Pom Klementieff Is the Most Likable Villain Ever in 'Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 1'

This interview took place before SAG-AFTRA strike activity.

While villains typically tend to be unanimously reviled characters — from Scar and Pennywise to Hannibal Lecter — the best actors find a way to make even the worst bad guys likable. In the seventh installment of Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible series (Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One, currently in theaters), Pom Klementieff plays the fiery Paris, whose sole directive is to sabotage everybody else’s efforts (by all means necessary — and we mean all means) to retrieve a key that unlocks an all-powerful artificial intelligence nicknamed "The Entity." 

And yet, the audience can’t help but fall in love with the rambunctious French firecracker, whose grunge-inspired outfits, platinum bob haircut, and intricate fight sequences make her the film’s resident cool girl. 

“She's on a path of destruction and you're still rooting for her, like, ‘I love this girl,’” Klementieff tells InStyle about her character, a Harley Quinn type who drops roundhouse kicks in plaid miniskirts and runs a military-grade tank through the tourist-filled streets of Venice, Italy, with a maniacal smile on her face. Her character is a woman of few words, relying on action and fashion to speak for her, which Klementieff calls “freeing, because it was just all about behavior and all about just movement.”

She also says she drew inspiration from iconic silent characters of the past, played by some of the greats like Clint Eastwood, Japanese comedian Takeshi Kitano, and French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo.

“But the beauty of it is that when she speaks, everyone listens,” she adds. 

Klementieff is no stranger to the genre, with a stacked résumé that includes high-action projects like Thunder Force (starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer) and Guardians of the Galaxy. Although Paris is a far cry from her beloved Marvel character Mantis, likability is something Klementieff excels at bringing to her characters both good and bad. She also appeared as Haeng-Bok in Spike Lee's 2013 mystery Old Boy alongside Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, Samuel L. Jackson, and Michael Imperioli.

The latest installment of the wildly popular franchise — which also marks the series’s second-to-last volume (Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 2 is slated to hit theaters next summer) — delivers all the makings of the espionage franchise that loyal fans have come to know and love: action-packed scenes, over-the-top fight sequences, and the thrill of taking on things that are, well, impossible.

“It was such an honor to join this franchise,” Klementieff gushes. “I've been a fan since I was a child, so I saw all the other movies so many times. It was just incredible to get to work on this movie and to work with Tom and McQ [director Christopher McQuarrie].”

But this film is also sure to draw in a whole new generation with its reinvented approach to the spy movie, which weaves together modern technological advancements (we’re talking an AI entity that has the world’s superpowers clamoring for control), moments of comedic relief, a whirlwind romance, and a set of new characters, like Paris and Grace (played by fellow Marvel alumnae Hayley Atwell). Even moviegoers who aren’t die-hard Mission: Impossible fans can prepare to be captivated for the film’s entire 2 hour and 43 minute run, which seems long, but is stacked with exciting content from start to finish. In other words, it’s quite literally a movie that feels like a real movie (thank you, Harry Styles, for these profound words) and deserves to be experienced in theaters.

“There's some lightness to it and there's drama. Sometimes it's rom-com, sometimes it's film noir. It's so many things at the same time,” Klementieff says, explaining the film’s diverse landscape. “I think this movie is so rich, it feels like several movies at the same time in several genres at the same time. There's also some very charming and funny moments, right? With Ethan [Cruise] and Grace. as well, you see a comedy that you haven't seen in the previous movies.”

Unlike the majority of action movies, M:I 7 taps into current style trends for costuming (something for the fashion girlies) — especially when it comes to Paris and her punk-rock aesthetic. Klementieff worked with the movie’s costume designer, Jill Taylor, to develop something “fresh and different” for the rebellious character while also keeping her “grounded” during her intense action sequences.

“We're going to bring something different for this character, some vibe that was a little bit more punk, which is cool to do, because I think it was really different from the other female characters from the franchise,” she says. “What was very important to me is that she was not wearing heels because she knows she's going to fight, so wearing heels just doesn't make sense.”

During one scene, Paris, along with everyone else searching for the coveted key, attends a party at a nightclub in Venice. Paris’s makeup look, which included a drawn-on white mask with a black teardrop, was influenced by the 17th century pantomime staple Pierrot from the commedia dell'arte.

“It's kind of cute but creepy at the same time,” she said describing Paris’s less-than-incognito ensemble. “[There’s] something melancholic about the teardrop that really connected with the character, that made sense.”

Klementieff admits that her style IRL isn’t that entirely different from her latest on-screen persona. ”My style is eclectic and it depends on the mood, but for everyday, of course it's going to be more relaxed and more chill. But, for events I like to have fun and just take risks.”

The actress arrived at the movie’s Seoul, South Korea, premiere in a head-turning strapless leather gown made from motorcycle gear (found by her stylist Jonathan Huguet), which she paired with platform boots and a slicked-back hairdo that included nail embellishments, executed by her hairstylist Marcia Lee. 

“It's fun to do things that are unexpected, go from one vibe to another, and not take it too seriously,” she says. “Life is short and you want to have a good time too, so I do that with fashion, as well.”

Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 1 is in theaters now.