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As students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taugh... Read all As students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom. As students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.

• Jack Epps Jr.
• Tim Robbins
• Kelly McGillis
• 853 User reviews
• 192 Critic reviews
• 50 Metascore
• 11 wins & 9 nominations total

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• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Who Was Almost Cast in 'Top Gun'?

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• Trivia Stunt pilot Art Scholl was killed during the production of the movie, aged 54. He died when his Pitts S-2 camera plane failed to recover from a flat spin and plunged into the Pacific Ocean. Scholl's last words over the radio were "I have a problem - I have a real problem." The exact cause of the crash was never determined, and neither the aircraft nor Scholl's body were ever recovered. The film is dedicated to him.
• Goofs The term "bogey" is misused throughout the movie. A bogey is an unidentified aircraft. Once identified, it is referred to as a "friendly" (for friendly aircraft), "bandit" (for non-friendly aircraft) or "hostile" (for non-friendly aircraft that may be fired at). In USN terminology, a non-friendly surface radar contact is a "skunk".

Iceman : You! You are still dangerous. But you can be my wingman any time.

Maverick : Bullshit! You can be mine.

• Crazy credits The opening credits sequence features a history of the Top Gun program before the title of the film appears on screen, with the remainder of the opening credits devoted to footage of planes being launched from and landing on an aircraft carrier.
• Alternate versions The version of the film shown on the Paramount Network has nearly all of the profane language intact (basically everything but the word "shit"). However, this version also randomly cuts out several scenes and parts of scenes, presumably to fit in the network time slot allotted. Scenes missing altogether include (but are certainly not limited to) Maverick and Goose conversing in their housing regarding whether or not they'll graduate, and Jester and Viper conversing, with Viper revealing hew knew Maverick's "old man." The latter is especially surprising considering this plot point plays a major role in a later scene.
• Connections Edited into MacGyver: GX-1 (1987)
• Soundtracks Danger Zone Written by Giorgio Moroder & Tom Whitlock Performed by Kenny Loggins Produced by Giorgio Moroder Kenny Loggins courtesy of CBS Records

User reviews 853

• Jun 13, 2014

Everything New on Prime Video in April

• How long is Top Gun? Powered by Alexa
• What military conflict is going on in the movie? Is there an actual war, or just one isolated incident against Soviet fighter planes for some reason?
• What is Top Gun about?
• The soundtrack has a song called "Through The Fire" but does that song actually appear in the movie?
• May 16, 1986 (United States)
• United States
• 102 Pacific Street, Oceanside, California, USA (Charlie's house)
• Paramount Pictures
• Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $15,000,000 (estimated)
• $180,258,178
• May 18, 1986
• $357,288,178

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 49 minutes
• Dolby Stereo
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Digital EX
• Dolby Atmos

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‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Review: Tom Cruise Takes to the Skies, Literally, in Barrier-Breaking Sequel

Reteaming with 'Oblivion' director Joseph Kosinski, the perfectionist producer-star insists on flying his own planes in this stunning follow-up.

By Peter Debruge

Peter Debruge

Chief Film Critic

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The world is not the same place it was in 1986, when “Top Gun” ruled the box office. In Ronald Reagan, America had a movie star for a president, and producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson as its honorary ministers of propaganda. The same year that “Platoon” challenged the United States’ militaristic track record, “Top Gun” sold a thrilling if narrow-minded fantasy of American exceptionalism — of boys and their toys, of macho-man bromance and what it means to be the best. Three years after Tom Cruise flipped the bird to a Russian MiG fighter plane, the Berlin Wall fell. Two years later, the Soviet Union collapsed.

One could argue that our new, post-Cold War world didn’t need a “Top Gun” sequel. (Tom Cruise himself once insisted as much.) But one would be wrong to do so. Building on the three-parts-steel-to-one-part-corn equation that director Tony Scott so effectively set 36 years earlier, the new film more than merits its existence, mirroring Cruise’s character, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, in pushing the limits of what the machine could do — the machine in this case being cinema, which takes to the skies as no blockbuster has before.

Hardly anything in “ Top Gun: Maverick ” will surprise you, except how well it does nearly all the things audiences want and expect it to do. Orchestrated by Joseph Kosinski — the dynamo who collaborated with Cruise on “Oblivion” and first worked with Miles Teller on 2017’s terrific, underseen firefighter drama “Only the Brave” — to appeal to veterans and neophytes alike, this high-performance follow-up sends Maverick back to the Topgun program, where he won the heart of Charlie (Kelly McGillis) and lost best friend Goose (Anthony Edwards).

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Flashbacks notwithstanding, neither of those actors is in this movie, though the screenplay — a tag-team effort between Christopher McQuarrie (Cruise’s guy), Eric Warren Singer (Kosinski’s guy) and Ehren Kruger (yikes) — just about resurrects Goose via his now-adult son, Bradley Bradshaw (Teller), call sign “Rooster.” (“Phoenix” would be more apt, but that tag goes to Monica Barbaro, playing the lone woman in this testosterone pool.) The resemblance between Rooster and his late dad is uncanny, courtesy of a goofy moustache, some hair gel and a scene in which the young pilot pounds out “Great Balls of Fire” on the Hard Deck piano, the way Goose once did.

The Hard Deck is now operated by a character from Maverick’s past, Penny Benjamin ( Jennifer Connelly ), although she was only referenced in passing before: In “Top Gun,” Maverick is chewed out by his superior officer for having “a history of high-speed passes over five air control towers — and one admiral’s daughter!” Penny is that daughter: strong, independent and responsible for a daughter of her own (not Maverick’s, and too young to be his love interest). Cruise’s character has matured on the womanizing front, and the movie provides a shallow yet satisfying romantic subplot between him and Penny, which gives him something to come home for, since his daredevil tendencies otherwise give off strong kamikaze vibes.

In theory, Maverick should have graduated Topgun and gone back to teach what he’d learned to other Navy pilots. But after losing his flying partner, the character wound up being more of a loner — or so we learn, catching up with him all these years later, working as a test pilot and stuck at the rank of captain. Following a nostalgia-baiting aircraft carrier landing montage, wherein “Top Gun” theme “Danger Zone” blazes once again, Kosinski tracks Maverick to the Mojave Desert, still living up to his nickname when he takes a multimillion-dollar piece of government equipment — a supersonic, SR-71 Blackbird-style (fictional) Darkstar jet — out for a speed test.

Showing up as none-too-amused Navy brass, Ed Harris arrives just in time to eat a face full of sand as Maverick takes off at rocket speed, gently pushing the plane to Mach 10. (As a point of reference, the F-14s seen in “Top Gun” top out around Mach 2.) It’s a glorious scene, and one that melds everything Maverick once represented with Cruise’s own off-screen personality — which also explains all the self-driven motorcycle rides. The stunt nearly gets Maverick kicked out of the Navy. His only option: Go back to the training academy, where Tom “Iceman” Kazansky (Val Kilmer) is now filling Tom Skerritt/Viper’s shoes.

