Everything we know so far about the Top Gun sequel
Tom Cruise announced last week that filming of the sequel to the 1980s blockbuster Top Gun has finally begun.
Do you feel the need? The need for speed? Well if so, 32 years after the release of the original Top Gun, Tom Cruise has announced that they have finally begun filming the sequel.
Cruise took to Twitter on Thursday, 31 May, to confirm that filming had begun on the sequel, titled Top Gun: Maverick.
#Day1 pic.twitter.com/7jjPL277Es
— Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) May 31, 2018
Don’t believe Tom? Well, take it from the producer himself then.
Getting started. #TopGun #Maverick #FeeltheNeed pic.twitter.com/kUeMD9Q526
— BRUCKHEIMER FILMS/TV (@BRUCKHEIMERJB) June 1, 2018
Talks to get the second film off the ground have been going on for a while, with the original movie’s director, Tony Scott, being approached to revive the movie all the way back in 2010. These plans ended in tragedy however, as Scott committed suicide in 2012.
The movie has since struggled to catch air, but a determined Jerry Bruckheimer, a producer on the original, said in 2014 that, “For 30 years we’ve been trying to make a sequel and we’re not going to stop.”
As he put it in another interview, “Losing Tony slowed us down, but hopefully, we can pick up speed again.” That they did, and last week the filming of the sequel finally started, 32 years after the original released.
At this point it must be admitted that nobody but those involved really knows much about the film. However, we have put what information we’ve been able to garner together –
Director, producers, and writers
Taking the reins of the film will be director Joseph Krasinski, who previously directed the 2010 reboot of the Tron franchise, Tron: Legacy as well as 2013’s Oblivion, when he worked with Cruise.
Peter Craig is confirmed to be part of the writing team for the movie. Craig’s filmography is pretty impressive, having worked on both The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2, Blood Father, and the newly released 12 Strong.
The producers list sees Jerry Bruckheimer return to the Top Gun setup, alongside two relatively young producers with pretty extensive resumes. David Ellison has already worked with Cruise on Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and Mission Impossible: Fallout, while also having produced World War Z, Terminator Genysis, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, the two latest Star Trek reboots, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, Geostorm, and Baywatch.
The third executive producer is Tommy Harper, who has worked on all three Star Trek reboots since 2009, Jack Reacher: Shadow Recruit, and Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens. He has also worked with Cruise before, on Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.
Release date
The USA release date for the movie has been confirmed to be 12 July, 2019, with no other release date having been confirmed yet.
We’re getting a lot of Maverick
Cruise will of course be reprising his role as Lieutenant Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, and according to Ellison, the film belongs to Cruise and Maverick: “There is an amazing role for Maverick in the movie and there is no Top Gun without Maverick, and it is going to be Maverick playing Maverick,” he has said. In other words, expect a lot of Maverick.
We could see Maverick go back to school – as a teacher
One rumoured plotline would see Maverick, formerly the most rebellious recruit at the Top Gun Naval Fighter Weapons School, return there to train a new generation of pilots.
“The idea is to have Maverick at the Top Gun school as an instructor – and this time it is he who has to deal with a cocky new female pilot,” an anonymous source told the UK’s Sun newspaper.
There has, however, been no official confirmation of this rumour.
The plane in the photo
In the photo that Cruise posted, there is a jet in the background which, since the photo was taken on set, can be expected to be flown in the movie. The plane appears to be an F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Composer
The film will see German composer Harold Faltermeyer return to the fold after putting Top Gun’s original rock-guitar score together.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
For free daily local news on the West Rand, also visit our sister newspaper websites
Remember to visit our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages to let your voice be heard!
