Look, at this point, it should come as no surprise to hear that a movie is being delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This morning, we learned that Top Gun: Maverick is one the latest titles that’s been pushed back, so we’ll have to wait even longer for the return of Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, who last graced the big screen in 1986.
Tom Cruise since confirmed the delay and sent the following message to the masses:
Yes, rather than fly into theaters on June 24, 2020 as was previously the plan (at one point, it was supposed to drop in July 2019), Top Gun: Maverick will now land on December 23, 2020, just two days before Christmas. So now the 34-year-long wait gets extended by six months, but in these coronavirus-filled times, it’s hard to say when life will truly start getting back to normal, let alone when movie theaters will reopen.
So with that in mind, Paramount Pictures decide to be safe than sorry and delay Top Gun: Maverick’s release, and Tom Cruise ended his tweet by urging others to stay safe as well. Now, rather than being a summer flick like its predecessor, Maverick will be a Christmastime feature one can check out, opening the same weekend as Tom and Jerry and The Croods 2 (assuming neither of those movies get new dates).
Look at the bright side: at least Paramount didn’t move Top Gun: Maverick all the way into next year, like what Universal did with F9 and Minions: The Rise of Gru. Along with Maverick being delayed to December, Paramount also pushed A Quiet Place: Part II, which was supposed to come out last month, to September 4, and The Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run, which was supposed to come out on May 22, to July 31.
First entering development back in 2010, Top Gun: Maverick finally started gaining speed in 2017, with Tron: Legacy’s Joseph Kosinski being hired to direct, and Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie tackling the script. Along with Tom Cruise reprising Pete Mitchell and Val Kilmer returning as Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, the sequel’s cast includes Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Jon Hamm, Ed Harris, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Monica Barbaro and Charles Parnell, among others.
Picking up more than 30 years after the events of the original Top Gun, Top Gun: Maverick sees Pete Mitchell leading a detachment of graduates from the eponymous flight academy on a specialized mission. Among the pilots under his command is Lieutenant Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, son of the late Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, who was Maverick’s Radar Intercept Officer and best friend.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates concerning Top Gun: Maverick, and be sure to look through our guide detailing the other movies that have been delayed recently.