The script incorporates Kilmer’s throat cancer, such that Iceman has just one scene, communicating mostly by keyboard — but it’s a smart one, paying off the way the dynamic between these two ex-rivals has evolved. Considering the importance Goose and Rooster play in this next mission, which involves a near-impossible airstrike on a uranium plant, it would’ve been nice to see Meg Ryan return as the widow/mom, but the rules are cruel when it comes to aging female actors. Meanwhile, we can talk about all the cosmetic ways Cruise and Kilmer’s faces have evolved, although there’s only one change that matters: Cruise has perfected that little jaw-clenching trick that signifies “This is a really tough call.”

He won’t get an Oscar for pantomiming such swallow-your-pride stoicism, though Cruise deserves one for everything else the role demanded of him: If the flying scenes here blow your mind, it’s because a great many of them are the real deal, putting audiences right there in the cockpit alongside a cast who learned to pilot for their parts. The idea here is that Maverick has been grounded, relegated to coaching a dozen top-of-their-class hotshots, though he takes to the skies right away, trumping all of these aces in a series of adrenaline-fueled drills. Not a one of these students is convincing as a Navy pilot, though their personalities win us over all the same (even Glen Powell’s alpha-male “Hangman,” who serves as this movie’s Iceman equivalent), and once can imagine future spinoffs involving any of these characters.

“Top Gun” has always been “The Tom Cruise Show,” and no one believes for a second that Maverick won’t maneuver his way into flying the climactic mission. But he can’t do it alone: The operation calls for perfectly coordinated teamwork among six pilots, recalling the group air battle that bonded Iceman and Maverick in the original movie.

These days, videogame-styled blockbusters rely so heavily on CGI that it’s thrilling to see the impact of gravity on actual human beings, pancaked to their chairs by multiple G-forces. Sophisticated movie magic makes their performances seamless with the exterior airborne shots, while the commitment to filming practically everything practically feels like the cutting-edge equivalent of Howard Hughes’ history-making “Hell’s Angels.” The result is the most immersive flight simulator audiences will have ever experienced, right down to the great Dolby roar of engines vibrating through their seats (while the score teases cues for Lady Gaga’s end-credits anthem “Hold My Hand”).

Early on, Ed Harris’ character warns Maverick and his team that “one day, they won’t need pilots at all,” by which he means, drone technology is not far from allowing the Navy to do all of its flying by remote control. Cinema seems to be moving in that same direction, replacing actors with digital puppets and real locations with greenscreen plates — but not if Tom Cruise has anything to do with it. Engineered to hit so many of the same pleasure points as the original, “Top Gun: Maverick” fulfills our desire to go really fast, really far above ground — what the earlier film unforgettably referred to as “the need for speed.”

Still, this buckle-up follow-up also demonstrates why we feel the need for movie stars. It goes well beyond Cruise’s rah-rah involvement in what amounts to a glorified U.S. military recruitment commercial (the 1986 film might have been as perfectly calibrated as a Swiss watch, but it wasn’t subtle about its GI Joe agenda). It’s the way we identify with the guy when he’s doing what most of us thought impossible. Turns out we need Maverick now more than ever.

Reviewed at AMC Century City 15 (Imax), May 10, 2022. In Cannes Film Festival (Out of Competition). MPA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 130 MIN.

• Production: A Paramount Pictures release of a Paramount Pictures, Skydance, Jerry Bruckheimer Films presentation of a Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer production. Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, David Ellison. Executive producers: Tommy Harper, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Chad Oman, Mike Stenson.
• Crew: Director: Joseph Kosinski. Screenplay: Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, Christopher McQuarrie; story: Peter Craig, Justin Marks, based on characters created by Jim Cash & Jack Epps Jr. Camera: Claudio Miranda. Editor: Eddie Hamilton. Music: Lorne Balfe, Harold Faltermeyer, Hans Zimmer.
• With: Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Charles Parnell, Bashir Salahuddin, Monica Barbaro, Jay Ellis, Danny Ramirez, Greg Tarzan Davis, Ed Harris, Val Kilmer.

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'Top Gun,' Cosby, Mets: How 1986 compares to 2022

Credit: Paramount Pictures/Scott Garfield

Tom Cruise reprises his role as Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in "Top Gun: Maverick," which comes to theaters on May 27 — nearly 36 years after the original movie first thrilled us (It would go on to be the year's highest-grossing movie). Here's a look at how life has changed (or perhaps hasn't) since 1986.

 1986: TOM CRUISE'S AGE — 24

Credit: Paramount/Everett Collection

2022: TOM CRUISE'S AGE — 60 (on July 3)

1986: THE METS — World Series winners

The New York Mets celebrate after winning the 1986 World Series at Shea Stadium.

Credit: Getty Images/T.G. Higgins

2022: THE METS — World Series winners?

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New York Mets celebrate their first combined no-hitter in franchise history after their 3-1 win against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field on  April 29, 2022. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke

1986: BILL COSBY — America's Dad

THE COSBY SHOW, Bill Cosby, Keshia Knight Pulliam, (Season 3), 1984-1992. © Carsey-Werner Co. / Courtesy: Everett Collection Credit: Carsey-Werner Co/Everett Collection

2022: BILL COSBY — Accused of groping in civil lawsuit.

 In this April 26, 2018 file photo, Bill Cosby, center, leaves the the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pa., after being convicted of drugging and molesting a woman.  Credit: AP/Matt Slocum

1986: U.S. PRESIDENT'S AGE — Ronald Reagan was 75.

 Ronald Reagan makes an announcement from his desk at the White House, Washington DC. Credit: Getty Images/Hulton Archive

2022: U.S. PRESIDENT'S AGE — Joe Biden is 79 (80 in November).

Joe Biden speaks at the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 16 on May 7, 2019 in Henderson, Nevada.  Credit: Getty Images/Ethan Miller

1986: BILLY JOEL PLAYING MADISON SQUARE GARDEN? — Yes.

Billy Joel performing in 1986. Credit: Toronto Star via Getty Images/Mike Slaughter

2022: BILLY JOEL PLAYING MADISON SQUARE GARDEN? — Yes.

Billy Joel performing at Madison Square Garden in 2021. Credit: Bruce Gilbert

1986: HOTTEST POP STAR — Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston performing.

