Hayley Atwell to play 'destructive' character in Mission: Impossible 7

Hayley Atwell's character will be a "destructive force of nature" in the upcoming Mission: Impossible movies.

Back in September, it was announced that the 38-year-old British actress would play the leading lady in director Christopher McQuarrie's next two instalments of the action-adventure franchise, alongside Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, and Nicholas Hoult.

While it's yet to be revealed who her mysterious character will be, McQuarrie has teased that Atwell will play a "destructive force of nature" who will test every member of Ethan Hunt's team.

"I've been living in an existential crisis since October, going 'who am I? who am I?'" Atwell added during an appearance alongside McQuarrie on the Light the Fuse podcast. "An actor in search of a character.

"There's ambiguity... the interesting thing we're exploring is her resistance to a situation she finds herself in. How she starts off, where she becomes. The journey of what she comes into and what is asked of her and potentially where she ends up."

And director McQuarrie was keen to make sure that the Captain America star would offer Mission: Impossible fans something different.

"We don't want Hayley to be a repeat of any character that's come before," he explained, adding that Atwell had a hugely successful screen test with co-star Cruise.

"What we discovered there is this energy that Hayley had, specifically an energy with Tom. It's not a vibe, it's literally a vibration. You felt it and you were like, 'I don't know what to make of this person,'" he shared.

Mission: Impossible 7 and Mission: Impossible 8 are due to be released in November 2021 and November 2022, respectively.