Top Gun, released in 1986, stunned audiences with gravity-defying aerial feats involving genuine fighter jets, as well as smart outfits, a passionate illicit love storyline, and a tragic true bromance. In 1987, the film received a People’s Choice Award for Favorite Motion Picture, and it continues to appear on different “Best of the ’80s” lists. Despite its cheesy overtones, phrases like “I feel the desire — the need for speed” have entered pop culture to the point where it was one of 25 “culturally, historically, or aesthetically” significant films selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2015.
Fast forward 30 years, and we’re gearing up for Top Gun: Maverick, the much-anticipated sequel. On July 18th, 2019, Maverick himself — better known in real life as Tom Cruise — dropped by a Terminator: Dark Fate presentation to introduce the film, and the trailer was released. Here’s all we know about the other cast members, the plot they’ll tell, and when the second Top Gun will be released. Oh, and did you know there are some simmering scandals?
Top Gun 2 Trailer
The first trailer was unveiled on July 18th, 2019 at Comic-Con International. Maverick’s need for speed has not subsided. When the trailer was finally released, fans immediately spotted similarities between it and the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, pointing to certain sequences that looked almost identical to the teaser for Episode VII. Fans of Top Gun got an early Christmas present on December 16, 2019, when the second trailer was published. There’s also a fan-made LEGO replica of the trailer, which looks as good as it sounds.
Audiences were shown the first 13 minutes of the film, as well as a new trailer, during CinemaCon in August 2021. According to Deadline, Maverick defies the Admiral and flies at Mach 10. He hits Mach 10, but the plane explodes shortly afterward. Fortunately, Maverick survives; else, the film would be much shorter. When the new trailer will be available online is unknown. Given the new release date postponement, we expect at least one more full trailer for the film closer to its May 2022 release date.
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Top Gun 2 Release Date: It Won’t Be Delayed Again Right?
Before we get into all the delays, let’s get to the point. The film Top Gun: Maverick is set to be released in theatres on May 27, 2022. Netflix and Apple both approached Paramount Pictures to see if the studio would sell the film to them for a streaming premiere. However, for the time being, Paramount appears to be committed to a theatrical release for the sequel. If the Top Gun release date stays true, the sequel will hit theatres just under three years after its planned July 12, 2019 release date.
After a complete year’s delay, the date was pushed ahead to June 24, 2020, in the United States and July 17, 2020 in the United Kingdom. The sequel was subsequently pushed back to July 2, 2021, only to be postponed back again to November 19, 2021. Unfortunately, that was not the final delay, but (hopefully) we’ve reached the end of the journey. From May 2018 through June 2019, the sequel was filmed.
Who Will Be Returning For Top Gun 2? – Top Gun 2 Cast
When Top Gun: Maverick is published, Tom Cruise will be just shy of 60 years old, yet there’s no way Hollywood could film a Top Gun sequel without putting him back in the cockpit of a fighter jet. Cruise’s character Maverick is one of his most well-known, therefore a Top Gun sequel would be incomplete without him returning the role. Cruise isn’t the only original cast member who has returned for the sequel. Val Kilmer will reprise his role as Iceman, Maverick’s archenemy. Anyone who has seen the Amazon Prime documentary Val knows that Kilmer now speaks using a voice box after battling throat cancer.
Anthony Edwards isn’t ruling out a Ghost Goose sequel, but if one isn’t made, Miles Teller will play Goose’s son Bradley Bradshaw. Lieutenant Commander Rick ‘Jester’ Heatherly, played by Michael Ironside in the original, will not reprise his role, claiming a difficult relationship with producer Jerry Bruckheimer as the cause for his departure.
Some fans believe the image pictured is from the funeral of Commander Mike ‘Viper’ Metcalf. Say it ain’t so! It ain’t so! After being rumored for the role of Goose’s baby, Glen Powell did join the cast in a cryptic role named Hangman. In the sequel, Jennifer Connelly will reprise her role as a single mother who runs a neighborhood pub near the Navy base. She’ll be joined by Jon Hamm and Ed Harris, the latter of whom will play an unknown rear admiral and Maverick’s direct superior.
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