Rebecca Ferguson says new "Mission: Impossible" film "goes beyond" in terms of action, emotion

The new "Mission: Impossible" movie brings audiences even more action and emotion than previous films in the franchise, said Rebecca Ferguson, who plays former British MI6 agent Ilsa Faust in the film.

Ferguson said Monday on "CBS Mornings" that while she expects "Mission" films to be incredible, intense and action-packed, the latest installment in the series — "Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One" — "goes beyond" action-wise and emotionally. 

The film is set to hit theaters this Wednesday, July 12. It is a production of Paramount Pictures, a division of CBS News' parent company. Its highly-anticipated release follows a four-year gap since the release of the previous installment, "Mission: Impossible – Fallout."  

Ferguson said that working with Tom Cruise — who produces and stars in the film as Ethan Hunt — has had an impact on her professionally, even outside the franchise. 

"Tom brings the best every single day and he expects the best, and not in a hard whipping kind of way," Ferguson said. "Just in a, 'you have been given a platter of training, of knowledge, so give it when it's given,' and I know that I expect the same on a show that I produce. I want the best."

In the "Mission" films, her character and Cruise's character maintain a "will they or won't they" tension that captivates audiences and leaves room for interpretation. Ferguson said she finds what keeps the characters apart "attractive and interesting." 

"Tom and I ... never talk about them as an item. But I guess when we watch the film, they're so similar. They fight the same cause and yet, you have yourself constantly saying, 'But why? Why are we doing this? We could run away,'" she said, "There's so much connection between them. But is it sibling? Family? love? What is it? It's humanity." 

For Ferguson, the film's release this week is daunting, but also exciting, she said. 

"Also, it's that treat of giving the audience something that I know that I loved before I was in it," she said. "I waited for 'Mission: Impossible.' I loved them."

"Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One" hits U.S. theaters on Wednesday, July 12. Deadline calls it "Hollywood action filmmaking at its peak" and The Hollywood Reporter praises director Christopher McQuarrie's ability to keep "his audience glued to every moment." Re-watch all the movies in the famous franchise starring Tom Cruise now on Paramount+ ahead of the new stunt-filled installment.