What’s better for a new brand of car than a bunch of A-list celebrities choosing it as the vehicle of choice around Hollywood?  For BMW, the answer is simple: A starring role in the next blockbuster. 

While it may look more like the futuristic car driven by Chief John Anderton in the 2002 Sci-fi thriller Minority Report than a car available today, BMW bosses have secured its new 2013 BMW i8 Plug-in Hybrid sportscar a role in the new Mission Impossible Film. 

By a stroke of coincidence, both Minority Report’s hero John Anderton and Mission Impossible’s hero Ethan Hunt are played by the same man: Veteran Hollywood action hero Tom Cruise.

BMW press event introducing 'i' sub-brand, Munich, Feb 2011

BMW press event introducing 'i' sub-brand, Munich, Feb 2011

Powered by a twin electric motor drivetrain and a 1.5 liter turbo-charged Diesel engine, the 2013 BMW i8 will certainly make a brisk start off the line. Top speed is expected to be around 155 mph and 0-62 will take under 5 seconds. 

Price? At least $160,000. 

The announcement of the car’s involvement in the 15 year old Mission Impossible franchise is a significant boon for BMW, whose rather bland, austere unveiling of its new BMWi brand last week in Munich gave very little detail away about either the i8 or its smaller sibling, the all-electric i3.

Do we have any more details? Not at the moment, but as BMW hinted last week, expect to see more from both the i3 and the i8 at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. 

Of course, we’ll be bringing you the very latest from Geneva right here all week. Make sure you follow us on twitter for the very latest from the show. 

[TheSun.co.uk]