History Characters / MissionImpossibleFilmSeriesIMFLeadership

[[quoteright:300:[[labelnote:Click here to see him in ''Dead Reckoning Part One'']] https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/henry_czerny_mission_impossible_dead_reckoning_teaser_1653311959.jpg ''"This mission is going to cost you dearly."''[[/labelnote]]]]

* BastardlySpeech: He makes one to Hunt in ''Dead Reckoning Part One'' while trying to convince him to help the United States gain control of the Entity and use it to establish world domination, claiming that [[JustBeforeTheEnd ecological collapse is right around the corner and the world is going to go into a shooting war over the last few bits of usable resources before too long]]. A disgusted Hunt asks him [[LampshadeHanging if he's even listening to himself]].
* TheBusCameBack: After six films and twenty-seven years, Kittridge returns in ''Dead Reckoning Part One''.

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: In ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', [[spoiler:he wants the key to Sevastapol and the power that comes with it. While he understands Ethan's position of not wanting the Entity to fall into the wrong hands, he deems that the best way to do that is to ensure that ''he'' gets his hands on the key and nobody else, and he also won't let Ethan destroy it, either. To that end, he manipulates Ethan and his team to get it for him, not telling them about his amoral motives.]]

* HumiliationConga: He suffers this in ''Dead Reckoning Part One''. First, [[spoiler:he is intimidated and overpowered by Ethan after the latter disrupts an Intelligence meeting. ''Then'', Ethan knocks him unconscious with a TranquilizerDart. Later, he is deceived by Grace when she is disguised as the White Widow. Finally, he is verbally shut down by one of his subordinates when the latter [[IronicEcho tosses his words back in his face]]]].

** He still has shades of this in ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', though only for public-facing appearances -- he notes that he ''has to'' send the government after Ethan because the latter controls the Key. This includes sending a task force that includes Briggs and Dejas after Hunt.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: While his BastardlySpeech makes it clear that the amoral United States defense apparatus getting the ability to control the Entity would be a disaster for humanity as a whole, ''Dead Reckoning Part One'' still shows that Kittridge is [[MyCountryRightOrWrong doing evil for the sake of his country]], and he's the lesser evil for most of the film compared to the Entity and its [[MisanthropeSupreme pawn Gabriel]] running loose. [[spoiler: And it's worth noting that his own boss, the Director of National Intelligence, is hoping to collaborate with the Entity to [[DayOfTheJackboot purge the rest of the government of "old-fashioned thinking"]] and [[AmbitionIsEvil set himself up as dictator of the ultimate super-state]]; Kittridge isn't seeking the key out of personal ambitions.]]
* MissionControl: He is responsible for recording the mission briefings delivered to IMF operatives in the first film. And, despite being promoted to the director of the CIA by the time ''Dead Reckoning Part One'' begins, it's clear that he's ''still'' doing it, as he authorized two missions: one for a group of bounty hunters to find and kill Ilsa Faust and recover one-half of the cruciform key, and another to Ethan to find and do the same thing.

* PetTheDog: While he's still all business when dealing with her, the fact that [[spoiler:he knows Alanna/the White Widow since she was a young child under her mother's care means he's friendlier than usual when conducting business with her as an adult (or rather, Grace disguised as her). He's also quite affable towards Grace once she turns herself in at the end of ''Dead Reckoning Part One'' after she explains that Ethan told her that she can trust Kittridge and wishes to officially join the IMF, a proposal that Kittridge takes into consideration despite Grace's shady background.]]

* RankUp: By the time of ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', he's been promoted to the Director of Central Intelligence, replacing Erica Sloane.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Played with. Initially suspects Ethan of being the mole, but after Ethan proves Phelps is the mole, helps to take him down. Zigzagged in ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', where he's one of the government officials trying to get control of the Entity and use it to establish world domination, even if he's firmly ALighterShadeOfBlack compared to the Entity itself [[spoiler: and the Director of National Intelligence who's hoping to use it to fulfill his ''personal'' ambitions of world domination.]]

%%*ScareEmStraight: Was initially on board with mainlining the Entity for American interests, but almost [[spoiler:getting killed by it near the end of the first ''Dead Reckoning'' movie]] shows him both how powerful it is and how terrifying it can be to be targeted by it.

* TeethClenchedTeamwork: As seen in the first film and ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', Kittridge and Ethan don't like each other but understand that they both have the same ultimate goal.

!!!'''Appearances:''' ''[[Film/MissionImpossible1996 Mission: Impossible]]'' | ''Film/MissionImpossibleDeadReckoningPartOne''

!!!'''Dubbed in French By:''' Jean-Daniel Nicodème

* HeroAntagonist: He genuinely believes that Ethan is the mole. [[spoiler:Upon learning that Ethan was framed and that Phelps is the real mole, Kittridge works with Ethan to take Phelps down. Decades later, he ends up being this once again as he tries to stop Ethan from getting the key to Sevastapol and destroy the Entity before the U.S. could make use of it.]]

* TheMole: Suspected to be one in the first film, but is proven not to be.

