After making a name for himself in the TV department with shows like Alias and Lost, J.J. Abrams literally exploded onto the blockbuster scene with Mission: Impossible III in 2006. Abrams is very well aware of the industry’s keenness towards building franchises, but when it comes to M:I 4, he's confident they can do it with him just as a producer.

In an interview with MTV, Abrams explains, “My guess is, given other things, that I will not be directing the movie." As pointed out by MTV, Abrams taking a pass on directorial duties could be good for M:I fans. With the Star Trek franchise already on his plate, M:I 4 would likely take a backseat, and it would be quite sometime before we’d see the film. As a producer, Abrams has high hopes about getting the flick up and running in the near future: “My hope is that when the script comes in - the dream would be that we could shoot this soon.”

Right now the script is in the hands of Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec, both of whom have worked with Abrams on Alias. Abrams explains, “Tom asked if I'd be interested in working with him again. I didn't have a sense of what the story would be, but very quickly this idea came to mind, and Tom reacted to it in a way that got me excited, and then we got André and Josh to come onboard, and they began developing the idea with us." Abrams assures us that the story is “so damn cool.”

In Abrams I trust, so if he thinks the film is going to be great even without him behind the lens, I’ll take his word for it. The big question now is whether or not Cruise will reprise his role as agent Ethan Hunt-- currently he's onboard just as a producer.