Top Gun: Maverick

Top Gun: Maverick is a 2022 American action drama film directed by Joseph Kosinski, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, Tom Cruise, David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, and Don Granger with screenplay written by Peter Craig, Justin Marks, Christopher McQuarrie, and Eric Warren Singer. It is the sequel to Top Gun (1986) and stars Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, and Ed Harris, with Cruise and Val Kilmer reprising their roles from the first film.
The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 18, 2022, before its theatrical release in the United States on May 27, 2022, by Paramount Pictures. It was originally scheduled for release on July 12, 2019, but was postponed to "allow the production to work out all the complex flight sequences". In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the film was delayed even more, until Paramount settled on the final date of May 27.
==Plot==
More than 30 years after graduating from Top Gun, United States Navy Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell is a decorated test pilot whose insubordination has kept him from flag rank. When Rear Admiral Chester "Hammer" Cain plans to cancel Maverick's hypersonic "Darkstar" scramjet program, Maverick manages to reach the final target speed, but the prototype is destroyed when he cannot resist pushing beyond Mach 10. Cain tells Maverick that he would be grounded if not for Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, Maverick's friend and former Top Gun rival, now commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, who has Maverick assigned to the Top Gun school at NAS North Island.
The Navy has been ordered to destroy an unsanctioned uranium enrichment plant before it becomes operational. The plant, located in an underground bunker at the end of a canyon, is defended by surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), GPS jammers, fifth-generation Su-57 fighters and F-14 Tomcats. Maverick devises a plan employing two pairs of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets armed with laser-guided bombs, but instead of participating in the strike, he is to train elite Top Gun graduates assembled by Air Boss Vice Admiral Beau "Cyclone" Simpson. 
Maverick dogfights with his skeptical students, winning their respect, while cavalier Lieutenant Jake "Hangman" Seresin clashes with cautious Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw—son of Maverick's deceased best friend and RIO Nick "Goose" Bradshaw. Maverick reunites with former girlfriend Penny Benjamin, and reveals that he promised Rooster's dying mother that Rooster would not become a pilot. Rooster, unaware of this, resents Maverick for blocking his Naval Academy application and blames him for his father's death. Maverick confides in Iceman, who tells him, "It's time to let go", reassuring him that both the Navy and Rooster need Maverick. 
Iceman soon dies from terminal cancer, and after an F/A-18F crashes during training, Cyclone removes Maverick as instructor. He relaxes the mission parameters, leaving them easier to execute but making escape much more difficult. Maverick makes an unauthorized flight through the course with the original parameters, proving that it can be done, and Cyclone reluctantly appoints him as team leader. 
Maverick flies the lead F/A-18E, accompanied by a buddy-lasing F/A-18F flown by Lieutenant Natasha "Phoenix" Trace and WSOLieutenant Robert "Bob" Floyd. Rooster leads the second strike pair, which includes Lieutenant Reuben "Payback" Fitch and WSO Lieutenant Mickey "Fanboy" Garcia. The four jets launch from an aircraft carrier, and Tomahawk cruise missiles destroy the enemy air base. The teams destroy the plant, but the SAMs open fire during their escape. Rooster runs out of countermeasures, and Maverick sacrifices his plane to protect him. Believing Maverick dead, all jets are ordered back to the carrier, but Rooster disobeys and returns to find Maverick being pursued by an Mi-24 attack helicopter. Destroying the gunship, Rooster is shot down, and he and Maverick steal an F-14 and destroy two intercepting Su-57s. A third attacks, but Hangman unexpectedly arrives to shoot it down, and the planes return safely. 
Later, Rooster helps Maverick work on his P-51 Mustang. Rooster looks at a photo of their mission's success, pinned alongside a photo of his late father and a young Maverick, as Penny and Maverick fly off in the P-51. 
==Cast==
*Tom Cruise as Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, a flight instructor
*Miles Teller as Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, a pilot trainee, and the son of Maverick's late RIO, Nick "Goose" Bradshaw.
*Jennifer Connelly as Maverick's love interest, who is a single mother and owner of a bar.
*Jon Hamm as Vice Admiral Beau "Cyclone" Simpson, the Commander of Naval Air Forces
*Glen Powell as Lieutenant Jake "Hangman" Seresin, an F/A-18E pilot and mission candidate
*Lewis Pullman as Lieutenant Robert "Bob" Floyd, Phoenix's F/A-18F WSO and mission candidate
*Ed Harris as Read Admiral Chester "Hammer" Cain, Maverick's superior and head of the Darkstar program
*Val Kilmer as four-star Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, a fellow instructor and friend and former rival of Maverick.
