‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Reviews Hail Tom Cruise’s Emotional, Superior Sequel

The pilots of “Top Gun: Maverick” are ready to take flight.

Tom Cruise as Pete «Maverick» Mitchell and features a special return from Val Kilmer as now-Admiral Tom «Iceman» Kazansky -- doesn't feature any appearances from the female stars of the 1986 original: Kelly McGillis and Meg Ryan.Ryan's character, Carole, the wife of Maverick's late wingman and best friend Nick «Goose» Bradshaw (played by Anthony Edwards) and mother to Miles Teller's Bradley «Rooster» Bradshaw, is referenced in the sequel and seen in flashback scenes. However, there isn't even a mention of McGillis' Charlie Blackwood, a Top Gun instructor and Maverick's love interested in the original.«Those weren't stories that we were throwing around,» Maverick director Joseph Kosinski told Insider of the actresses' absences.

This month will see the return of beloved genre auteur David Cronenberg (“Crash,” “Naked Lunch”) to the Cannes Film Festival with his anticipated body horror pic “Crimes of The Future,” which boasts an impressive cast that includes Viggo Mortensen, Lea Seydoux, and Kristen Stewart. During a lengthy interview with Variety, the Canadian filmmaker talked about the studio offers he passed on during the 1980s that included a story about an unnamed Lucasfilm executive/representative hanging upon him when they reached out to him about directing “Star Wars: Return of The Jedi” after Cronenberg mentioned he only directs his own material.

Actor Tom Cruise caused a stir when star-struck fans spotted the Hollywood actor, 59, arriving at the Queen's Jubilee Celebrations on Sunday (May 15). However that excitement from fans quickly turned sour as the Top Gun actor was later slammed after his interview with Phillip Schofield and Julie Etchingham.Tom was invited to the one-off Royal event to introduce the Kings Trop Royal Artillery and while he made gushing comments about Her Majesty, viewers were less than impressed with his overall interview. During the celebratory evening, Tom, thought to be worth an impressive £490.2million, spoke with Phillip Schofield and Julie Etchingham at great length about his latest film.

There are plenty of reasons to dislike Tom Cruise if you’re allergic to the idea of the relentless alpha male. Scientology seems like a non-starter for one, the ubermensch American exceptionalism thing feels like it borders on the intolerance for anyone not giving 110% during every breakfast, and while his commitment to filmmaking seems nonpareil, his reputation for the rigorous demands he places on crew members can seem cold-hearted (see the way he lost faith with the director of “The Mummy” and impatiently tried to take over, or how he recently just fired Twenty One Pilots from the soundtrack of his new movie for just recent examples).

"Top Gun: Maverick" director Joseph Kosinski shared that bringing back the female characters played by Meg Ryan and Kelly McGillis was never considered for the 2022 sequel.  During an interview with Insider, Kosinski said, "Those weren't stories that we were throwing around." Ryan, 60, played the character of Goose’s wife Carole Bradshaw in the 1986 movie, and McGillis, 64, played Top Gun instructor Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood.  Meg Ryan and Kelly McGillis were never asked to return in the 2022 sequel "Top Gun: Maverick." (Getty Images) According to Kosinski, the filmmakers wanted to take "Top Gun: Maverick" in a different direction. "I didn't want every storyline to always be looking backwards," Kosinski shared.

premieres later this month, though two major female leads from the original story won’t be seen: Kelly McGillis and Meg Ryan.McGillis played Charlie Blackwood, a flight instructor and the object of Maverick’s affection. Ryan, meanwhile, portrayed the wife of Goose Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards), Maverick’s best friend and co-pilot who dies on the job.Joseph Kosinski, who directed the sequel, confessed to Insider that he had no intention of ever bringing the two women back for “Maverick.”“Those weren’t stories that we were throwing around,” Kosinski said.He also explained that there were already too many narratives occurring in the new film, including the return of Val Kilmer as Iceman Kazansky, and Maverick training Goose’s son, Rooster (Miles Teller).The sequel focuses on Maverick’s Navy pilot career 30 years after the first film, and introduces a slew of hopeful recruits for the veteran to train.McGillis, now 64, previously discussed not being asked to join the second flick back in 2019.

