Pete “Maverick” Mitchell is back for more dog-fighting action, as Paramount has announced that Tom Cruise will be returning for Top Gun 3.
As reported by Variety, the casting announcement was made during CinemaCon 2026 in Las Vegas, and follows the sequel’s initial announcement back in 2024 that revealed the return of scribe Ehren Kruger, who co-wrote 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick. While no confirmation has been made yet, Top Gun 3 is expected to see Cruise reunite with co-stars Miles Teller and Glen Powell, who played Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw and Jake “Hangman” Seresin, respectively. Additionally, the announcement also revealed that Jerry Bruckheimer, who produced both the 1986 original and its follow-up, will be returning for its third chapter.
Top Gun: Maverick would go on to be a smash hit at the box office, grossing US$1.5 billion globally on a US$170 million budget, making it no surprise that its story will continue with a sequel. Other stars from the movie include Jon Hamm (Cyclone), Lewis Pullman (Bob), Monica Barbaro (Phoenix), Danny Ramirez (Fanboy), Jay Ellis (Payback), Greg Tarzan Davis (Coyote) and Manny Jacinto (Fritz). The film also marked the final role for the late Val Kilmer, who reprised his role of Tom “Iceman” Kazansky from the original film.
Cruise famously played Mitchell back in the original 1986 film, with his character being promoted from Lieutenant to the rank of Captain by the events of the second film, which saw him returning to the flight school to teach a new batch of pilots as they undertake a dangerous mission. With Top Gun 3, it remains to be seen how long a time jump the movie will take, and whether he will see another promotion in the time that’s passed.
While no further plot details for Top Gun 3 were revealed, director Joseph Kosinski previously teased that the sequel’s narrative would feature an ambitious idea that “opens up” the Top Gun storyline, with fellow script-writer Christopher McQuarrie adding very early on that the threequel’s plot was “already in the bag” and that “it wasn’t hard” to come up with a meaningful follow-up.
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
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