*Monica Barbaro as Lieutenant Natasha "Phoenix" Trace, an F/A-18F pilot and mission candidate
*Charles Parnell as Read Admiral Soloman "Warlock" Bates, a friend of Mavericks and the commander of the Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center
*Jay Ellis as Lieutenant Reuben "Payback" Fitch, an F/A-18F pilot and mission candidate 
*Danny Ramirez as Lieutenant Micky "Fanboy" Garcia, Payback's F/A-18F WSO and mission candidate
*Greg Tarzan Davis as Lieutenant Javy "Coyote" Machado, an F/A-18E pilot and mission candidate
*Manny Jacinto as Lieutenant Billy "Fritz" Avalone, Omaha's WSO and mission candidate
*Jack Schumacher as Lieutenant Neil "Omaha" Vikander, an F/A-18F pilot and mission candidate
*Bashir Salahuddin as Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bernie "Hondo" Coleman
*Jake Picking as Lieutenant Brigham "Harvard" Lennox, Yale's WSO and mission candidate
*Raymond Lee as Lieutenant Logan "Yale" Lee, an F/A-18F pilot and mission candidate
*Kara Wang as Lieutenant Callie "Halo" Bassett, an F/A-18E pilot and mission candidate
*Lyliana Wary as Ameilia Benjamin, Penny's daughter
*Jean Louisa Kelly as Sarah Kazansky, Iceman's wife
*Chelsea Harris as Flag Aide Angela Burke
*Bob Stephenson as Senior Engineer
Anthony Edwards and Meg Ryan reprise their roles as LTJG Nick "Goose" and Carole Bradshaw, respectively, via archive footage
==Production==
=== Development ===
Development of the film began in 2010 when Paramount Pictures made offers to Jerry Bruckheimer and Tony Scott to make a sequel to Top Gun. Christopher McQuarrie had also received an offer to write the sequel's screenplay, which was rumored to have Tom Cruise's character Maverick in a smaller role. Peter Craig, Justin Marks, who described the film as a dream project, Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz would be credited as screenwriters on the project.
When asked about his idea for a new Top Gun film, Scott replied, "This world fascinated me, because it's so different from what it was originally. But I don't want to do a remake. I don't want to do a reinvention. I want to do a new movie." The film will reportedly focus on the end of the dogfighting era and the role of drones in modern aerial warfare and that Cruise's character, Maverick, will fly an F/A-18 Super Hornet. After Scott's suicide, the sequel's future remained in question, but producer Jerry Bruckheimer remained committed to the project, especially given Cruise's and Kilmer's interest.
In June 2017, Cruise revealed that the title would be Top Gun: Maverick, with Harold Faltermeyer returning as composer for the sequel. Cruise further stated that, "Aviators are back, the need for speed. We're going to have big, fast machines. It's going to be a competition film, like the first one … but a progression for Maverick." Later the same month, it was confirmed that the film would be directed by Joseph Kosinski, while no title was officially confirmed.
Musician Kenny Loggins has confirmed that his song "Danger Zone", which was used in the first film, will be featured in the sequel. In October 2018, it was reported that Hans Zimmer would also compose for the film alongside Harold Faltermeyer.
On June 19, 2019, at CineEurope in Barcelona, attendees were able to watch for the first time some early footage of the film from a special Paramount presentation. During the presentation the President of International Theatrical Distribution Mark Viane and co-president of Worldwide Marketing and Distribution Mary Daily appeared in flight clothes.
=== Casting ===
Val Kilmer had campaigned on his social media page that he would like to reprise his role in the film, and by June 2018, The Wrap reported that he will appear in the film. While Bruckheimer and the filmmakers wanted to bring Kilmer back, Cruise was the one who tirelessly insisted in bringing back Kilmer to reprise his role. In July 2018, Miles Teller was cast in the role of Goose's son, against Nicholas Hoult and Glen Powell. All three were flown to Cruise's home, the star of the film, for chemistry tests. Later that month, Jennifer Connelly joined the film's cast to play a single mother running a bar near the Naval base.
In August 2018, Powell joined the cast of the film in a pilot trainee role that was enlarged for him, having impressed star Tom Cruise, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, as well as executives at Paramount Pictures and Skydance, with his auditions. That same month, Monica Barbaro, Thomasin McKenzie, Charles Parnell, Jay Ellis, Bashir Salahuddin, Danny Ramirez, Ed Harris, Jon Hamm and Lewis Pullman joined the cast of the film with Barbaro, Ellis, and Ramirez portraying pilot trainees and McKenzie portraying Connelly's daughter. In September 2018, Manny Jacinto joined the cast of the film. In October 2018, Kara Wang, Jack Schumacher, Greg Tarzan Davis, Jake Picking, Raymond Lee, Jean Louisa Kelly and Lyliana Wray joined the cast of the film. Additionally, McKenzie was forced to drop out of the film after signing onto Lost Girls. In November 2018, Chelsea Harris joined the cast of the film in an undisclosed role.
