As of 12th February 2023, Top Gun 2 ranks 12th in top lifetime grosses in the worldwide collection. Although the number is not exactly a reflection of the dream that was sold in theatres almost a year ago, it is still the second-highest worldwide earner of 2022 just below Avatar: The Way of Water. And such a creation doesn’t make itself indispensable by the sheer force of star power and one risqué beach football sequence.
Joseph Kosinski’s directorial venture instills a dream that is more about camaraderie and friendship than it is about patriotism and sacrifice. And in that, Maverick remains just as relevant 8 months later as Top Gun is in its 36th year.
Top Gun 2 Director Relives a Few Tales From Pre-Filming Era
Joseph Kosinski’s expertise with futuristic films, expansive aerial sequences, technology, vast landscapes, and Tom Cruise dates back to 2013’s Oblivion. The similarities, however, between the two decade-apart films end there. With Paramount’s sequel to Tony Scott’s 1986 original film proving to be a stunning success, it is no wonder that Kosinski’s attempt at recreating the scenes for Top Gun 2 would need immense research and exploration of the actual US Navy.
In a recent interview with Deadline, the director revealed a few stories from Top Gun 2‘s pre-production era when Kosinski was knee-deep in finding out the way of lifestyle, training, and functionality in Naval bases across different locations. And as unbelievable as his experience might have been, it also came with its fair share of security measures and protocols which managed to unsettle the director a bit (and also add the tale to his collection of cool stories to tell in years to come):
“So, I got to live that dream of being in the Navy for a couple years. I got to go to places that civilians don’t get to go to. I got to see things that no civilian would get to see. I had my camera confiscated at one point. Wiped clean.
I took some pictures and maybe captured something I wasn’t supposed to capture, and my camera was quickly returned to me without any photos on it.”
Apparently, Kosinski’s “quest for authenticity” for his film could only take him so far before having to face the proper protocols applicable to all who have walked through a military base.
What Made Top Gun 2 an Undeniable Success?
For every fan, enthusiast, and aficionado of the Navy, Air Force, and its elements, Top Gun: Maverick was a dream of the best measure come true. And an enormous factor contributing to the success of Kosinski’s vision was the use of actual F-18 and using technology that allowed incredible aerial shots from the cockpits and wings that made the audience feel like they were soaring alongside Cruise and his gang as well.
Much of the depiction of the US Navy in the film has been drawn from the collective knowledge gathered by Joseph Kosinski in his time spent on military bases as research during pre-production of Top Gun 2. Apart from that, it was Tom Cruise’s extensive knowledge of fighter jets, skill as a pilot, his personally established G-Force training program for the actors, stuntmen, and crew before the scheduled filming, the actor’s insistence on real in-flight and aerial sequences instead of a green screen and CGI, and an epic and ambitious script manifested on the big screen that made Top Gun: Maverick an invincible work of art powerful enough to single-handedly revive the theatre industry.
Top Gun 2 is currently available for streaming on Paramount+
Source: Deadline