Credit: Toronto Star via Getty Images/Ron Bull

2022: HOTTEST POP STAR — Olivia Rodrigo

Olivia Rodrigo performs onstage during the 64th annual Grammy Awards on April 3, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Credit: Getty Images for The Recording A/Emma McIntyre

1986: TED DANSON NBC-TV SERIES — "Cheers"

 Ted Danson as Sam Malone on "Cheers." Credit: Paramount Television/Everett Collection

2022: TED DANSON NBC-TV SERIES --"Mr. Mayor"

Ted Danson as Mayor Neil Bremer in NBC's "Mr. Mayor." Credit: NBC/Colleen Hayes

1986: RALPH MACCHIO IN 'KARATE KID' — ""Part II" in theaters

Ralph Macchio in "The Karate Kid." Credit: Columbia Pictures/Everett Collection

2022: RALPH MACCHIO IN 'KARATE KID' — "Cobra Kai" on Netflix

 Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso in "Cobra Kai." Credit: NETFLIX/Curtis Bonds Baker

1986: MATTHEW BRODERICK STARRING IN — "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" in theaters

FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, Matthew Broderick, 1986, (c) Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection Credit: Paramount/ Everett Collection

2022: MATTHEW BRODERICK STARRING IN — "Plaza Suite" on Broadway

Matthew Broderick in Neil Simon's "Plaza Suite." Credit: Joan Marcus

Andy Edelstein, Newsday's entertainment editor, supervises coverage of TV, celebrities, movies and pop music. He has written three books on popular culture, including "The Brady Bunch Book."

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Val Kilmer explains his ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ return and ‘authentic friendship’ with Tom Cruise

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The Iceman cometh again, this time as a friend. And as Val Kilmer tells The Times, “I can’t believe how kind the whole world has been. ... It’s very humbling.”

The box-office standout of the summer season so far, “ Top Gun: Maverick ” has already become Tom Cruise’s biggest domestic grosser and blown audiences away with its aerial action sequences . But perhaps the most memorable — almost certainly the most moving — scene in the film is the quiet reunion of onetime rivals , now closest of comrades: Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Cruise) and Admiral Tom “Iceman” Kazansky (Kilmer).

The moment is informed by years of friendship both in the script and in real life — and by Kilmer’s real-life health struggles .

Iceman, who has throat cancer in a reflection of Kilmer’s own diagnosis, communicates with Maverick via typed words on a screen. When that’s no longer enough, he uses his struggling voice to connect with his friend of 3½ decades.

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“Very personal and moving” are the words Kilmer used to describe how playing that moment felt to him.

Kilmer answered emailed questions from The Times about the scene, his relationship with Cruise and how he’s doing after years of cancer treatment and surgeries. He said the onscreen reunion had been in the works for years but no reunion was necessary offscreen, as the two actors had remained friends since meeting on the original “Top Gun” (1986) .

“We talked quite a bit about what was best for the story and I think they got it right at the end,” wrote Kilmer of Cruise. “We are in touch and exchange Xmas gifts every year!”

As to the scene itself, Kilmer acknowledges he was the one typing the words on the computer screen as Iceman “talked” to Maverick.

“We actually shot it twice,” he said via email. “First time was in San Diego. They wanted to make a wardrobe change and we ended up with the scene you see in the movie with the computer.”

After one of the takes (we only did a few) I noticed that both Tom and Val had tears in their eyes. It felt like a genuine moment between two old friends.

— Joseph Kosinski, director, “Top Gun: Maverick”

Being mostly unable to use his voice is a huge adjustment, of course, for one of Hollywood’s more expressive actors. Vocal transformations have highlighted his appearances in such films as “ The Doors ” (in the deep baritone of frontman Jim Morrison), “ Tombstone ” (in the aristocratic drawl of Doc Holliday) or “ The Saint ” (in a host of guises of varying nationalities ). The key component to that “Maverick” scene, then, had to be that other, less heralded acting skill: listening.

“That’s exactly what acting is, reacting,” Kilmer wrote. “Being in the moment.”

When asked what help he appreciated most during the scene, though, the answer wasn’t technical or about extra time: “A couple of dear friends came by set!”

Also by email, director Joseph Kosinski said, “[Kilmer] is completely present in the scene and able to convey so much emotion without saying a word. I remember noticing that with his introduction in ‘Heat’ — so much said with just one look.

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“When working with an actor of that caliber, you try to create a space for them to do their best work, then get out of the way and let them create.”

Kosinski agreed with the perception that Kilmer and Cruise raised each other’s game: “You’ve got two masters at the top of their game playing the most iconic characters of their careers. I think there is a lot of Maverick in Tom, and Iceman in Val, so what you are seeing onscreen is an authentic friendship that has lasted over 36 years.

“After one of the takes (we only did a few) I noticed that both Tom and Val had tears in their eyes. It felt like a genuine moment between two old friends.”

It wasn’t all heavy, though:

“When we weren’t shooting, they were sharing funny stories with [producer] Jerry [Bruckheimer] about making the original film,” said Kosinski. “I think at the time they were a bit competitive with each other, but now it’s something they can just laugh about.”

Kilmer wrote, “Tom and I get along really well. We giggled like little kids in school between takes. I consider him a real friend. We shared intimate stories and challenges about our different lifestyles!!”

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Since the film has come out, apart from its box-office laurels and generally enthusiastic reception, Kilmer’s cameo has been one of its most universally praised elements. Justin Chang’s review in The Times voices a typical response: “In one fictional moment, he gives us something unmistakably, irreducibly real, partly by puncturing the fantasy of human invincibility that his co-star has never stopped trying to sell.”

Kilmer says the flood of affection has been surprising: “I can’t believe how kind the whole world has been. I get hundreds of fan letters every week. It’s very humbling.”

The 62-year-old actor says he’s nowhere near done. “I’m so great,” he writes of his physical and emotional wellbeing. “Feeling stronger everyday. My dream is to play Frankenstein with Werner Herzog directing. Right now we are in a conflict because he wants to modernize it and I want to keep it classic! Also working on an exciting project that gives artists a place to learn and share their creative talents called Kamp Kilmer .”

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Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski: ‘Of all Tom Cruise’s characters, Maverick might be closest to his real personality’

The belated sequel to Top Gun is easily the highest-grossing film of 2022 – as well as Tom Cruise’s most successful movie ever. Its director explains how hard it was to make the film and why its star never, ever gives up

In 1990, Tom Cruise told Playboy he wouldn’t make Top Gun 2, for fear it might glorify or gamify war. What changed? It’s a film about competition and friendship and sacrifice. It was never a film about war. We wanted to give people insight into a world and to experience what it’s like to ride in one of these machines. But the desire was to tell an emotive story about a guy in his 50s. The push was: what’s the audience feeling about that? We were pretty ruthless in making sure that we were always pushing that story, even in an action scene.

Does it feel strange to still be discussing something you shot in 2018? It is a little weird. The pandemic is a strange, two-year gap we all have. I’m just relieved the movie worked out and was released in the way we wanted. There was a lot of pressure on Tom [Cruise] and Jerry [Bruckheimer, the producer] to put it out on streaming. I’m glad we waited because we made it for the big screen and I think it was the movie that a lot of people came back to cinemas to see.

Maverick is a mortal person, if quite an unusual and resilient one. Do you think there’s waning interest in superheroes? I do feel like the movie probably hits differently post-Covid. We are all in a different headspace. Every sequence in this movie was flown by real navy pilots: real people doing extraordinary things. People tell me that they’re gripping on to the edge of their seat in the third act. That’s exactly what we hoped for.

