No, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning’s train sequence wasn’t inspired by Uncharted 2

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One director has shot down speculation that the movie’s climactic train sequence was inspired by a similar set-piece in Naughty Dog video game Uncharted 2.

"Not remotely. I honestly know very little about that world," McQuarrie replied on Threads to a fan asking if he has played or was influenced by the PlayStation classic for Dead Reckoning’s final act.

The sequence in question involves Ethan (Tom Cruise) and Grace (Hayley Atwell) going off the rails on the Orient Express in pursuit of a key to shut down The Entity – complete with Cruise hanging from a carriage in a manner close to that of Nathan Drake in Uncharted 2’s snow-covered opening.

McQuarrie, for his part, used the word ‘uncharted’ in an old interview – and addressed speculation about the coincidence. 

"I used the word in the literal sense in a post years ago and have been hearing that ever since. Games are just something I know nothing about," he wrote. He later added: "The only [game] I ever played was Unreal Tournament."

Light-hearted accusations flew all over social media, with Uncharted 2 co-director Bruce Straley said "...the sincerest form of flattery."

In our own interview with McQuarrie, the director confirmed he approached Dead Reckoning with very few frames of references. 

"Invariably, no matter what you do it’ll feel like a nod to something," McQuarrie said. "I’ve never made a movie with fewer conscious nods to other movies than this one."

For more, check out our Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning coverage:

• How Mission: Impossible's Hayley Atwell brought her "scrappy" Dead Reckoning newcomer to life
• Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning’s surprise ending choice kept Tom Cruise up at night
• The Mission: Impossible movies, ranked from best to worst