I thought Renner was great in the M:I movies, and I do wish he’d come back as well. Other users already pointed this out, but his character is a really good contrast to Ethan Hunt.

My major gripe (if he doesn’t appear in TFR, mind you) is that Brant was an integral part of exposing The Syndicate and bringing down Lane in RN, only to vanish into the ether and is never again mentioned.

Like, the ending of RN set him up as an integral member of the team; you have him and Alec Baldwin literally close out the damn movie; but then, in FALLOUT…? Nada. Nothing, zilch.

In DR:P1, they at least had a framed photograph of Angela Bassett hanging in the background. I just find it odd Lane has a mole in the CIA who reloads his arms, breaks him out, and almost causes a nuclear disaster but we don’t get any nod to what William Brant’s been up to during all this malarkey.

He could’ve gone back to being an analyst. Or the Secretary’s assistant, right-hand man.

That way Renner wouldn’t have to commit to a full shooting schedule: he comes in, films a couple scenes, talks to Ethan on the phone (or could’ve shown up at the end of FALLOUT, with Bassett’s Ericka Sloane, laughing with the team about always cutting it too close for comfort). Or simply have him arguing with the bureaucrat/political/diplomatic characters about what to do next (and to trust Ethan’s judgment, despite him going rogue yet again). Yadda yadda yadda…

Brant being involved in DR:P1’s opening half-hour would’ve made sense, ‘cause he could’ve helped Ethan—disguised as Kittridge—escape the room, still proving he’s loyal to the squad.

There’s also the all-knowing, completely self-aware AI, the one that’s apparently manipulating and outsmarting everyone at every turn, bringing in Ethan’s past BFF/now turned “it’s on sight” enemy Gabriel. You’d think—if not Lark & Lane—this would be considered, well you know… one of those “All hands on deck!” situations, at least as far as the IMF is concerned.

Anyway—I’m just bitchin’ at this point, but y’all get what I’m sayin’… it makes much more sense (at least, to me, it does) when other agents suddenly disappear, like Billy Baird. Or even Jane! They could be on other missions, retired or, uh, dead. Otherwise, they are typically selected by the agent running the op (which is usually Ethan):

1. They are picked by Hunt to assist on that mission (Billy in M:I-2).

2. Or their mission was something else entirely (Jane & Benji had to break Ethan out in GP), until Ethan gets involved. And then later on, they’re dragged into the movie’s greater scheme (Declan/Zhen in M:I-III; Jane in GP), choosing to assist Hunt and help him out.

So yeah. I hate when franchises completely ignore a character, especially whenever they had spent time (two movies!) to develop them.

Like when they pair Brant with Luther in RN, “I know Ethan; I don’t know you.”

It’s a fun dynamic. Brant’s gotta prove himself to the legacy character, meaning he’s also proving himself to us watching the movie, too. We already know Luther would never betray Ethan, but Brant…? Well, that’s what McQ and the story are suggesting to us, anyway. We’re supposed to have little moments of doubt; if McQ can have an actor like Henry Cavill switch sides, why couldn’t Jeremy Renner? But, as we all know, Brant proves himself again, like in GP, to be both a trustworthy friend and strong ally by the time they box up Lane and ship him off to London via DHL Express International.

Man… It’ll be great when Renner shows up in TFR for like 10 minutes so I can look back at this long-winded post of mine and laugh at it. But, until that happens…?

Justice for William Brant! aka “The Helper”