Top Gun: Maverick

Benjamin Franklin once wrote: "nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." If Ben had lived another couple centuries he probably would have addended: "Oh, and pilots love Top Gun."

Top Gun Facts

Ask any pilot about Tony Scott's 1986 film, which starred Tom Cruise as high flying Navy pilot Maverick, and they'll probably say that it had a profound effect on their interest in aviation. Or at the very least that the film's theme song, Kenny Loggins's Danger Zone, is an absolute banger. With it's sequel, Top Gun: Maverick, in theatres right now, it's the perfect time for some Top Gun Trivia!

Highest grossing movie of 1986.

The original film featured F-14 jets from the VF-51 "Screaming Eagles" squadron. Reports estimate that Paramount Studios paid as much as $7,800 per hour (about $20k in 2022) for fuel and operating costs. It's unclear whether or not this is part of the $1.8 million the Pentagon charged Paramount for usage.

The movie itself was quite the recruitment ad. Renting out planes to a movie studio might be risky, but it was worth it for the Navy. In the year after Top Gun's release, US Navy enlistment rates went up and applications to flight school shot up an astounding 500%. It probably didn't hurt that the Navy set up recruitment booths outside of theatres.

Val Kilmer didn't want to be in the film, but was forced to by contractual obligations. Now it's one of his most iconic roles.

The amazing airborne shots were made possible by special camera mounts attached to the planes. Paramount wanted the best, so they went straight to Grumman, who made the F-14s in the first place.

Kelly McGillis stands at 5'10, which was a problem for the shorter Tom Cruise, who stands at 5'7. For their scenes together, Cruise's shoes were fitted with lifts. While 5'7 may not be ideal for shooting romance, it's the ideal height for fighter pilots. Tim Robbins, at 6'5, wouldn't have been able to fit in the F-14's cockpit.

Anthony Edwards is the only actor who didn't lose his lunch after a ride in the F-14s.

Being a fan of this movie could be expensive if you work for the real Top Gun School, where quoting the movie will earn you a $5 fine.

Top Gun: Maverick Facts (no spoilers)

Like the World War II P-51 Mustang? It's actually Tom Cruise's. After the original Top Gun, he's become quite the pilot in real life.

In fact, Cruise personally designed the threemonth intensive aviation training course for the other actors to get them ready to handle the F-18s.

Cruise insisted on minimal green screen and CGI. This led to practical shooting that requires actors to undergo extensive G-force training.

Speaking of practical training: there's a shirtless beach football montage that had to be shot twice because Cruise didn't think the cast was ripped enough. Afterward, the actors had a muchearned cheat meal.

Practical shooting inside of fighter jets also forced the actors to learn some new skills. Between takes, actors had to reset shots, adjust their lighting, touch up their own makeup, and make sure the cameras were rolling.

The Navy's oldest fighter pilot retired at 54, but if the time line is correct, Maverick is at least 58.

Val Kilmer plays a small role in the film, but the actor permanently lost his voice during his struggle with throat cancer. In the film, Kilmer's dialogue is performed by an AI program.

THE REVIEWS

THE GOOD

"A perfect popcorn movie and an improvement on the original."

- Kip Mooney, College Movie Review

"Somehow Cruise's foray back into the danger zone will be remembered more than the original, setting a new standard in the era of reboots."

-Maxwell Rabb, Chicago Reader

" Tom Cruise is here to save cinema. He's here to save America. And I'm here for it."

- Simran Hans, Monocle

"If this sounds like hokum, it is. But the storytelling too reminds you of the best version of old Hollywood, broad strokes rendered with watchmaker care."

-Danny Leigh, Financial Times

"The sequel is still rah-rah about American imperialism, but who cares? Thirty-six years after the original, Tom Cruise is having the time of his life, the in-flight thrills are off the charts and— hot damn!—you won’t find more blazing action anywhere."

-Peter Travers, ABC News

THE BAD

Practically a beat-for-beat remake of the original with a non-existent screenplay that has so little interest in exploring the man of its title decades later that the film may as well be set in 1987.

-Erik Childress, Movie Madness Podcast

" This is basically just escapist authoritarian porn for white dads. If it were a sports movie, the 60-yearold coach of the football team would be called out of retirement to quarterback the Super Bowl."

-Ryan Syrek, The Reader

"It’s impossible to overstate how dramatically inert Top Gun: Maverick is."

-Travis Johnson, Mr. Movie's Film Blog

"Top Gun: Maverick is an uninspired, outdated retread of 1986’s Top Gun, but with more implausible scenarios and with no women in military leadership positions ... Top Gun: Maverick, just like its main character, is stuck in a rut of reliving past glories."

- Carla Hay, Culture Mix

"Is 'Top Gun: Maverick' the movie that will mark a generation? No. Its predecessor will always hold that title. Is it a fun Hollywood film? Absolutely. Does it have substance? Not really."

-Catalina Combs, Black Girl Nerds