!!!'''Dubbed in French By:''' Creator/BernardDheran

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: [[spoiler:To Jim Phelps. They're both moles who betrayed the IMF and were close friends with Ethan before their {{Face Heel Turn}}s, but Phelps is motivated by greed and his disillusionment with the U.S. Musgrave on the other hand is an self-proclaimed patriot and KnightTemplar motivated by a sense of nationalism. Where Phelps held no illusions about being a traitor, Musgrave still views himself as loyal to the IMF, and simply as working around an incompetent administration.]]
* EnemyMine: [[spoiler:He considers Davian to be a disposable criminal (referring to him as "a cockroach"), and is only using him to create chaos with the rabbit's foot as a pretense to start a war in the Middle East.]]

* FauxAffablyEvil: [[spoiler:Musgrave seems like a nice guy and a loyal friend, but in reality he's a ruthless nationalist who wants to escalate the War on Terror so the US can take over the Middle East.]]

** [[spoiler:He helped Davian capture Farris because she had realized there was a mole in the IMF, although Musgrave's intention was not to kill her and he tried to convince her Brassel was the mole so it wouldn't be necessary.]]

* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler:Musgrave exploits Ethan's disregard for authority and desire to save Julia to frame him as TheMole by letting him escape, and keep Brassel off his tracks.]]

* SmugSnake: [[spoiler:After being revealed to be EvilAllAlong, Musgrave is quite smug and condescending towards Ethan. He makes an effort to be friendly, but it's obviously forced to an extent and he clearly believes Ethan can't do anything to stop him. [[UnderestimatingBadassery He pays dearly for this.]]]]

!!!'''Dubbed in French By:''' Creator/PaulBorne

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Sadly never seen again after III. The head of the IMF in ''Ghost Protocol'' is the unnamed Secretary played by Creator/TomWilkinson.

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: [[spoiler:To Jim Phelps. They're both moles who betrayed the IMF and were close friends with Ethan before their {{Face Heel Turn}}s, but Phelps is motivated by greed and job burnout. Musgrave on the other hand is an avowed patriot and WellIntentionedExtremist motivated by a sense of nationalism; he still views himself as loyal to the IMF, and simply as working around an incompetent administration.]]

!!!'''Dubbed in French By:''' Bernard Lanneau

* WellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler:He doesn't see himself as a traitor or rogue agent like Jim Phelps, Ambrose, Solomon Lane, or John Lark. He's just carrying out a FalseFlagOperation he feels his superiors lack the spine to approve, all to pave the way for "democracy to win" in the Middle East.]]

'''Musgrave:''' I thought you could get her back. But I wasn't gonna let Brassel or all people undo the work I've done. I took action, Ethan, [[PatrioticFervor on behalf of the working families of our country. The Armed Forces, the White House.]] I'd had enough of Brassel and his sanctimony IMF executive director. [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain He's an affirmative action poster boy.]] You grab Davian like he wanted, then what? Davian's a weed. You cut him out, two more spring up like him the next day. You arrest him, then what? [[EnemyMine You use him.]] ''[[EnemyMine Collaborate]]'' [[EnemyMine with him.]] And it's Christmas.]]

* EvilColonialist: [[spoiler:Musgrave's plan is to kickstart a war in the Middle East do the US will take over the region and rebuilt it to their liking as an American colony in all but name.]]

* HumiliationConga: He suffers this in ''Dead Reckoning Part One''. First, [[spoiler: He is intimidated and overpowered by Ethan after the latter disrupts an Intelligence meeting. ''Then'', Ethan knocks him unconscious with a TranquilizerDart. Later, he is deceived by Grace when she is disguised as the White Widow. Finally, he is verbally shut down by one of his subordinates when the latter [[IronicEcho tosses his words back in his face]]]].

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: In ''Dead Reckoning Part One'', [[spoiler:he wants the key to Sevastapol and the power that comes with it. While he understands Ethan's position of not wanting the Entity to fall into the wrong hands, he deems that the best way to do that is to ensure that ''he'' gets his hands on the key and nobody else, and he also won't let Ethan destroys it, either. To that end, he manipulates Ethan and his team to get it for him, not telling them about his amoral motives.]]

* BastardlySpeech: He makes one to Hunt in ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'' while trying to convince him to help the United States gain control of the Entity and use it to establish world domination, claiming that [[JustBeforeTheEnd ecological collapse is right around the corner and the world is going to go into a shooting war over the last few bits of usable resources before too long]]. A disgusted Hunt asks him [[LampshadeHanging if he's even listening to himself]].
* TheBusCameBack: After six films and twenty-seven years, Kittridge returns in ''Dead Reckoning, Part One''.

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: In ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'', [[spoiler:he wants the key to Sevastapol and the power that comes with it. While he understands Ethan's position of not wanting the Entity to fall into the wrong hands, he deems that the best way to do that is to ensure that ''he'' gets his hands on the key and nobody else, and he also won't let Ethan destroys it, either. To that end, he manipulates Ethan and his team to get it for him, not telling them about his amoral motives.]]

