Top Gun: Maverick director Joe Kosinski has revealed that the upcoming movie's practical flying stunt scenes were shot with the help of actual aviators from the United States Navy. A follow-up to the classic 1986 film Top Gun 36 years in the making, the highly anticipated sequel is flying into movie theaters this weekend. The much-hyped arrival comes after quite a few release delays, most at the fault of the pandemic; Top Gun: Maverick was once scheduled to debut in the summer of 2019.
Top Gun: Maverick will pick up more than thirty years after the original film and will find Pete "Maverick" Mitchell (Tom Cruise) still holding onto his status as a test pilot and instructor at Top Gun, refusing to accept any advancement in rank. When Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw (Miles Teller) — the son of Maverick's late best friend Nick "Goose" Bradshaw — enrolls in the program, Maverick is roped into a conflict with his own deepest fears. This results in a mission that will demand the ultimate sacrifice from those who will be chosen to fly it. Top Gun: Maverick also stars Val Kilmer, Jon Hamm and Jennifer Connelly.
In an interview with IGN, Kosinski explains the process for how Top Gun: Maverick's aerial stunt scenes were filmed practically. He describes how the naval aviators worked as cameramen and women, and learned a little bit about filmmaking in the process. The director then goes on to profess how impressed he was with the soldiers' professionalism and expertise. Read his full quote below:
“We had air-to-air, we had cameras on the outside of the jet. The naval aviators, we had to talk to them about movie making, light, altitude, speed, angles that we wanted to get. So yeah, they were serving as cameramen and women on this film as well. It was a huge team of people to pull this off. We were working with Top Gun, the real Top Gun, and so we knew we were working with the best of the best. And every day, they showed us why they are who they are. I mean, what they were doing for us in this film, obviously safety was the most important thing, but the professionalism and the skill they exhibited in the aircraft was pretty mind-blowing.”
Kosinski also explains that while the Top Gun: Maverick flight scenes were being shot, his feet were planted firmly on the ground. Because of this, he had to have faith in the actors and pilots to know what they were doing. In his words, "Once they pulled away, I didn't see them until they came back an hour later. The biggest challenge is not being there to give feedback, obviously. So you're putting a lot of responsibility and trust in our cast, but they're incredible people.” That would be a daunting prospect for any director, but Kosinski likely knew he was creating something special for Top Gun: Maverick. Therefore, it becomes a little easier to relinquish control. It also probably helped that Cruise, a notorious perfectionist, had a hand in things too.
With computer-generated visual effects being more common in blockbuster movies these days, it's very refreshing to see one that utilizes the strengths of real, tangible special effects. Top Gun: Maverick will be a much-welcomed reminder that sometimes, good practical effects can enhance a film's immersive quality by adding to its realism. It shows the audience that the filmmaking process can be just as epic of an adventure as the narrative of the movie itself. Even better, Top Gun: Maverick will be released exclusively in theaters, thus giving audiences the opportunity to get the best visuals possible.
Source: IGN
