LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Tom Cruise is all set to return as Ethan Hunt upon the release of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ scheduled to hit theatres on July 12. While ‘Mission 7’ initially booked the majority of IMAX screens for its July 12 premiere, Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ reserved all IMAX screens in North America and other territories for a three-week run after its July 21 premiere.

Several reports suggested that the situation prompted Cruise to attempt to move the dates of ‘Oppenheimer’ to avoid the clash. As the release dates remained unchanged, Puck News reported that the actor was pushing exhibitors to put ‘Mission 7’ ahead of Nolan’s film on at least large-format screens after losing three weeks of IMAX exclusivity. Back in 2006, the third installment of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise also made news for embracing a unique tool as part of its promotional campaign in Los Angeles that triggered a bomb scare.

What was 'bomb scare' promo campaign?

Ahead of the 2006 release of ‘Mission: Impossible III,’ some people discovered a suspicious red plastic box attached with wires to a news rack in Santa Clarita, California. The device sparked enough panic among residents for the LA County sheriff's bomb squad to respond to the situation. It was eventually revealed that the device was part of a viral marketing campaign to promote ‘Mission III’.

Reports suggest that there were a total of 4,500 similar devices designed as promotional tools for the movie, meant to be found by unsuspecting people. The early 2000s is known for such unique marketing campaigns amid a boom of Alternate Reality Games to promote films such as ‘A.I. Artificial Intelligence’ and ‘The Dark Knight.’ The same strategy was embraced by Paramount and the Los Angeles Times to execute their “singing news rack” campaign for ‘Mission: Impossible III.’

The red plastic boxes were actually a “digital musical device” that was designed to play the ‘Mission: Impossible’ theme song when a patron opened the news rack. The promotional tool was created to make an “extraordinary mission” out of the “everyday news rack experience,” as per officials of The Los Angeles Times.

What was the impact of the campaign?

On April 28, 2006, during the Santa Clarita campaign, a resident called authorities to report a suspicious device attached to The Los Angeles Times coin machine at the intersection of Sand Canyon and Soledad Canyon. The call prompted a response from the bomb squad, who eventually blew up the news rack.

Another one of the devices were discovered at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in West Los Angeles. Reports suggest that the incident prompted authorities to evacuate the medical centre, leaving 300 people and patients displaced. The impact of what started as a harmless and fun promotional campaign compelled the marketing team behind ‘Mission: Impossible III’ to rethink their strategy.

It is likely that Paramount even faced the threat of legal action, per Film Stories. Nearly eight months after the 'bomb scare' incidents, the movie studio allegedly received the warning of a possible federal lawsuit by assistant US attorney Linda Kontos, with the cost of damages to the Medical Center alone being over $92,855, the outlet reported. It is not known whether matters were eventually settled out of court.