When will the follow-up to Top Gun: Maverick be released, and will there be a Top Gun 3? Top Gun: Maverick, directed by Joseph Kosinski, hit theatres 36 years after the original film Top Gun became an international phenomenon. In Top Gun: Maverick, Val Kilmer returned as Admiral Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, and Tom Cruise played the role of Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, one of his most recognizable signature roles. New characters such as Rooster (Miles Teller) were also introduced in Top Gun: Maverick.
Top Gun 3 is not in the works at this time. Top Gun: Maverick, on the other hand, has proven to be a huge blockbuster thanks to its 97% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, rave reviews, and positive reception from audiences. In fact, it has a good chance of being considered Tom Cruise’s finest work. Top Gun 2’s numbers were boosted by its release on Memorial Day weekend, contributing to its eventual global gross of over a billion dollars. Even though it isn’t the highest-grossing film of all time, it’s still pretty impressive.
The success of Top Gun 2 virtually guarantees that a third installment will be made. Studios justified the sequel’s $170 million price tag by saying they knew the franchise would be successful. Due to the high cost of fighter jets, Paramount had to be confident that the investment would pay off. As Top Gun 2 ends on a cliffhanger, it’s clear that a third installment is possible and that Top Gun 3 could be the start of a lucrative franchise.
Which Stars From Top Gun Original Return For The Sequel?
It’s hard to imagine a third Top Gun film without Tom Cruise in the lead role, and if that film were to be made, Cruise would almost certainly want to star in it. Maverick also introduced new characters that could return for a third Top Gun film, including Glen Powell’s Hangman, Miles Teller’s Rooster, and Jennifer Connelly’s Penny. Still, new pilots could be introduced in Top Gun 3, although the return of Teller as Maverick’s new wingman seems inevitable.
Some characters from Top Gun didn’t make it back for Top Gun 2, but they could turn up in Top Gun 3. The fact that Penny (Anna Kendrick) is now Maverick’s girlfriend rather than Charlie (Kelly McGillis) doesn’t preclude her from making a brief appearance in Top Gun 3. Tom Skerritt’s portrayal of Top Gun’s Mike “Viper” Metcalf will be a great choice if the character returns to the series. Half of Top Gun’s crew didn’t return for Maverick. That includes Jester, Cougar, and Hollywood. It’s still possible for a reunion to happen in Top Gun 3.
What Maverick Sets Up in Top Gun 3
Since the primary objective of Top Gun: Maverick was accomplished, the sequel would have to introduce a new mission that calls for Maverick and the other pilots to engage in daring aerial maneuvers. Nonetheless, Maverick did sow the seeds of a new story by mentioning that Admiral Cain intended to replace human pilots with a drone fleet. I imagine that in Top Gun 3, Maverick and the other human pilots would have to face off against Cain’s drones in an effort to prove that man is indeed superior to a machine.
A Top Gun homecoming would be the icing on the cake here. Since most of the original crew didn’t return for Top Gun 2, a war against artificial intelligence provides the ideal backdrop for the third installment’s crew reunion. Top Gun 3 could feature the return of the initial fighter pilot team, which would be a fitting homage to the original film by demonstrating that humans are superior aviators. The plot that involves replacing human pilots with drones will play some role in the plot of Top Gun 3, but to what extent remains to be seen.
Forecast for the Top Gun 3 Release Date
Christopher McQuarrie, who directed and co-wrote the script for Top Gun: Maverick, is currently busy filming the next two Mission: Impossible movies with Tom Cruise. Cruise won’t be able to focus on Top Gun 3 if that’s on his agenda until he finishes filming Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 2. However, that might change if Paramount and Cruise decide to rush Top Gun 3.
Part of the reason it took 36 years for Top Gun’s sequel to be made is that Tom Cruise had to wait for technology to advance so that he could film the amazing aerial combat footage from Top Gun: Maverick in the way he had envisioned. In any case, we won’t have to wait another 3600 years because we have the means to do so right now. Maybe we’ll get a Top Gun 3 before the decade of the 2020s is over.
What the Top Gun: Maverick Cast and Crew Have to Say About a Possible Sequel
Joseph Kosinski, the director, has dropped hints that he is working on Top Gun 3, so it’s more probable than ever that we’ll get the third installment. During a panel for Deadline’s Contenders LA3C, the director talked about the rigorous training program the actors had to undergo in preparation for Top Gun 2. Towards the end, he said something that makes the possibility of Top Gun 3 even more real. The director concluded his discussion of the acting program by saying,
Is there another story that is compelling enough that we need to go back? It seems to me at the end of this film that Maverick has some gas left in the tank. He’s not settling down.
It pretty much proves without a doubt that Top Gun 3 will be made. A slowdown in the franchise’s output appears unlikely, despite the lack of any concrete plans at this time. As a billion-dollar success, Top Gun: Maverick proved that fans were eager for more of the series, and the film’s conclusion neatly set up the sequel, which starred Tom Cruise. Even though it hasn’t been approved yet, Top Gun 3 will be released. Keep an eye out for further developments and announcements.
