Paula Patton joins Tom Cruise in the new 'Mission: Impossible' movie. Let's write her first scene!

Image Credit: Charley Gallay/Getty ImagesEW has confirmed that Paula Patton (Precious) has signed onto the new Mission: Impossible movie as the female lead. (Deadline.com first reported the story.) According to a source close to the film — which stars Tom Cruise and Jeremy Renner, is produced by Cruise and J.J. Abrams, and will be directed by Brad Bird (The Incredibles) — it will not be a “reboot” as has been reported, but it won’t be titled Mission: Impossible IV either. As for Patton, she’s reportedly playing an up-and-coming agent working with Cruise’s Ethan Hunt. But since the film’s plot will likely remain locked in a pressure-temperature-and-sound-sensitive vault until much closer to the movie’s expected Dec. 16, 2011 release, Patton’s character could be anything from Keri Russell’s character in the Abrams directed Mission: Impossible III (i.e. a platonic teammate), to Emmanuelle Béart’s role from 1996′s Mission: Impossible (i.e. a seductress and double agent). So let’s wildly speculate and write Patton’s first scene!

INT. NONDESCRIPT CONCRETE BUNKER – NIGHT

ETHAN HUNT, clad in a secret-agent-y black jumpsuit, with night goggles perched on his forehead and a sleek and lethal looking gun strapped to his back, races down a long, dank hallway, cluttered with industrial debris. He’s sweating. He’s stressed. It appears he’s been running at a breakneck speed for a half-hour. But he also seems notably YOUNGER than we remember, like maybe the first time we met him.

At the end of the hallway, he reaches what appears to be a giant, foreboding STEEL DOOR, but there are no hinges, no handle, no apparent way in at all. Hunt looks at it. Runs his hands around the edges. Nothing. He opens a pouch on his leg, and pulls out what looks like a PACK OF GUM. He grabs a strip, and opens the foil — one side of the gum is green, and the other red. This looks somehow familiar…

ETHAN
(with a hint of a smile)
Red light, green light.

He smashes the gum against the door, races behind a giant slab of rusted metal, just in time to escape the EXPLOSION. The door is toast. Ethan walks through the hole where the door once stood, squinting to see through a cloud of DUST.

INT. NONDESCRIPT EMPTY ROOM

Standing at the other end of a large, white room that looks like it was spotless just ten seconds earlier, is…ETHAN HUNT. In jeans and a casual oxford shirt. Looking more age-appropriate, like we remember him. And he’s not happy.

ETHAN NO. 1
So?

The second Ethan just scowls. Ethan No. 1 looks bemused. He lifts his hand up to his neck, pulls down, and removes his ETHAN HUNT MASK, to reveal: TEMPEST GREEN, who would normally be stunningly beautiful if she wasn’t sweating from running at breakneck speed for a half-hour.

TEMPEST
How’d I do?

ETHAN
That “gum” is 15 years old. How did you know it would still work?

TEMPEST
I didn’t.
(beat)
Anything else?

LUTHER STICKLE walks up behind Ethan, barely stifling his laughter.

ETHAN
(studies her)
Who put you up to wearing that mask?
(pointing to Luther)
Did he?

TEMPEST
In a fashion. He said you said I reminded you of yourself back in the day, so I just figured why not complete the picture?

Ethan finally cracks a smile.

ETHAN
(to Luther)
She’s in.

END OF SCENE

What do you think Patton’s first scene will be, PopWatchers? Try your hand at writing it in the comments!