It's been 32 years, but at long last we're heading back to the Danger Zone. The sequel to the 1986 classic Top Gun, titled Top Gun: Maverick, has begun filming with Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer signed on to reprise their roles as Maverick and Iceman. Joining the two rival pilots will be the son of their fallen comrade Nicholas "Goose" Bradshaw, the character played by Anthony Edwards, who died in the first film. The son of Goose is set to have a key role in the film and casting is underway for the part. The frontrunners are Nicholas Hoult, Glen Powell and Miles Teller.
As the son of Pete Mitchell's best friend and wingman, the part is set to be an important one in Top Gun: Maverick. As such, this has been a highly coveted role. Whoever is cast will be acting opposite Tom Cruise in a nostalgic sequel to a beloved film. Testing for the role has been going on for several weeks according to The Hollywood Reporter, with producers Tom Cruise, Jerry Bruckheimer and David Ellison whittling down the list of candidates to Nicholas Hoult, Glen Powell and Miles Teller. The Maze Runner's Dylan O'Brien and The Shannara Chronicles' Austin Butler were both reportedly previously in the running.
For those who don't remember, in the original film, Goose was killed during a training engagement when the F-14 he and Maverick were in went into a flat spin. They both ejected but Goose hit his head on the ejected canopy and died. When we first heard about Goose's son being in the sequel last year, it seemed that he might be named Wrigley and will immediately butt heads with his instructor Pete Mitchell at Top Gun class. This will potentially be an antagonistic relationship between teacher and student in the beginning, which makes sense considering Goose was killed while flying with Maverick.
Nicholas Hoult, perhaps best known as Beast in the X-Men franchise, will be appearing in X-Men: Dark Phoenix next year and will be playing legendary author J.R.R. Tolkien in Tolkien, so he'll be busy whether or not he lands this role. Miles Teller last appeared in Only the Brave and he will be seen later this year in Nicolas Winding Refn's TV series Too Old To Die Young. Glen Powell is enjoying some buzz at the moment thanks to his performance in the surprise Netflix hit original movie Set It Up. (He also played John Glenn in Hidden Figures.) These are all talented actors and the role sounds like it could be a meaty one, which bodes well for Top Gun: Maverick to hit that nostalgic sweet spot while still offering up something that drives the story forward.
We'll keep you updated when this short list gets narrowed down to one, as well as any other news about this long-awaited sequel. Top Gun: Maverick is directed by Joseph Kosinski and fulfills the need for speed on July 12, 2019. For all the latest in movie news and being a great wingman, stay tuned to CinemaBlend.
