'Top Gun: Maverick' Predicted to Hit Huge Box Office Milestone
Top Gun: Maverick, the long-awaited sequel to Top Gun, will open in theaters this week and it's predicted to hit a huge box office milestone. According to Deadline, the Tom Cruise-led film is expected to be the actor's best worldwide opening of his career at a possible $180 million haul. It is also expected to be a big win for Cruise in the U.S. as well, potentially raking in $92M to $100M+ at the domestic box office over Memorial Day weekend.
Top Gun: Maverick is a sequel to the 1986 action film Top Gun, in which Cruise played Air Force fighter pilot LT Pete "Maverick" Mitchell. The Paramount Pictures film sees Cruise reprising his role, and will also feature his Top Gun co-star Val Kilmer as Tom "Iceman" Kazansky. In addition to Cruise and Kilmer, the cast also features Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell and Ed Harris. Notably, former Top Gun stars such as Kelly McGillis, Tom Skerritt, Meg Ryan, and Tim Robbins do not reprise their roles from the original film. Though, it has been rumored that there may be some kind of reference to one or more of these past characters.
Hamm previously spoke out about what it was like to film the highly anticipated sequel and assured fans that they can expect some groundbreaking cinematography. "They're using some technology on this that is never before seen," he said while speaking with Collider. "We're shooting the movie in, I think, 6K. So it's incredibly hi-def. The aerial footage is mind-blowing. And it's mostly practical. There's not a lot of CG. Those guys are really up in planes and getting thrown around in multiple Gs."
The Mad Men star later shared his personal feelings on being part of the iconic franchise. "It's a very strange experience but it's been a wonderful experience as well. It's basically getting the whole team back together. Unfortunately, [original director] Tony Scott is unavailable, but they've achieved a very similar vibe to the first one," he said.
Hamm continued, "I think it's gonna be, for the people who love the first movie I think it's gonna be very interesting to watch. It very much takes the story in a different direction. But I think for the new fans it's gonna be something very cool, too. I've seen some of the footage, it is out of this world." Top Gun: Maverick opens in theaters Friday, May 27.