According to Kelly McGillis, who appeared in the original film, she was not asked to appear in the sequel.
=== Filming ===
Preliminary production on the film officially started on May 30, 2018, in San Diego, California. During late August a 15-person film crew from Paramount and Bruckheimer Films were aboard the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to shoot flight deck operations. In mid-February 2019, Cruise and the production crew were sighted on board USS Theodore Roosevelt at NAS North Island. In March, filming was completed at NAS Whidbey Island in Oak Harbor, Washington.
On June 19, 2019, Miles Teller revealed in an interview that he had finished filming two days earlier. Principal photography was scheduled until April 15, 2019, in San Diego, California; Lemoore, California; China Lake, California; Lake Tahoe, California; Seattle, Washington; and Patuxent River, Maryland.[citation needed]
The movie was filmed in IMAX format using IMAX-Certified Sony Venice 6K Full Screen cameras.
== Marketing ==
The film's first trailer premiered during a surprise appearance by Cruise at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con on July 18, 2019. The first trailer received high praise from fans, with many lauding the return of the series and some comparing it to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The Hollywood Reporter wrote that some fans noticed that the flag of the Republic of China (known as the Taiwanese flag) and the Flag of Japan were missing from the bomber jacket of Cruise's character and accused Paramount of removing it to appease China-based co-financier Tencent Pictures.
In February 2020, toy manufacturer Matchbox company (owned by Mattel) announced that they were releasing a series of Top Gun die-cast models and products, including an F-14 Tomcat, Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, North American P-51 Mustang and role play items. They were scheduled for public release on June 1, 2020, despite the delayed theatrical release.
In June 2020, plastic model manufacturer Revell company released a series of 1/48 scale Top Gun plastic models, including an F-14A Tomcat and an F/A-18E Super Hornet based upon the aircraft in the movie. These are versions of previous Revell offerings with modified decals and markings. In July 2020, Hasbro announced a Top Gun themed Transformers toy, "Maverick", which released later in the year.
In August 2021, the first 13 minutes of the film were previewed at CinemaCon along with a new trailer with Tom Cruise marking his presence virtually at the event.
In February 2022, a trailer of the film tied to Porsche was aired before Super Bowl LVI.
== Release ==
Top Gun: Maverick was originally scheduled to be released by Paramount Pictures on July 12, 2019. In August 2018, it was delayed to June 26, 2020, to "allow the production to work out all the complex flight sequences". On March 2, 2020, Paramount moved the film up two days early on June 24, 2020. On April 2, 2020, it was delayed to December 23 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic declared by the World Health Organization.
On July 23, 2020, the film was delayed again to July 2, 2021, partially due to scheduling conflicts with Cruise, as well as the recent delays of Mulan and Tenet due to the rise of COVID-19 cases. In April 2021, the film was delayed again to November 19, 2021. On September 1, 2021, the film was delayed once more, this time to May 27, 2022. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 18, 2022, in an Official Selection Screening. The Cannes premiere included a tribute to Cruise and his career. Netflix and Apple TV+ tried to purchase the distribution rights to the film, but Paramount has refused to sell them.
==Video==
===Trailers===
File:Top Gun- Maverick - Official Trailer (2022) - Paramount Pictures
File:Top Gun- Maverick (2022) - New Trailer - Paramount Pictures
File:Top Gun- Maverick - NEW Official Trailer (2022 Movie) - Tom Cruise
Category:2020s films
Category:Action films
Category:Drama films
Category:English-language films
Category:2020s action drama films
Category:2020s adventure films
Category:Adventure films
Category:Sequels
Category:American aviation films
Category:American action drama films
Category:American films
Category:American sequel films
Category:Films about aviators
Category:Films directed by Joseph Kosinski
Category:Films produced by Jerry Bruckheimer
Category:Films scored by Hans Zimmer
Category:Films scored by Harold Faltermeyer
Category:Films shot in San Diego
Category:Paramount Pictures films
Category:Tencent Pictures films
Category:Top Gun
Category:Films about the United States Navy
Category:Films postponed due to the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic
Category:Films postponed until 2021
Category:Films with asian companies and co-production
Category:2022 films
Category:2022 American films
Category:2022 American sequel films
Category:Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Category:Films starring Tom Cruise
Category:2022 in film
Category:2:35:1 Aspect Ratio Films
Category:2:39:1 Aspect Ratio Films