It’s also quite an earnest film. There’s not a lot of sarcasm. It wears its heart on its sleeve. It’s OK to show some genuine emotion. Men crying in the movie is a good thing. We approached it in a very honest, straightforward way. What Tom does dramatically in a film that also requires such incredible action skills – you just can’t take that for granted. I can’t think of anyone else who would be able to do both things and produce the film.

You’ve spoken about how Cruise mentored the younger stars on the film. Yet his charisma is so singular it’s hard to see how they could ape him. Of all the characters he’s played, I think Maverick might be kind of the closest to his real personality. He’s always pushing the envelope. The young actors were so curious to just pick his brain. Here’s a guy who has the career that they all dream about and he’s willing to talk about how he got there.

Glen [Powell] read for the part of Rooster and didn’t get it; Miles Teller did. He didn’t want the part of Hangman; he wanted the lead. Then Tom explained to him that as a young actor, you have to choose great movies, not great roles. It totally changed Glen’s approach.

What do people fail to appreciate about Cruise? Everyone knows he gives 110% every day. But the amount of work it takes to make movies like this requires a level of commitment that’s pretty astonishing. He just never gives up.

What do you think he sees in you? What’s the kinship? He knows I’ll work as hard as I can on every frame. I’m always willing to have the conversation and be open to the best idea. We like fast cars, fast planes, you know, all that kind of kinetic movement. Two of the five films I’ve made have been with him.

Is there still snobbery around mainstream action hits? No, the critics embraced it, the audience embraced it, the industry embraced it. I got emails from the heads of every studio congratulating us on the film. Everyone’s rooting for us. And it played overseas bigger than it played domestically. The themes are very universal. We’re not pointing at a specific enemy. We’re not making a political statement. We’re just trying to tell this very honest story about a guy struggling with some things in his life set against the backdrop of this incredibly demanding, exciting job.

How delicate a dance was that depoliticisation? I actually enjoyed the creative challenge of saying: how can I make this enemy so unidentifiable that no matter how hard someone tries, they’ll never be able to pick them out?

Did the Pentagon involvement ever feel compromising? I know on the first film Jerry had to work hard to persuade them to participate. This time that wasn’t the case, because so many of the decision-makers joined the navy because of the first film. We lived on an aircraft carrier for a couple of weeks. That’s tough: 5,000 people on a ship operating 24/7. You get in your bunk exhausted at the end of a 15-hour day and there’s aircraft taking off 5ft above your head all night long. A constant din of activity: very loud and very busy. It’s intense.

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Is flying safe with sleep deprivation? I hear that if you live on the ship for a while, you have trouble sleeping when you come back home and there’s no sound.

Will it be hard to top this success? Yes. But this is Top Gun. It’s like such a special thing: 35 years of love and pent-up excitement. I don’t know if there are many other films out there so beloved and untouched. For me, box-office success is not how I gauge the films I work on. Your films are like your kids: you love them each the same.

Is culture today more nostalgic than 10 years ago? There’s this sense of pining for the way things were. The 80s seem like a simpler time. A nice naivety to life pre-internet. We weren’t bombarded with as much information. The film intentionally has a throwback sensibility. There’s very little in it that ties it to 2022. Maverick has a BlackBerry, but that’s about the only real piece of modern technology in the film. All the real emotional drama occurs in face-to-face conversations. It is a little bit of a fantasy world. Maverick can ride around without a helmet and the sun’s always setting.

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Top Gun: Maverick’s director explains how he convinced Tom Cruise to come back

“I had 30 minutes to pitch this film. When I got there, I found Tom really didn’t want to make another Top Gun .”

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Nearly 40 years ago, Top Gun made moviegoers feel a small fraction of the thrill that comes with being a fighter pilot — in part thanks to Kenny Loggins’ anthem “Danger Zone,” but also largely due to the talents of the cast and crew, under the direction of the late Tony Scott. Arriving in theaters decades later, Top Gun: Maverick has to do right not just by the fans, but by the first film’s creators. How do you make audiences accustomed to the casual magic of CGI feel like they’re in the cockpit with these pilots in 2022 the way Top Gun did in 1986? For director Joe Kosinski, the answer was: You do it for real.

As his previous films Tron: Legacy and Oblivion prove, Kosinski is accomplished at both making unlikely sequels to decades-old films and delivering blockbuster action starring Tom Cruise. Top Gun: Maverick shows the director combining these talents for a throwback summer blockbuster that feels real in a way big-budget movies haven’t in some time.

In a call with Polygon, Kosinski dove into the way Top Gun: Maverick makes viewers feel like they’re in those jets, how he convinced Tom Cruise to star, and how the right villain for a Top Gun movie might just be no one.

Polygon: Let’s start with your connection to Top Gun . What was your experience like with the first movie?

Joseph Kosinski: I saw the movie for the first time as a 12-year-old kid, and for me, it was the prototype for the ultimate summer movie. It made Tom Cruise a superstar, and [producer Jerry] Bruckheimer and [producer Don] Simpson had done Beverly Hills Cop and Flashdance at that point. When you saw that dual lightning strike at the beginning of a movie, it meant you were gonna have a good time.

But otherwise, it was not necessarily a movie that I had revisited a lot, until Jerry sent over an early version of a script in 2017 that he wanted me to take a look at. I’d made [ Oblivion ] with Tom at that point, and obviously had an incredible experience doing that.

Was everyone on board for Maverick from the start?

So I read the script, I had some ideas, and Jerry liked those ideas. He said, “You know what, you gotta go pitch this to Tom directly.” So we flew to Paris, where Tom was shooting Mission: Impossible , we got about a half hour of his time between setups. And I basically had 30 minutes to pitch this film, which I didn’t realize when we were flying over. But when I got there, I found that Tom really didn’t want to make another Top Gun .

It’s one of those moments as a director, you have one on every film, where you’re on the spot to make a case for why this movie should be made. I had 30 minutes to do it. And at the end of the pitch, he picked up the phone, he called the head of Paramount Pictures and said, “We’re making another Top Gun .” It’s pretty impressive to see the power of a real movie star in that moment.

How did you pitch it to Tom Cruise? Did he tell you what convinced him?

Well, I worked with Tom, and I knew to start with character and emotion. I just pitched this idea of Bradley Bradshaw (Miles Teller) growing up to become a naval aviator, and him and Maverick having this fractured relationship that had never been repaired. With Maverick getting called back to train this group of students to go on a mission that he knows is very, very dangerous.

The conflict [is about] the difference between being an aviator who goes in and risks his own life, and someone who’s in a more senior position that has to send others in to risk their lives. I talked to some Navy admirals who talked about that difference. It’s a different sort of pressure, it’s almost harder to send others in rather than go yourself. And to me, it felt like that leveraged the emotion of the past film and those relationships that we all love, but took it in a new direction. So that’s where I started.

