Tom Cruise Getting A Sequel To One Of His Most Underrated Movies?
The author of The Firm, which was made into a Tom Cruise movie in 1993, is making a sequel—Will Tom Cruise star in the movie adaptation?
Tom Cruise is known for reprising his iconic roles in films like Mission: Impossible and Top Gun: Maverick (which also saw Val Kilmer reprising his role), and now it may be time for another reprisal. One of Tom Cruise’s most underrated films—author John Grisham’s movie adaptation of The Firm—just might be getting a sequel. According to Deadline, John Grisham has confirmed that he will be publishing a second The Firm book this fall, titled The Exchange: After The Firm.
Tom Cruise starred as lawyer Mitch McDeere in The Firm 30 years ago, alongside Jeanne Tripplehorn and Gene Hackman. The movie follows Tom Cruise’s character, who is a young lawyer trying to make the world a better place. But when he joins a prestigious law firm, he finds that many of their clients are on the wrong side of the law.
The movie tackles a social and moral dilemma: should Tom Cruise do the right thing and help the FBI when they come looking for evidence, or should he turn his back on the law that he vowed to support and uphold?
John Grisham’s new novel will take place fifteen years later, still focused on Mitch McDeere and his career in law. In the new legal thriller, a law associate is kidnapped and held for ransom, leading Mitch to facilitate the high-stakes exchange. Readers can visualize Tom Cruise negotiating the ransom when The Exchange: After The Firm is released as an ebook, hardcover book, and audiobook this fall.
A theatrical sequel to The Firm would make sense from a financial perspective since it is John Grisham’s highest-grossing adaptation at over $270 million worldwide. John Grisham, who is known for his legal thrillers, has had many other film adaptations, like The Rainmaker (starring Matt Damon), A Time To Kill, and even the Christmas classic Christmas with the Kranks. All ten of his film adaptations have been quite successful, grossing over $800 million to date.
If the sequel does have a movie adaptation, we wouldn’t be surprised if 60-year-old Tom Cruise stepped up to fill his own shoes as Mitch McDeere. But if Tom Cruise reprises his role from The Firm, then it’s only fair that his co-star and onscreen wife, Jeanne Tripplehorn, who plays Abby McDeere, is also brought back. Much like Tom Cruise, Jeanne Tripplehorn, who is known for her roles in Basic Instinct, Waterworld, and Sliding Doors, is still acting at 59 years old, though she’s not doing her own wild and adventurous stunts.
And if Tom Cruise does reprise his role in The Firm, it won’t be his longest gap between movie sequels. The famous actor portrayed Maverick in the original Top Gun movie back in 1984 and then reprised his same role in the new Top Gun: Maverick movie 36 years later. There is also speculation that Tom Cruise may reprise his role as Les Grossman from 2008’s comedy Tropic Thunder if the movie ends up getting a sequel over a decade later.
