Top Gun 3: Maverick’s Next Mission Starts to Take Shape
Published On: May 27, 2025
Nearly three years after Top Gun: Maverick reignited theaters with $1.4 billion in global box office glory, the high-flying franchise is gearing up for another adrenaline-fueled sequel. Top Gun 3 is officially in development, with Tom Cruise set to return as the iconic Pete "Maverick" Mitchell—and if early signs are any indication, this sequel might be just as explosive as its predecessor.
The road to Top Gun 3
When Top Gun: Maverick premiered in May 2022, it wasn’t just a hit—it was a cultural reset. The long-awaited sequel, arriving 36 years after the original, proved that audiences still craved the kind of big-screen spectacle only Cruise and his daredevil filmmaking could deliver. With breathtaking aerial sequences, a nostalgic yet fresh story, and a new generation of pilots led by Miles Teller’s "Rooster" and Glen Powell’s "Hangman," Maverick became one of the highest-grossing films of all time.
Unsurprisingly, Paramount greenlit Top Gun 3 in January 2024, but progress has been decidedly deliberate. Screenwriter Ehren Kruger (Top Gun: Maverick) and producer Christopher McQuarrie (Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning) have been crafting the script, with McQuarrie recently revealing on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that the story is "already in the bag".
"It wasn’t hard," McQuarrie said. "Ehren Kruger pitched something, and we had one conversation about it—the framework is there. The truth is, none of these are hard to crack. It’s the emotion that matters.".
What we know about the sequel
While plot details remain under wraps, Top Gun: Maverick left a few threads dangling. The film teased a conflict between human pilots and Admiral Cain’s drone program, setting up a potential Top Gun 3 storyline where Maverick and his team must prove the irreplaceable value of human skill in an era of automation.
The returning cast is another major draw. Cruise is confirmed to reprise his role, alongside Teller and Powell. Director Joseph Kosinski (Maverick) is expected to return, though McQuarrie, who has become Cruise’s most trusted collaborator, has playfully teased that he’s "done a lot of research into how to make a Tony Scott movie", referring to the original Top Gun director.
Tom Cruise’s enduring star power
The momentum behind Top Gun 3 speaks to Cruise’s unparalleled staying power in Hollywood. Even at 62, he remains one of the last true movie stars, as evidenced by the recent success of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, which just scored the franchise’s best-ever opening weekend ($77 million over Memorial Day).
That said, Cruise’s latest Mission: Impossible was overshadowed by Disney’s Lilo & Stitch remake, which shattered records with a $183 million debut, proving that nostalgia (whether for fighter jets or a mischievous blue alien) is a powerful force. Still, Cruise’s ability to draw audiences, even in a crowded market, reinforces why studios are eager to keep him in the cockpit.
Beyond Top Gun: Cruise and McQuarrie’s wild side projects
Interestingly, while Top Gun 3 moves forward, Cruise and McQuarrie have also been brainstorming another unexpected project: a Tropic Thunder spinoff centered on Cruise’s foul-mouthed, dance-loving studio executive, Les Grossman. "The conversations we’ve had about Les Grossman are so fucking funny," McQuarrie admitted on Happy Sad Confused. "We’re having very serious conversations about how best to do it."
The idea, first floated in 2022, has gained traction as a comedic counterbalance to Cruise’s usual death-defying stunts. Whether it ever gets made remains to be seen, but the fact that Cruise is even considering it shows his willingness to take risks, even if they involve prosthetic hands and profanity-laced rants.
Will Top Gun 3 soar or stall?
The big question: Does Top Gun 3 have the same magic as Maverick?
On one hand, the sequel has a tough act to follow. Maverick was a rare legacy sequel that surpassed the original, thanks to its emotional core and jaw-dropping practical effects. Replicating that success won’t be easy, especially if the story leans too heavily on nostalgia without fresh stakes.
On the other hand, Cruise’s commitment to authenticity (he famously insisted on filming Maverick in real jets) and McQuarrie’s emphasis on character-driven action suggest Top Gun 3 won’t be a lazy cash grab. If the script delivers another compelling arc for Maverick, as in perhaps passing the torch to Rooster or facing off against AI-piloted drones, it could be another winner.
The bottom line
With filming reportedly set to begin in late 2025 for a potential 2026 release, Top Gun 3 is still in its early stages. But one thing is clear: Tom Cruise isn’t slowing down. Whether he’s defying gravity in Mission: Impossible, reviving Days of Thunder, or dancing as Les Grossman, his dedication to cinematic spectacle remains unmatched.
And if Top Gun 3 captures even half the lightning-in-a-bottle energy of Maverick, audiences will gladly return to the Danger Zone.