I think that was honestly the element that really grabbed Tom, because it gave him an emotional reason to return to this character. The second thing was, what’s Maverick been doing? You know, where do we find him? And this is kind of my own passion, you know, coming through and pitching the Darkstar sequence [in the beginning], just being someone who has always loved airplanes and aerospace and studied aerospace engineering and mechanical engineering and loved The Right Stuff . So the idea of finding him as a test pilot on the bleeding edge of what’s possible seemed to me like the perfect way to find him, and Tom loved that.

He also must’ve loved how you planned to shoot this.

I showed him some videos of Navy pilots who put GoPros in their cockpits, and I said, “You know, this is out on the internet for free. If we can’t beat this, there’s no point in making this.” And he agreed. And then finally, I just had the title, you know, which I think kind of summed it all up. “We aren’t going to call it Top Gun 2 , we’re going to call it Top Gun: Maverick .” It’s a character-driven story, a drama with this giant action film around it. And that to me was what a Top Gun movie is.

Let’s talk a little bit about that Darkstar sequence. Jerry Bruckheimer says you were heavily involved in its conception.

Yeah, I mean, it was my dream. Skunk Works is this division of Lockheed that makes these planes that are top secret. They fly at night, no one knows they exist. We find out about them 20, 30 years after they fly.

I had just done a movie that was financed by Fred Smith, who is the founder of FedEx. And he told me he had a contact at Lockheed. He had just done a tour there — it helps to have friends in high places. He set up a meeting between Jerry, I, and Skunk Works, and we drove out into the middle of Palmdale and met with their senior staff. And I just said, “Listen, I want to put an airplane in this film that does this , this , and this . I know you guys have some experience in that area. We’re gonna give people a glimpse of something they’ve never seen before.”

And they said yes. I think the real reason they helped us was so we could make it as real as possible, but not too real, you know? We changed a couple of details so we’re not giving any secrets away, but it has a lot of features and details for people who really are into this world. I think they’ll get a kick out of it.

How do you get people excited about these pilots and the planes? Like other people I’ve talked to about it, I had an experience watching this, like, “Apparently I really like planes. Have I always been this way?”

Our approach is a classic movie approach. The only thing they could do in the ’80s was capture this stuff, at least the exterior shots, for real. You just can’t fake what it feels like to be in one of these jets, the forces, the way the light changes, the vibration, the sense of speed, all of that. There’s just no replacement for that.

I’ve noticed that people see this movie, and they just keep saying the same thing over and over: “It just feels so real.” And it’s funny, because maybe we’ve lost track of that a little bit with fantasy films or superhero films, where they’re creating images that you can’t capture for real. So you rely on CGI. But there’s just something different about capturing it for real. And for this film, we found a way to do it. And it just feels different.

In the original Top Gun , the villains aren’t really named. In Maverick , the pilots are training for a mission against a vague “shadow state.” What went into that decision?

It was specifically designed to be a faceless, nameless enemy, just like the first film. You know, this is a movie about friendship and sacrifice and teamwork and competition, just like the first film. It’s not a movie about geopolitics. We didn’t want it to be. So we designed it that way — the jets are fictional, they’re faceless enemies. The mission itself is about keeping the world safe.

And that was all by design, just because we wanted the focus to be on on the Maverick story, and his relationship with these characters. We made the movie in 2018. We started filming in 2018. And, you know, the world changes constantly. It’s really hard to make something that feels relevant, because the world is always changing.

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Watch Top Gun with a subscription on Prime Video, Paramount+, rent on Fandango at Home, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Apple TV.

What to Know

Though it features some of the most memorable and electrifying aerial footage shot with an expert eye for action, Top Gun offers too little for non-adolescent viewers to chew on when its characters aren't in the air.

Audience Reviews

Cast & crew.

Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell

Kelly McGillis

Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood

Anthony Edwards

Lt. Nick "Goose" Bradshaw

Lt. Tom "Iceman" Kazanski

Tom Skerritt

Cmdr. Mike "Viper" Metcalf

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The cast of ‘top gun,’ then and now.

The classic 1986 action-drama is back in the zeitgeist after the release of 'Top Gun: Maverick.' Here's a look at what the cast of the first film has been up to since their last run to the Danger Zone.

By Jordan Wilson

Jordan Wilson

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Ever since the first trailer dropped, it was clear the long-awaited sequel to 1986’s high-flying classic Top Gun would tug at the heart strings with nostalgic imagery emulating the first film. From the blood-pumping aerial combat maneuvers to shirtless volleyball games, Top Gun: Maverick follows in the footsteps of the Tony Scott-directed original, which took home a worldwide gross of $356 million according to Box Office Mojo .

The original film featured a cast of popular actors whose careers would mostly blossom in the years after release, but Top Gun will always be remembered as the film that turned Tom Cruise from teenage heartthrob to true leading man, one death-defying scene at a time.

In celebration of the sequel, The Hollywood Reporter takes a look at what the cast of Top Gun has been up to since sticking the landing more than three decades ago.

Tom Cruise’s fame was on the rise by the time he was cast as Lieutenant Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. Between The Outsiders and Risky Business (for which he received a best actor Golden Globe nomination), Cruise was fast becoming a star when he took to the cockpit of an F-14 Tomcat and flew toe-to-toe against Russian MiGs. He couldn’t stop being a leading man if he’d tried in the years after, starring in Rain Man opposite Dustin Hoffman, Stanley Kubrick’s final film Eyes Wide Shut and even taking the role of a bad guy in Michael Mann’s Collateral . He has been thrice-nominated for acting Oscars, for leading roles in Born on the Fourth of July and Jerry Maguire , and his supporting role in Magnolia . Cruise reprises his main role as the rebellious stick jockey in Top Gun: Maverick and remains active as Ethan Hunt, the spy at the center of the Mission: Impossible films.

Kelly McGillis

Playing an Amish woman opposite Harrison Ford in Witness got Kelly McGillis noticed by Top Gun producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who cast McGillis as the no-nonsense instructor turned love interest Charlie Blackwood. After the tremendous commercial success of Top Gun , McGillis starred in a few films including The Accused in 1988, but mostly stuck to theater roles even after being established as a major star in the late 1980s. She has since been in a number of small independent films, worked sporadically on TV and continued to perform theater.

Top Gun raised the specter of many of its stars, and Val Kilmer is no exception. After finding success leading the cast of the teenage sci-fi comedy Real Genius , Kilmer was cast as the cool-headed, methodical antagonist Iceman. Playing the constant tormentor of Maverick, Iceman eventually thaws to the rebellious nature of the movie’s hero in a touching scene of wingmanship toward the end of the film. Kilmer went on to star in a myriad of films, including Willow , The Doors (as frontman Jim Morrison), True Romance , Tombstone , Heat and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang . After being sidelined by health problems in recent years, Kilmer had a small role in the latest Kevin Smith flick Jay and Silent Bob Reboot . He reprises his role as Iceman for a cameo in Top Gun: Maverick .