With Tom Cruise reprising his “Top Gun” role in the new sequel “Top Gun: Maverick”, fans may have noticed that while some stars from the original (such as Val Kilmer) are back for brief cameos, that isn’t the case with Kelly McGillis and Meg Ryan, neither of whom appear in the new movie.

Singer Tyler Joseph of 21 Pilots revealed the band was supposed to write music for the soundtrack of "Top Gun: Maverick." Joseph claimed the project came to a halt when Tom Cruise "fired everyone." "You know, I was working with the – I don't know if I'm even supposed to say this, whatever – I was working with the music placement person for the new ‘Top Gun’ on writing a new song for them," Joseph told radio station KROQ.  "And then I believe Tom Cruise came in and just fired everyone." 21 Pilots singer Tyler Joseph recently revealed he was supposed to write music for "Top Gun: Maverick" but was "fired" by Tom Cruise. Joseph noted there were a few "overhauls" throughout filming saying, "The trailer has been out for like three years, so there's been a few overhauls, and I was a part of that.They moved on." "Top Gun: Maverick" will premiere on May 24 after delays due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Twenty One Pilots singer Tyler Joseph has claimed that he was asked to write a song for the Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack before star and producer Tom Cruise rescinded the offer.Joseph said in a new interview that he was invited to contribute a song for the sequel to 1986’s Top Gun.“I was working with the music placement person for the new Top Gun on writing a new song for them and then I believe Tom Cruise just came in and just fired everyone,” Joseph told Californian radio station KROQ yesterday (May 9) [via MusicNews].According to Joseph, he hadn’t actually started work on the project when Cruise allegedly pulled the plug. He added that his input was likely affected by changes made to the film as a result of the COVID pandemic.“I saw some scenes.

“Hold My Hand,” the new single from the movie’s soundtrack.But when Berlin recorded “Take My Breath Away” — the Oscar-winning smash that sent  the hearts of Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis soaring in the 1986 original film — the band was hardly in Gaga’s superstar stratosphere.“We got really lucky because at the time we were nothing,” Terri Nunn, lead singer of Berlin, told The Post. “We had not had a hit at all.

Lady Gaga fans, rejoice! The «Poker Face» singer has just dropped the music video for her  ballad, «Hold My Hand,» and — grab those tissues because — it's a tearjerker!The 36-year-old singer's music video features scenes from the upcoming film as well as emotional scenes from the original 1986 flick. Gaga, at first, sits under one of the iconic planes featured in the film and pours her heart out as flash scenes show Tom Cruise -- aka Captain Pete «Maverick» Mitchell — reminisces about his late friend, Nick Bradshaw, better known as «Goose.» The music video was directed by the film's director, Joseph Kosinski.The release comes just days after Gaga teased the song on her social media.

Tom Cruise landed at the premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in style, jetting to the California event in a helicopter. Tom, 59, made quite the entrance when he arrived at the San Diego premiere of the highly-anticipated film to greet his co-stars. After disembarking the French Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil, the Hollywood star waved to a raft of his fans that recorded and cheered as he stepped out of the chopper.Tom has reprised the character of Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell for a hotly-anticipated sequel to the 1896 classic.

Tom Cruise is finally going to see soar into theaters, after years of planning, prepping, shooting and eventual delays. The celebrated movie star says the pressure is something he anticipated and is excited about.Cruise arrived via helicopter to the red carpet premiere of the long-awaited sequel on Wednesday — held on the deck of the USS Midway aircraft carrier in San Diego, California — and spoke with ET's Nischelle Turner about basking in the joy of the experience.«This is quite a moment.

Tom Cruise made an epic landing onto the red carpet at the  world premiere in San Diego Wednesday. The movie star arrived on the deck of the USS Midway aircraft carrier via a helicopter.Cruise stepped out of the chopper, which read «Tom Cruise. ,» on it and approached the droves of waiting photographers, reporters and fans, all itching to see the actor make his return as Lt.