Just last month we told you that Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, The Avengers) had joined the cast of the Brad Bird (The Incredibles) directed fourth installment in the Mission: Impossible franchise. Renner will co-star alongside Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible IV.

Now, Deadline reports that Paula Patton (Swing Vote, Just Wright) has joined the cast, and will play a young operative who teams up with Tom Cruise‘s Ethan Hunt. Patton reportedly beat out Lauren German (The Divide) and Kristen Kreuk (Smallville, Chuck) for the role.

In other Mission: Impossible news…

We had previously reported the rumor that “the film may not be called Mission: Impossible IV. It’s possible that the title won’t even include the familiar moniker, much as Christopher Nolan‘s Batman sequel was simply titled The Dark Knight.” Deadline now states that Tom Cruise and producer J.J. Abrams have decided to remove the IV from the title, to ensure that audiences clearly recognize that the film is a reboot, which both parties intended when they first sat down to collaborate on the script.

Mission: Impossible IV Mission: Impossible is slated to hit theaters on December 16th, 2011.

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