Top Gun 3's surprise announcement got excited reactions from the pilot actors of Top Gun: Maverick, according to star Jay Ellis. The new sequel in the franchise was announced in January, and is currently in development at Paramount. The announcement came after Maverick's 2022 box office success, earning $1.496 billion worldwide and becoming the second highest-earning film of the year.

Speaking with Screen Rant at the DGA Awards, Ellis, who portrays Payback, revealed how excited the pilot actors were to hear the upcoming Top Gun 3 would be a reality. The actor said that anyone on the team would be willing to reprise their roles if needed. Check out what Ellis had to say below:

I can tell you that the Top Gun pilot chain literally was dinging nonstop. We had to turn our phones off, because it was dinging so much. Listen, we're all happy to suit up, if we get the call, we would show up for [director] Joe [Kosinski] and for Tom [Cruise], and for Jerry Bruckheimer. We would show up for those guys any day of the week to do it again, so hopefully we all get to see Top Gun Payback next time around.

Who Will Return In Top Gun 3?

The announcement of another film in the franchise revealed Tom Cruise would be returning as Maverick, while Miles Teller and Glen Powell are rumored to be coming back as Rooster and Hangman, respectively. The story for the new movie is unclear; however, the end of Top Gun: Maverick saw Rooster become close friends with the titular character. This will likely form the basis of the next movie, as the two may end up going on another harrowing mission together.

While Maverick, Rooster, and Hangman were the focal pilots of the previous movie, the friendship shown between the whole team helped elevate the film. Because of how important this was to making the group feel realistic, it would make sense to bring that same dynamic into the sequel. This could include familiar pilots like Payback, perhaps showing how the team grows stronger over time as they embark on a new, dangerous mission.

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It's just as possible, however, for a new team of pilots to be introduced in the movie, mirroring how the previous two films had different teams as well. Yet the strong impressions of the Maverick team coupled with the actors wanting to return means there's a high likelihood they could come back. With plenty of events that could happen in Top Gun 3, there's no way of knowing for sure if the whole pilot team will return until more information about the movie is revealed.