4. Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson)
No one has provided a better foil for Hunt, or a better match for the gravity well around Cruise’s onscreen presence, than Rebecca Ferguson. Her double-crossing femme fatale Ilsa Faust consistently keeps everyone off balance, bringing an undercurrent of chaos and intrigue to every scene she’s a part of. Ferguson also managed to go three movies without ever fading into the background as simply another prop to assist in Cruise’s one-man action star show. She’s the cold, unbending edge the series sometimes lacks, and the only person who managed to consistently keep up with Cruise and often outpace him. It’s a crime she won’t be back for Final Reckoning. – Ethan Gach