Anthony Edwards

Anthony Edwards had a regular career in TV and small film roles in the early 1980s, but his first starring role as Gilbert in the raucous college comedy Revenge of the Nerds cemented him as a legitimate leading actor. Top Gun was big-time success with Edwards playing Goose, radar intercept officer and constant companion to Maverick whose story takes a tragic turn halfway through the film. Edwards took on many TV movie roles in the late ’80s and early ’90s before landing on the hospital drama ER as Mark Greene, a role for which he was Emmy-nominated four times as an outstanding lead actor in a drama series. His success in TV has continued with recurring roles in Billions , Law & Order and Netflix’s Inventing Anna . In Top Gun: Maverick , Miles Teller plays Goose’s son, a rookie pilot under the instruction of his father’s former wingman.

Tom Skerritt

Practically mid-career when cast as the sage instructor pilot Viper, Tom Skerritt had been acting in film since 1962’s War Hunt . He spent much of the 1960s in various television roles, regularly appearing as a soldier or cowboy in Combat! , The Virginian and Gunsmoke . He played a soldier again alongside Donald Sutherland and Elliot Gould in Robert Altman’s 1970 satire MASH . He may be most well-known for playing Capt. Dallas, chief of the ill-fated spaceship Nostromo in Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi horror Alien . After Top Gun , Skerritt appeared in numerous other films and TV shows, notably Steel Magnolias and Cheers , and he won an Emmy for his performance as Sheriff Brock in Picket Fences . He has remained active, starring opposite Mira Sorvino in the 2021 drama film East of the Mountains .

Michael Ironside

Canadian-born Michael Ironside began acting in movies in the late 1970s, but picked up attention after playing scheming psychic Darryl Revok in David Cronenberg’s 1981 sci-fi horror Scanners . He played other intimidating characters in various low-budget movies until he was cast in Top Gun as Viper’s No. 2 instructor, Jester. The change of genre didn’t affect his career too much, as he continued to fill sci-fi roles in films like Highlander II: The Quickening , Total Recall and Starship Troopers . He’s also had a prolific television career, with parts in series like Tales From the Crypt ; Walker, Texas Ranger ; ER ; and Desperate Housewives . More recently, he appeared on Hulu’s The Dropout .

Tim Robbins

Though he was barely graduated from UCLA with a degree in Drama, Tim Robbins already had a recurring role on the TV series St. Elsewhere in 1982. Other bit parts followed before he was eventually cast in Top Gun as Merlin, Maverick’s backseater toward the climax of the film. Robbins wouldn’t truly break out until 1988’s Bull Durham , which would be followed by a string of successful 1990s mainstream films including Jacob’s Ladder , The Player and The Shawshank Redemption , where Robbins played the reserved but genius prisoner Andy Dufresne. Robbins earned an Oscar for 2004’s Mystic River , and his acting career has never really slowed down; he played Reginald “Pop” Merrill in Hulu’s Stephen King-adapted anthology series Castle Rock and a felonious DuPont lawyer in the 2019 film Dark Waters .

Other than Rich and Famous in 1981 and Amityville 3-D two years later, Meg Ryan had only appeared in a handful of TV series when she was cast as Goose’s wife, Carole. Top Gun was only the beginning, of course; her career achieved liftoff shortly thereafter when she starred in hit after hit, from When Harry Met Sally… to Sleepless in Seattle , Courage Under Fire , You’ve Got Mail and Kate & Leopold . Ryan has since moved behind the camera, making her directorial debut with the 2015 film Ithaca .

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'Top Gun' cast: Then and now

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It’s time to salute a legend, as we prepare to jump back into the cockpit for Top Gun: Maverick . Some 36 years after Tony Scott took flight with the original Top Gun in 1986, the long-awaited sequel is hoping to soar to the top of the box office.

While Tom Cruise and some of the original cast will reprise their roles for Maverick , it's being bulked out by newcomers including Jon Hamm and Jennifer Connelly. In the years since Top Gun took our breath away, a lot has changed.

Read more: Lady Gaga Top Gun theme released

From a Mach 5 trajectory to the top of Tinsel Town to those who’ve turned their back on the industry altogether, where are the cast of Top Gun now?

Tom Cruise as Peter “Maverick” Mitchell

The star of both Top Gun movies needs no introduction, as the name Tom Cruise carries as much of a legacy as Maverick does in the franchise’s canon. Already finding his way in Risky Business , it was Top Gun that catapulted Cruise into the mainstream.

Read more: Top Gun: Maverick to get royal premiere

Following his debut as Maverick, Cruise went on to star in Cocktail , earn Academy Award nominations for Jerry Maguire and Born on the Fourth of July , and immortalise himself in Rain Man .

Watch a trailer for Top Gun: Maverick

His personal life has never been far from the headlines thanks to a high-profile marriage (and divorce) to Katie Holmes, as well as his involvement with Scientology.

These days, Cruise is known for the Mission: Impossible movies which show no signs of slowing down. Maybe just don’t mention his short stint in Universal’s Dark Universe with The Mummy .

Kelly McGillis as Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood

As Maverick’s formidable instructor and love interest, Charlie was Top Gun ’s Baby to Dirty Dancing ’s Johnny. She was actually based on the real-life Christine Fox, who served as the highest-ranking woman in the United States Department of Defense. While a lot of the movie’s big names went on to continue acting, McGillis appeared in a handful of roles and instead opened up a Florida restaurant with her second husband.

McGillis dabbled with TV during the ‘00s, adding The L Word to her CV in 2008, and coming out as a lesbian in 2009. As for her return to Top Gun , McGillis has been critical of Maverick , telling ET she was never asked to reprise her role.

The star told the site, “I'm old, and I'm fat, and I look age-appropriate for what my age is. And that is not what that whole scene is about."

Anthony Edwards as Nick "Goose" Bradshaw

Flying high as Maverick’s BBF, Anthony Edwards’ Goose played second fiddle to Cruise and brought the actor widespread critical acclaim. In 1994, he joined the first season of ER and was a mainstay of the medical drama until 2002. During his tenure as Dr Mark Greene, Edwards became one of the highest-paid stars of television.

There must be something about playing doomed characters, with Greene being the only member of the original cast to be killed off, dying of a brain tumour in season 8. These days, Edwards is known for his roles in Designated Survivor and an upcoming turn as the lead in AMC’s Tales of the Walking Dead spin-off.

Val Kilmer as Tom “Iceman” Kazansky

Much like Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed, the frosty relationship between Maverick and Tom "Iceman" Kazansky thawed by the end of Top Gun . Post- Top Gun , Val Kilmer was one of the ‘90s biggest names, even starring alongside Marlon Brando in The Island of Dr. Moreau ’s panned adaptation. Of course, many know him as the man who took over from Michael Keaton to play Bruce Wayne and his vigilante alter ego in Batman Forever .

Shying away from the limelight, Kilmer confirmed he’s had a personal battle with throat cancer and is slowly regaining his speech. His usually private life was then documented in the self-shot 2021 documentary called Val .

Although the trailers for Maverick might make it seem like Iceman is only peripheral to the events of the movie , we know Kilmer will reprise his role in some capacity.

