The venerable metal outfit has completed a new studio track which is intended for possible use on the soundtrack to "Mission Impossible 2," tentatively due out in the spring.

A publicist for Elektra Records indicated to MTV News that the new Metallica song was "in the can" but hadn't yet been accepted for use in the John Woo-directed sequel, which will once again feature Tom Cruise starring as U.S. espionage agent Ethan Hunt.

The rep also could not confirm reports that Cruise had met with Metallica in New York City when the band played a symphonic gig at Madison Square Garden back in November.

Metallica's "Mission Impossible 2" song will mark a new avenue of sorts for the group, as it will be the first time that Metallica has specifically written music for a motion picture.

However, the group did allow its music to be used in the 1996 documentary "Paradise Lost," which examined the questionable conviction

of three youths for a grisly triple murder in West Memphis, Arkansas.

Metallica also permitted D.J. Spooky to remix its 1984 song, "For Whom The Bell Tolls," for the soundtrack to the 1997 live-action "Spawn" film, subtitling the track "(The Irony Of It All).

For a recent interview with Lars Ulrich, including a discussion of Metallica's soundtrack exploits, check out the MTV News Online feature "Metallica: S&M And Beyond."