This Near-Perfect Streaming Hit Is a Sequel That's Better Than the Original Movie

Published Aug 20, 2026, 6:42 AM EDT Liam Gaughan is a film and TV writer at Collider. He has been writing film reviews and news coverage for ten years. Between relentlessly adding new titles to his watchlist and attending as many screenings as he can, Liam is always watching new movies and television shows. In addition to reviewing, writing, and commentating on both new and old releases, Liam has interviewed talent such as Mark Wahlberg, Jesse Plemons, Sam Mendes, Billy Eichner, Dylan O'Brien, Luke Wilson, and B.J. Novak. Liam aims to get his spec scripts produced and currently writes short films and stage plays. He lives in Allentown, PA. Top Gun was more than just a hit ‘80s film; it was a culturally defining phenomenon that helped solidify Tom Cruise as a movie star who would remain at the center of the industry for the next 40 years. Although Cruise did reunite with director Tony Scott to make another film, the pair were never able to move forward with a sequel to Top Gun, despite years of speculation and fan requests. Scott’s tragic death in 2012 seemed to close all possibilities of a sequel ever coming to light, so its eventual announcement was a surprise that was immediately met with skepticism. Pushbacks due to reshoots and delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic caused Top Gun: Maverick to sit on a shelf, drawing even more concern as to whether it was a good idea to begin with. Against all odds, Top Gun: Maverick is the most purely entertaining and satisfying blockbuster of the decade, and one of the few sequels that actually surpasses the quality of the original. The 21st century has seen a tremendous amount of “legacy sequels,” which are films that use the format of the original classic to introduce new characters alongside the returning heroes, and often draw on a heavy amount of nostalgia. At their worst, these films are derivative retreads that don’t acknowledge the changes in culture, and both fail to create compelling new components and include too much meritless nostalgia. Top Gun: Maverick conquers the tropes of the tired sequel because it retains the emotionality of the original film, while pushing its technical limitations far beyond. Although the original Top Gun is one of the most entertaining films of the ‘80s, it’s not exactly an emotionally complex character study; surprisingly, Top Gun: Maverick is a genuinely moving story of friendship, legacy, and honor that earns its tear-jerking moments. ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Has the Right Type of Nostalgia Image via Paramount Pictures Although most legacy sequels try to position any returning characters as mentor figures, Top Gun: Maverick understands that Cruise has become even more dynamic after over time, and gives him an opportunity to play a matured protagonist. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell wasn’t ever going to sit behind a desk and teach a new group of pilots because of his fierce independence, but because of his lasting feelings of guilt; the death of his best friend Goose (Anthony Edwards) in the original film has made him feel that he cannot be responsible for anyone else’s life. This puts Maverick in a unique position in Top Gun: Maverick where he is made to decide between evolving or being forced into retirement, as he is asked by his longtime friend Tom "Iceman" Kazansky (Val Kilmer), now an Admiral in the U.S. Pacific Fleet, to train a group of young recruits for a dangerous mission to save the world. It presents a compelling test that is also a meta-reading of the film itself; Maverick has to prove that his approach works, and the film shows that an old-fashioned style of filmmaking is still compelling, despite the significant passage of time since the original. The biggest improvement that Top Gun: Maverick has over the original is that it has a stronger set of characters and gives a greater reason for Maverick to be emotionally invested in the mission: this time, he is helping to train Goose’s son, Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw (Miles Teller). Maverick’s fear of letting go of Rooster and allowing him to make decisions on his own puts him in a vulnerable position as a teacher, which justifies having him return to the thick of the action. The original film featured an entertaining storyline where Maverick and Iceman start off as allies before becoming friends, and there’s a similar dynamic in Top Gun: Maverick between Rooster and his fellow pilot Hangman (Glen Powell). Powell’s performance is perfect because he is cocky, slightly arrogant, yet still honorable, which makes it even more impactful when he and Rooster develop a bond. ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Is Refreshingly Sincere and Emotional Top Gun: Maverick made the bold decision to bring back Kilmer as Iceman, which presented a challenge due to the actor’s real-life health conditions that prevented him from speaking. The decision to weave Kilmer’s real life into the film by giving Iceman the same struggles is poignant and respectful, and serves as a beautiful tribute to a great actor; the emotion in his scene with Maverick feels real because of the actual friendship between the actors, and the film has become even more emotional in the wake of Kilmer’s real-life passing. Although the romantic subplot in the original Top Gun is somewhat entertainingly cheesy, Top Gun: Maverick has a more thoughtful relationship between Maverick and the bar owner Penny Benjamin (Jennifer Connelly), who is also a mentor figure to the pilots. It’s nice to see Cruise have an age-appropriate love interest, and the romance works because both characters are in the middle of their lives, trying to determine what the future looks like. Top Gun: Maverick became known as the film that saved the theatrical business because it became a phenomenon that drew audiences en masse to see it on the big screen, which was important after many post-COVID concerns about the future of theaters. The aerial combat and training sequences were perfectly suited for IMAX because they involved real stunts, and the lack of CGI makes them all the more riveting. It’s rare to see a sequel that comes 36 years after the original, but Top Gun: Maverick is one of the rare instances in which the wait was worth it. Top Gun: Maverick Release Date May 27, 2022 Runtime 131 minutes Cast Capt. Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell