Tom Cruise starrer 2022 film Top Gun: Maverick turned out to be one of the biggest films of the Hollywood and action star’s career. Not only the sequel made it to the list of the highest-grossing films of all time, but it also received six nominations at the 95th Academy Awards and won the Oscar for Best Sound. The film’s makers and its cast received immense praise for their work in the 2022 sequel.
However, one of the cast members was not sure about his character in the Top Gun sequel and almost left the film after he failed to get the part he auditioned for. It led Tom Cruise to take the wheel to get him back on track with his character in the film.
Glen Powell Almost Lost the Opportunity to Star Alongside Tom Cruise
Glen Powell portrayed the antagonist, Hangman, in the 2022 sequel of Top Gun. The film featuring Tom Cruise was a much-awaited sequel to the 1986 film Top Gun. And like many others, Powell was also a big fan of Tony Scott’s 1986 action adventure.
And when he learned that a sequel was being planned for his favorite film, he auditioned for it, hoping to be a part of something he loved growing up. Powell decided to audition for Rooster’s character. Rooster is the son of Captain Maverick’s partner, Goose, from the first film.
But to his disappointment, he failed to get that role, and Miles Teller was cast as Rooster in the sequel. However, he was offered another part, one of the antagonists to Cruise’s character in the sequel. But he was not sure if he could accept the offer or not.
“There was a part of me that didn’t know if I wanted to be a part of something that could bring that much attention and success to me.”
The Set it Up star shared that he felt disconnected from his character as he compared Hangman to Harry Potter’s infamous antagonist, Draco Malfoy. He said that he had no idea why Hangman even “existed” in Maverick’s story.
Tom Cruise Convinced Glen Powell to Take Hangman’s Role
Powell was convinced that his character also has a prominent role in the film after he received a call from the lead star of Top Gun: Maverick. A week after the Devotion star learned that he had lost Rooster’s role, he was surprised to get a call from Tom Cruise himself.
“No movie star calls the guy that doesn’t get the role,” he said. Powell shared that after several phone calls, the Mission Impossible star convinced him to take Hangman’s role in the sequel. In an interview with GQ Magazine, the Hidden Figures actor shared that Hangman was in the story to “add conflict to Rooster’s character.”
However, he was not “three-dimensional, and he had no payoff.” And these things about the character made him feel like the character has no purpose. He said, “I didn’t know why he existed.”
But he could see potential in Hangman after Tom Cruise, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and director Joseph Kosinski advised him to adapt to the character. And Powell is thankful that he did not miss out on this opportunity.
Top Gun: Maverick is available to stream on Paramount+.
Source: GQ Magazine
