Everything you were, everything youve done, comes down to this, intones the mysterious voiceover in the latest Mission: Impossible The Final Reckoning trailer. To underscore the finality of this eighth and last entry of the franchise, the promo features shots from previous films, namely Tom Cruises Ethan Hunt plummeting to the floor during the break-in of the CIA computer room.That callback makes sense, given how much the break-in sequence permeated popular culture. However, more curious is a shot in the present of Ethan staring intently at a knife in his hands.That knife is in the style of the weapons used by Franz Krieger (Jean Reno), the pilot who joined Ethans ad hoc team in the first Mission: Impossible. Like the reliable Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), Krieger had a checkered past that made Ethan and the audience mistrust him. While Luther proved to be perhaps the most reliable man in the entire world, Krieger turned on Ethan and joined Jim Phelps (Jon Voight) to kill off the hero. Krieger drove a chopper through the Chunnel, where he and Phelps tried to finish off Ethan during the climactic scene of the first Mission: Impossible. Pulling the explosive gum he previously used to escape IMF director Kittridge (Henry Czerny), Cruise blows up the chopper, apparently killing Krieger and Phelps.So if Kriegers long gone, then why is Ethan staring at his knife? The simple answer ties into a casting announcement from 2023, when director Christopher McQuarrie revealed that Rolf Saxon would return as William Donloe, the beleaguered CIA analyst present during the first movies heist. In fact, McQuarrie revealed that Donloe, a computer expert, was transferred to Alaska after the IMF team broke into the computer room under his watch.The original break-in sequence ends with Krieger dropping a knife, which lands on Donloes table, where the analyst finds it. Given that Donloe is something of a computer expert and that Dead Reckoning Part One and The Final Reckoning pit Hunt and co. against a rogue AI called the Entity, the knife sure feels like a warning for the IMF. Donloe may be telling Ethan that he created the Entity as revenge for them making him throw up a bunch way back in the first film.Neat callback, yes, but that feels pretty anticlimactic for the true villain behind the last two Mission: Impossible movies. After all, Donloe was mostly a comedic character, a guy who kept puking when he tried to return to his office. He doesnt scream author of all your pain.Could the knife actually point to its original owner, Krieger? Yes, it sure looked like Krieger blew up in the first movie, but we didnt actually see a body. And with the exception of Jim Phelps, Krieger would be a great way to tie up the series by going back to the beginning. Its also worth mentioning that this is the same style knife used to kill members of Ethans original IMF team in the first film, which makes its return in the new sequel all the more ominous. Is Krieger back to finish the job?Well find out whats what when Mission: Impossible The Final Reckoning hits theaters on May 23.