Meg Ryan as Carole Bradshaw

Although Meg Ryan’s role as the widowed Carole Bradshaw wasn’t Top Gun ’s most prominent, it undoubtedly put her on the path to stardom. When Top Gun rolled around, Ryan was still three years out from THAT iconic scene in When Harry Met Sally . She’d go on to be Hollywood’s golden girl of rom-coms.

It could’ve been a very different story, as Ryan turned down the role of Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs before it was offered to Jodie Foster. Aside from reuniting with Top Gun co-stars like Kilmer and Tim Robbins in The Doors and I.Q. , Ryan has starred in everything from Sleepless in Seattle to You’ve Got Mail . She divorced long-term husband Dennis Quaid in 2001, and these days focuses on producing.

Ryan is due to make her romcom return starring in and directing in What Happens Later , alongside X-Files star David Duchovny. It's her first acting role in seven years.

Tim Robbins as Sam "Merlin" Wells

When he’d finished his training as Radar Intercept Officer Merlin in Top Gun , Tim Robbins got his big break in Bull Durham when starring alongside Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon. He was married to Sarandon for 21 years, and the pair have two sons together.

Forgetting praise for directing Dead Man Walking , Robbins famously played Andy Dufresne in Frank Darabont’s lauded The Shawshank Redemption . He also earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in Mystic River , secured an uncredited cameo in Anchorman , and returned to the world of Stephen King as Reginald “Pop” Merrill for the second season of Hulu’s Castle Rock .

Tom Skerritt as Mike "Viper" Metcalf

Proving this viper has fangs, Tom Skerrit played the no-nonsense commanding officer of the Top Gun academy, who had no time for Maverick’s shenanigans. In real life, Skerrit actually served in the United States Air Force for a four-year tour of duty.

Skerrit had already been acting for decades before Top Gun , with his previous appearances including Duke Forrest in M*A*S*H and Captain Dallas in Alien . He’s also remembered for over 200 television episode appearances, encompassing everything from playing Evan Drake in Cheers to the deceased William Walker in Brothers and Sisters . Skerrit is still acting to this day.

Top Gun: Maverick flies in to cinemas, IMAX and 4DX exclusively on 25 May, 2022. The original Top Gun is available to stream on NOW with a Sky Cinema Membership.

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How Old Was Tom Cruise In 1986's Top Gun Compared To Its Sequel Maverick?

While plenty of big '80s franchises have returned to relevance in recent years, few can boast the kind of reemergence that the "Top Gun" series got with its 2022 sequel, "Maverick." Not only was the film beloved by both fans and critics, but it also reached the #12 spot on the top-grossing films of all time list, bringing in a staggering $1.495 million in box office receipts.

However, considering how long the multi-decade gap between the first film and "Top Gun: Maverick" was, even the film's biggest fans may be unaware of how much the perpetually youthful Tom Cruise changed in age during the interim. Amazingly, the star was 23 after the first film released in May 1986 and 59 when "Maverick" landed in theaters.

Still, even as that puts the actor at 61 as of now, it doesn't look like he'll be slowing down one iota with regard to making massive-scale action movies in the vein of "Top Gun: Maverick." After all, his most recent film in the "Mission: Impossible" franchise is set to be only the first half of an epic and eventful cinematic journey.

Can anything stop one of Hollywood's biggest action stars?

According to The Sydney Morning Herald , Tom Cruise isn't planning on changing his status as one of Hollywood's top action stars any time soon. In fact, the actor cited Harrison Ford as an inspiration and suggested that he might even have another two decades of action movies in the future, just like the "Star Wars" star.

"Harrison Ford is a legend; I hope to be still going. I've got 20 years to catch up with him," Cruise said of the 81-year-old actor. "I hope to keep making Mission: Impossible films until I'm his age." While it's true that Ford is still in the action game after all of these years, it may be tough for Cruise to continue with his typical tenacity as the years go by; the veteran actor has made his mark on the entertainment industry by performing a wide array of his own jaw-dropping stunts, each one more ridiculous than the last. 

Still, with at least one more "Mission: Impossible" movie on the horizon and Cruise's plans to continue with tentpole action movies indefinitely, fans of the star can expect to be watching him complete even more impressive feats, at least for a few more years. Furthermore, with the massive success of "Top Gun: Maverick," it's possible that there could be another installment in that franchise coming down the pipeline as well.

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Tom Cruise Gets Sweet 60th Birthday Message from 'Top Gun' Costar Val Kilmer: 'Happy Birthday Mav'

Tom Cruise's Top Gun: Maverick costars Val Kilmer and Glen Powell raised a virtual toast to Cruise in honor of his milestone 60th birthday over the weekend

Tom Cruise rang in his 60th birthday with a special birthday wish from his best wingman.

Val Kilmer — who starred as Top "Iceman" Kazansky to Cruise's Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in 1986's Top Gun and reprised his role in the recently released Top Gun: Maverick — posted a sweet message to Cruise on Sunday as the actor celebrated his latest age milestone.

"Happy Birthday Mav @TomCruise from Ice!" tweeted Kilmer, 62, referencing their iconic characters' call signs.

Among Cruise's other Maverick costars to wish him many happy returns on social media was Glen Powell , who shared a snapshot of the daredevil actor hanging off the side of a plane .

"This is 60," wrote Powell, 33. "TC, there is just no one like you. Keep hangin' in there. Happy Birthday! ⁦ @TomCruise ."

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True to his love of action, Cruise himself spent part of his birthday weekend in attendance at the British F1 Grand Prix on Sunday.

The actor was seen flashing a big smile while greeting fans and rubbing shoulders with other VIP attendees.

Other familiar faces in attendance at the event included Gordon Ramsay , Geri Halliwell and Lewis Hamilton .

RELATED VIDEO: Top Gun: Maverick Stars Tom Cruise , Jon Hamm, Miles Teller and More on Filming the "Love Letter to Aviation"

Meanwhile, Top Gun: Maverick passed the $1 billion mark at the global box office over the weekend of June 25, according to Variety . It became the first of Cruise's films to reach the rare milestone, with his next-highest global earner being 2018's Mission: Impossible – Fallout , which made $791.1 million.

Cruise was thrilled to have Kilmer return for the sequel. "I've always admired his work, his talent," Cruise told PEOPLE in May, adding, "We get together ... we just start laughing. It was special to have him back. It meant a lot to me."

For Kilmer, becoming Iceman once again was "like being reunited with a long-lost friend." Even after more than 30 years, he told PEOPLE, "the characters never really go away. They live on in deep freeze. If you'll pardon the pun."

Top Gun: Maverick is now playing in theaters.

Related Articles

This 20-Year-Old Tom Cruise Movie Can Lay The Blueprint For His Future After Mission: Impossible

• Tom Cruise's action star status faces a challenge as he ages, so exploring villain roles could be the key to his future success after Mission: Impossible .
• A return to the character depth of his role in Collateral could provide Cruise with exciting new opportunities in his career.
• Practical stunt work sets Cruise apart in action films, but taking on antagonistic roles could help him stay relevant in the industry.

