“Mission: Impossible 8” Director Says an Early Audience Member 'Almost Had a Heart Attack' During Action Sequence

The filmmaker behind Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible movies has reason to believe audiences will feel the thrills behind the series' reportedly final film.

Director Christopher McQuarrie, who has worked with Cruise, 62, on the action series dating back to 2015's Rogue Nation, told Empire magazine that an audience member at a recent early screening of Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning had a major reaction to one particular scene in the movie, per GamesRadar.

"We had a small screening and someone said, 'I was suffocating throughout the entire sequence. I almost had a heart attack,' " McQuarrie, 56, said. "And I thought, 'I guess we did something right.' "

According to the outlet, McQuarrie also said the upcoming movie features "the most difficult thing" the production and Cruise have ever filmed in the franchise, though he did not specify whether it was the same sequence the unnamed audience member "almost had a heart attack" during.

Related: Rob Lowe Thought He and Tom Cruise Might Not Make It Through One Particular Night While Filming 1983's The Outsiders

Cruise can be seen diving underwater and entering a submarine, as well as flying a plane in moments teased during the trailer for the next Mission: Impossible movie, thought it's not clear whether any of these moments are what McQuarrie referred to while speaking with Empire.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The Final Reckoning boasts an impressive cast: Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby, Hayley Atwell, Shea Whigham, Pom Klementieff and Henry Czerny all reprise their roles from 2023's Dead Reckoning, and Nick Offerman, Bob Odenkirk, Janet McTeer, Hannah Waddingham and Katy O'Brian join the ensemble for Cruise's last mission as Ethan Hunt.

The upcoming movie began filming in the U.K., Malta, South Africa and Norway in early 2022; production halted in July 2023 due to the Hollywood writers and actors’ strikes and resumed in March 2024. The Final Reckoning was originally called Dead Reckoning Part Two, but it dropped that subtitle in October 2023.

Related: Tom Cruise Is Awarded the U.S. Navy's Highest Civilian Honor: 'To Lead Is to Serve'

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning is in theaters May 23. Cruise's other high-flying upcoming projects include a third Top Gun film, as well as his in-the-works project with Birdman and The Revenant filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu. Cruise has also made plans to film a movie in outer space in recent years; he last shared an update on that untitled movie at a premiere for Dead Reckoning in July 2023, when he said he has been "working on it diligently.”

Read the original article on People