‘Top Gun: Maverick’ first reactions praise a “perfect blockbuster”

Given how busy an actors schedule can get, it’s not that rare if they have multiple projects premiering over a short period of time but directors almost never have multiple projects bowing within a month of each other. Joseph Kosinski now falls under that category has he not only has the highly-anticipated Top Gun: Maverick opening worldwide on Memorial Day weekend, he also has his Netflix thriller Spiderhead premiering on the platform on June 18.

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.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticThe world is not the same place it was in 1986, when “Top Gun” ruled the box office. In Ronald Reagan, America had a movie star for a president, and producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson as its honorary ministers of propaganda.

"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.

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.

Tom Cruise is all smiles at the premiere of his new film Top Gun: Maverick at The Ritz Carlton Hotel in Mexico City, Mexico on Friday (May 6).

“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 has shared a dramatic new video for her Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack contribution, ‘Hold My Hand’ – scroll down the page to watch it now.The song was released earlier this week (May 3), marking the star’s first piece of new solo material since 2020’s ‘Chromatica’.The ‘Hold My Hand’ video finds Gaga entering the Top Gun universe, donning aviator shades similar to those sported by Tom Cruise in the original movie, and playing piano on a dusty runway in the middle of a barren landscape.The visuals were directed by Top Gun: Maverick filmmaker Joe Kosinski and feature clips from the upcoming film, as well as scenes from the 1986 original. The video was premiered on MTV, MTV Live, MTVU and on the Paramount Times Square billboards in New York earlier today (May 6).

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.

The need for speed! After much anticipation from both the cast and fans alike, Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick is finally hitting theaters this month.

“Top Gun: Maverick” director Joseph Kosinski had his doubts about Lady Gaga contributing to the soundtrack for the upcoming action film.Gaga, 36, released a ballad Tuesday — titled “Hold My Hand” — for the jam-packed sequel to the 1986 Tom Cruise vehicle “Top Gun.” Kosinski, 48, recently confessed that he wasn’t too keen on having the slow, heart-thumping track as a part of the project.“It was nerve-wracking to hear that song for the first time,” Kosinski told Insider, adding that he heard a demo of the track while sitting next to producer Jerry Bruckheimer.“We went over to the record label [offices], and you’re almost afraid you’re not going to like it, because how do you say ‘No thank you’ to Lady Gaga?” the filmmaker continued.However, their spirits soon soared like an F-14 Tomcat fighter jet.“As soon as we heard the song, it was like, ‘Wow, that is a classic melody. That is fantastic,'” Kosinski recalled.

is almost here! The long-awaited sequel hits theaters on May 27, and only ET has an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at Tom Cruise's return to the skies as Captain Pete «Maverick» Mitchell.«My whole life, I've wanted to make movies or fly airplanes or go to space,» Cruise says in a new featurette for the upcoming film. «I wanted to jump off buildings, go ride fast motorcycles… My life has just been filled with stories — telling stories, creating characters.»For Cruise returns to his beloved character from the 1986 original. Maverick's spent his time in the intervening years as a test pilot, refusing the Navy's attempts to promote him up the chain of command so he can stay in the air as much as possible.

Later this month, audiences will finally get to watch the highly anticipated sequel to Tom Cruise‘s beloved 1980s fighter pilot action pic “Top Gun.” There is already some early buzz on “Top Gun: Maverick” after a screening at CinemaCon 2022 in Las Vegas that seems to indicate that the extended wait, due to multiple release date hiccups, will be worth it. The film is directed by Joseph Kosinski (“Tron Legacy,” “Oblivion“) with longtime Cruise collaborator Christopher McQuarrie (“Jack Reacher,” “Mission: Impossible – Fallout“) joining the project to help both produce and work on the script.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” has officially concluded its world premiere and the first reactions for the new entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe are pouring in online, with film journalists calling the long-awaited sequel everything from a film that “fully goes horror” to “a mixed bag.” One thing almost everyone seems to agree on is that it’s nice to see Sam Raimi back in the director’s chair.Benedict Cumberbatch reprises the title role in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” which is helmed by Raimi. The film picks up after the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” in which Stephen Strange changed the face of reality by opening up the multiverse.