Paramount has released the first trailer for Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, the fourth entry in the spy franchise. The trailer is pretty much everything you want out of a Mission: Impossible movie, and it looks like it could be the best yet. The action looks great without being cheesy or showy, and the cast assembled here is top-notch. Plus, freaking Brad Bird (Ratatouille) is making his live-action directorial debut.

Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, and Ving Rhames reprise their series roles, joined by Jeremy Renner, Josh Holloway, Anil Kapoor, Léa Seydoux, and Vladimir Mashkov. Mission: Impossible III director J.J. Abrams is on board as producer.  Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol opens on December 16.  Watch the trailer after the jump.

[Update: We've updated the article with some official images from the film as well]

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Here's the trailer (via the film's official site):

Here are the images:

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Here’s the official synopsis:

Director Brad Bird and Producer J.J. Abrams bring us the action packed, entertainment event of the holiday season with MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL. This is not just another mission. The IMF is shut down when it’s implicated in a global terrorist bombing plot. Ghost Protocol is initiated and Ethan Hunt and his rogue new team must go undercover to clear their organization’s name. No help, no contact, off the grid. You have never seen a mission grittier and more intense than this.