Tom Cruise has been a movie star for over forty years, and one of his most underrated films could be the key to the next phase of his career after Mission: Impossible . Cruise, in his most recent star era, has become synonymous with daring stunt work and large action set pieces in his blockbuster films. The two most notable examples are his long-running Mission: Impossible franchise, which is currently filming its eighth installment, and Top Gun: Maverick , which was the highest-grossing film of 2022 .

In many ways, Cruise is as popular as he's ever been and remains one of the last examples of a true movie star. There's just one issue he faces, and it's one that will only get worse with time: he's now in his 60s. He's still in amazing shape for his age and can still perform all the stunts his action roles require of him. Yet, at a certain point, Cruise just won't be able to physically accomplish these feats anymore, and the question will arise of what he will do to define the next era of his career.

10 Movies That Defined Tom Cruise's Career

Tom cruise should follow collateral's blueprint after mission: impossible.

The answer regarding a future after Mission: Impossible lies with one of Cruise's most memorable roles as the cold-blooded hitman Vincent in Michael Mann's Collateral . Collateral follows a single night in the life of cab driver Max (Jamie Foxx), who is forced to transport Vincent around L.A. as he crosses off targets on his hit list. The film doesn't just feature excellent action scenes but also a fascinating back-and-forth between the two leads. Many long exchanges of dialogue happen within Max's cab, and the audience sees him and Vincent argue philosophically about the value of human life and their differing ideologies.

Cruise had to train for Collateral since it was an unexpected role, as the actor had never played the main villain of a film before, and to this day hasn't done it again since. The uniqueness of this notion paid off, as Collateral proved to be a healthy hit. It grossed $220 million worldwide from an estimated $65 million budget (via Box Office Mojo ). Cruise's movie star charisma brought layers of charm to Vincent's sociopathic demeanor, and it is still widely considered one of the best performances of Cruise's long and illustrious career. A return to this type of role would be an exciting prospect for the actor.

Every Michael Mann Movie, Ranked Worst To Best

Villain roles can help tom cruise stay relevant.

As Cruise gets older, it'll become more challenging for him to remain at the center of these action franchises. Unlike films like Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny , which heavily relied on CGI to assist 81-year-old Harrison Ford with the action scenes, Cruise's movies use their practical stunt work as a selling point. Top Gun: Maverick had Cruise flying real jets , and Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One had him jumping off a massive cliff on a motorcycle. Too much CGI would cheapen the impact of these stunts, which have become a big part of Cruise's brand.

However, if Cruise takes on more antagonistic parts in movies like Collateral going forward, he could not only avoid putting his body at risk in as many huge stunts but also access an untapped well of potential film roles. Cruise would still be a selling point in whatever franchise he chooses to be a part of, and he'd be able to explore the darkness he displayed as Vincent all those years ago. It'd be an exciting development for fans to witness, full of possibilities, and could prove to be the key to Tom Cruise staying relevant through the 2020s and beyond.

Source: Box Office Mojo

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Tom Cruise Is a London Boy

Sometimes when God closes a door (Taylor Swift says “So long” ), She opens a window (Tom Cruise does the splits). Cruise is living that life in London, and for him that means break-dancing, doing the splits, and watching the British absolutely lose their crumpets. Cruise has lived in London since 2021 and has, in that time, been at the former queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the British Grand Prix, according to the Mercury News . And now he has attended the most British event of all: Posh Spice’s birthday party. Fortunately, he still has the American propensity to do the most. While at the party, Cruise began break-dancing and ended his routine by doing the splits, according to the Daily Mail . “People were absolutely dumbfounded,” a source mentioned. All we’ll say about that is that if there’s one thing the Mission: Impossible franchise could do to s ecure those Imax screens , it just might be a (gay?) club scene in which Cruise distracts the bad guys by jumping into the splits like a Drag Race contestant. Just an idea.

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• david beckham
• mission: complete

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From Tom Cruise breakdancing to Spice Girls reuniting, reports from Victoria Beckham's bash capture imagination

Tom Cruise breakdancing, a Spice Girls reunion and tons of A-list celebrities gathering in one location have social media and the general public in awe over Victoria Beckham's 50th birthday party.

Beckham, who celebrated half a century over the weekend, posted about the luxurious soiree Sunday on Instagram.

But some of the most buzzworthy moments went intentionally unrecorded.

"I don’t think I’ve ever felt as loved as I did last night," Beckham's post said. "Thank you all for coming from near and so far!! X"

In the post, Beckham shared pictures of her with actor Eva Longoria, celebrity Chef Gordon Ramsay, her husband, soccer star David Beckham and some of the couple's children.

In another Instagram post, Beckham shared a picture of her and the four other members of the English pop group, the Spice Girls.

"The best gift to be reunited!! Thank you to all my friends and family for celebrating with me. Kisses! xxx," Beckham's post about the Spice Girls said.

Guests 'absolutely dumbfounded' by Tom Cruise's dancing, reports say

Not included in either post were other famous attendees who came to celebrate with the Beckhams at Oswald’s, a private member’s club owned by Robin Birley in London's Mayfair district.

Oswald's is strict about taking photos and allowing social media within the venue , according to the club's member's privacy notice.

Actors Tom Cruise and Salma Hayek both made an appearance at Beckham's party and while one left an impression with their outfit, the other left it all on the dance floor, the Daily Mail reported.

Cruise, who turned 61 in July 2023, stunned guests when he began demonstrating "a series of breakdancing moves, culminating in splits," the outlet said.

"People were absolutely dumbfounded," one guest told the Daily Mail.

Social media reacts to Tom Cruise's 'split mania' and not receiving an invite to Victoria Beckham's party

While no photos or videos of Cruise dancing exist online, social media users continue to poke fun at the expense of the "Mission Impossible" movie star. An X user who goes by @Douggernaut_2 posted a clip of actor Mike Myers dancing in the film "Austin Powers" and said, "Tom Cruise arriving at Victoria Beckham's bday."

Several social media users hearkened back to when Cruise played the Les Grossman character in the 2008 comedy movie "Tropic Thunder." Cruise would hilariously reprise the character during the 2010 MTV Movie Awards and dance to rapper Ludacris' song "Get Back."

"Remember when Tom Cruise did this," X user @charletty_ said Monday in a post reacting to the video of Cruise's full dance routine at the awards show.

During the routine with singer and actress Jennifer Lopez, Cruise does a split on stage. X user @danilo_parks said Monday in a post, "It's real Tom Cruise does the splits mania out there today."

In addition to seeing Cruise do splits and the Spice Girls perform, guests also received goody bags full of Beckham's branded products, including a candle and a fragrance, the Telegraph reported.

All the fun has people wondering where their invite was to Beckham's birthday party, including X user @StaceyVaselaney who said, "I’m sitting here shaking my head wondering why wasn’t I invited to Victoria Beckham’s 50th birthday party."