* HumiliationConga: He suffers this in ''Dead Reckoning: Part 1''. First, [[spoiler: He is intimidated and overpowered by Ethan after the latter disrupts an Intelligence meeting. ''Then'', Ethan knocks him unconscious with a TranquilizerDart. Later, he is deceived by Grace when she is disguised as the White Widow. Finally, he is verbally shut down by one of his subordinates when the latter [[IronicEcho tosses his words back in his face]]]].

** He still has shades of this in ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'', though only for public-facing appearances -- he notes that he ''has to'' send the government after Ethan because the latter controls the Key. This includes sending a task force that includes Briggs and Dejas after Hunt.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: While his BastardlySpeech makes it clear that the amoral United States defense apparatus getting the ability to control the Entity would be a disaster for humanity as a whole, ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'' still shows that Kittridge is [[MyCountryRightOrWrong doing evil for the sake of his country]], and he's the lesser evil for most of the film compared to the Entity and its [[MisanthropeSupreme pawn Gabriel]] running loose. [[spoiler: And it's worth noting that his own boss, the Director of National Intelligence, is hoping to collaborate with the Entity to [[DayOfTheJackboot purge the rest of the government of "old-fashioned thinking"]] and [[AmbitionIsEvil set himself up as dictator of the ultimate super-state]]; Kittridge isn't seeking the key out of personal ambitions.]]
* MissionControl: He is responsible for recording the mission briefings delivered to IMF operatives in the first film. And, despite being promoted to the director of the CIA by the time ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'' begins, it's clear that he's ''still'' doing it, as he authorized two missions: one for a group of bounty hunters to find and kill Ilsa Faust and recover one-half of the cruciform key, and another to Ethan to find and do the same thing.

* PetTheDog: While he's still all business when dealing with her, the fact that [[spoiler:he knows Alanna/the White Widow since she was a young child under her mother's care means he's friendlier than usual when conducting business with her as an adult (or rather, Grace disguised as her). He's also quite affable towards Grace once she turns herself in at the end of ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'' after she explains that Ethan told her that she can trust Kittridge and wishes to officially join the IMF, a proposal that Kittridge takes into consideration despite Grace's shady background.]]

* RankUp: By the time of ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'', he's been promoted to the Director of Central Intelligence, replacing Erica Sloane.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Played with. Initially suspects Ethan of being the mole, but after Ethan proves Phelps is the mole, helps to take him down. Zigzagged in ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'', where he's one of the government officials trying to get control of the Entity and use it to establish world domination, even if he's firmly ALighterShadeOfBlack compared to the Entity itself [[spoiler: and the Director of National Intelligence who's hoping to use it to fulfill his ''personal'' ambitions of world domination.]]

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's rude, blunt, and refuses to mince words, but in the end Brassel isn't a bad guy. He's quite nice to employees that have earned his respect, and he simo,y refuses to tolerate incompetence in a business where mistakes get people killed.

!!!'''Dubbed in French By:''' Paul Borne

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: [[spoiler:To Jim Phelps. They're both moles who betrayed the IMF and were close friends with Ethan before their FaceHeelTurn{{s}}, but Phelps is motivated by greed and job burnout. Musgrave on the other hand is an avowed patriot and WellIntentionedExtremist motivated by a sense of nationalism; he still views himself as loyal to the IMF, and simply as working around an incompetent administration.]]

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Played with. Initially suspects Ethan of being the mole, but after Ethan proves Phelps is the mole, helps to take him down. Zigzagged in ''Dead Reckoning, Part One'', where he's one of the government officials trying to get control of the Entity and use it for its own ends, even if he's firmly ALighterShadeOfBlack compared to the Entity itself [[spoiler: and the Director of National Intelligence who's hoping to use it to fulfill his ''personal'' ambitions of world domination.]]

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Played with. Initially suspects Ethan of being the mole, but after Ethan proves Phelps is the mole, helps to take him down.

* ScareEmStraight: Was initially on board with mainlining the Entity for American interests, but almost [[spoiler:getting killed by it near the end of the first ''Dead Reckoning'' movie]] shows him both how powerful it is and how terrifying it can be to be targeted by it.

* FriendlyEnemy: [[spoiler:He remains friendly to Ethan after revealing he's TheMole.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Our business is intelligence. So far I have not seen any."'']]

* SupportingLeader: He's Ethan's direct superior, although Brassel has authority over him, and is responsible for assigning Ethan his missions. However, Ethan is clearly the protagonist and keeps Musgrave out of the loop for certain operations to protect him from any blowback.

* ContrastingSequelAnatagonist: [[spoiler:To Jim Phelps. They're both moles who betrayed the IMF and were close friends with Ethan before their FaceHeelTurn{{s}}, but Phelps is motivated by greed and job burnout. Musgrave on the other hand is an avowed patriot and WellIntentionedExtremist motivated by a sense of nationalism; he still views himself as loyal to the IMF, and simply as working around an incompetent administration.]]