Lewis Hamilton Reveals He Turned Down ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Fighter Pilot Role

Lewis Hamilton came close to starring in the biggest movie of 2022. The Formula 1 superstar recently spoke to Vanity Fair and said he turned down a role to play a fighter pilot in Top Gun: Maverick. Hamilton was willing to be in the movie since he was a fan of the original Top Gun and is a friend of Tom Cruise. But there is one reason why he couldn’t star in the film.

“When I heard the second one was coming out, I was like, ‘Oh, my God, I have to ask him,” Hamilton said, per Deadline. “I don’t care what role it is. I’ll even sweep something, be a cleaner in the back.” Cruise agreed, and Hamilton was ready to be one of the pilots. The only problem was the filming schedule clashed with the climax of the FI season, and Hamilton wasn’t able to split his time. Hamilton told Cruise and Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski that declining the offer was  “the most upsetting call that I think I’ve ever had.”

Top Gun: Maverick hit theatres on May 27 and became a commercial and critical hit. The Paramount Pictures blockbuster has now earned over $662 million in ticket sales, making it the seventh-highest-grossing film at the domestic box office. In an interview with Screen Rant, Cruise talked about the training they endured to get ready for filming. 

“Making movies, you’re constantly learning; you have to constantly work to become more and more competent in many different fields,” Crusie said. “And I want to tell them, that’s the beauty of making movies. That’s why I’ve always pushed my films to go international, around the world and in different communities. And to be part of that right from the beginning. It was my dream. You’ve got to work. You got to work. It’s not a bunch of parties and doing that, and that’s what I love. And then they get to enjoy this evening.”

While Hamilton missed out on being in Top Gun: Maverick, he will be involved in a big movie that was acquired by Apple earlier this year. The untitled Formula 1 film will star Brad Pitt, who plays a driver coming out of retirement to compete alongside a rookie against the top drivers in the world. Hamilton is one of the producers of the film along with Kosinski.