How Watching ‘Mission: Impossible’ on TV Motivated ‘Kajillionaire’s’ Miranda July to Make a Heist Film for Women

TheGrill 2020: ”It was a fun challenge: could I make something emotionally resonant to me but still a heist film, dedicated to the con?“

Miranda July’s wanted to make the Sundance darling “Kajillionaire” because growing up, traditional heist stories like the “Mission: Impossible” TV series didn’t have a lot to offer for women, and she wanted to change that.

“I grew up watching a lot of ‘Mission: Impossible,’ the TV show, and I still love that language of high stakes, who is who, not quite understanding the con until the very, very end,” July told TheWrap’s Sharon Waxman during the annual media conference TheGrill on Wednesday. “I love that — it’s very innate to me. Though, ‘Mission: Impossible’ didn’t have a lot to offer a little girl or a grown woman. There’s not much there for me to relate to, so it was a fun challenge to see, could I make something emotionally resonant to me? I want be at the mercy of my script… but still a heist film, still to the end dedicated to the con.”

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Beatrice Verhoeven, PWS

Beatrice Verhoeven

Film Editor, Twitter: @bverhoev