplish some of the most dangerous missions the world throws at him while often acting as comic relief for viewers as well. After a major character death in Dead Reckoning Part One, fans likely realize just how expendable the core team really is. Now, Pegg is opening up about the idea of Benji dying, while discussing the team's expandability.
The Shaun of the Dead star sat down with CinemaBlend’s very own Sean O’Connell for a virtual interview in promotion of Dead Reckoning's first chapter (ahead of the SAG-AFTRA strike). During the conversation, they talked about the latest high-flying addition to the Mission: Impossible series as well as Benji’s role within the franchise. When asked about how this film reinforces the expendability of all the characters on the IMF team, the 53-year-old actor agreed with the notion, pointing out that there is no character more important than the mission. He said:
As I think Luther says, we don’t matter as much as the mission, and anyone of us at any time could face the end. And if that happened, I’d be sad. You know I’ve lived with Benji for like... I mean ,wait, who’s to say it doesn’t happen? But I would be sad. He’s been in my life for 17 years. I’ve watched him, I’ve been him, growing up, becoming an older, more mature agent, and you know, they live a sort of tragic life in a way.
Simon Pegg certainly wouldn’t be the only one sad if Benji’s life was to be cut short, as I think much of the M:I fanbase would be devastated. The wise-cracking tech genius has been put in jeopardy many times over the years. In Rogue Nation, he had a bomb strapped to his chest, and was almost hung by a noose in Fallout. The character has had a lot of close calls, but Ethan Hunt or another one of his allies always seem to help him find his way out of it. One day, they might not be able to, though.
The two-part Dead Reckoning arc could, at the very least, mark the end of an era in the Mission: Impossible franchise. The latest film and 2024’s much anticipated Part Two have been rumored to mark the end of Ethan Hunt's story. Some have advocated for Tom Cruise's retirement from the franchise, but recent comments from the action star indicate he wants to keep going. The uncertainty of additional films after M:I 8 makes the fate of the characters even more questionable. So there may be reason to fret over the lives of the supporting members of the team, like Benji.
Of course, he did live to see the end of this latest installment, with viewers last seeing him meeting up with Hunt before they set off to find the sunken Sevastopol. Said vessel is where the pair will find The source code of The Entity (a dangerous A.I. system), which could ultimately help destroy it. There's a possibility Benji could lose his life, as he and Ethan seek to accomplish their mission. Based on Simon Pegg's interview with us, he seems prepared should that development come to fruition. Despite that, I still have hope that Dunn make it out in the end, even if that notion seems slightly impossible right now.
You can catch Simon Pegg in Mission: Impossible- Dead Reckoning Part One by checking it out in theaters now. Fans who want to catch up on the other M:I films before heading to the cinema for the latest addition can do so now using a Paramount+ subscription.
