Tom Cruise looked back on the smash success of his Top Gun franchise 38 years after the original film debuted on Monday.
The 61-year-old action film icon shared a series of behind-the-scenes photos from the original 1986 classic on Instagram to celebrate Top Gun Day, which is held on May 13.
The baby-faced Cruise, who was still in his 20s at the time, was joined in photos by his costar in the series, Val Kilmer, as well as Top Gun’s late director Tony Scott and the film producer Jerry Bruckheimer.
But he also included a recent photo of himself filming Top Gun: Maverick as he looked back on old photos from the original film.
The 2022 film proved to be a smash success that bested even the original film and became the 12th highest–grossing film of all time, leading to talk of a third film in the iconic series.
Tom Cruise looked back on the smash success of his Top Gun franchise 38 years after the original film debuted on Monday; he’s pictured with the late director Tony Scott
The 61-year-old action film icon shared a series of behind-the-scenes photos from the original 1986 classic on Instagram to celebrate Top Gun Day, which is held on May 13
‘It’s incredible to look back on the thirty-eight years of Top Gun,’ Cruise wrote in his caption. ‘To the fans who have been with us since the start, there wouldn’t be a Top Gun Day without you.’
The post marked Top Gun Day, which falls on May 13, though that’s a few days ahead of the original film’s May 16th release, and Top Gun: Maverick hit theaters even later in the month.
Among the snaps was a black-and-white photo of a memorable moment when a triumphant Maverick meets up with his fellow pilot Lieutenant Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, who was played by a youthful Val Kilmer.
Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2015 — though he didn’t reveal his struggles until 2017 — and a surgery for the condition reduce his voice to a difficult-to-understand rasp.
Still, he returned for a moving scene in Maverick in which the title character’s former competitor had become one of his greatest friends and confidants.
Included in the post was an on-set photo of Cruise being filmed as he gazed at a blown-up version of the photo hung on the wall of a Navy building.
The Mission: Impossible star’s intense eyes were the focus of another closeup, which was paired with an image of one of Top Gun’s jets soaring toward a mountain range.
Another image showed a young Cruise dressed up in his flight suit and wearing his instantly recognizable Maverick helmet.
Among the snaps was a black-and-white photo of a memorable moment when a triumphant Maverick meets up with his fellow pilot Lieutenant Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, who was played by a youthful Val Kilmer
Included in the post was an on-set photo of Cruise being filmed as he gazed at a blown-up version of the photo hung on the wall of a Navy building
‘It’s incredible to look back on the thirty-eight years of Top Gun,’ Cruise wrote in his caption
‘To the fans who have been with us since the start, there wouldn’t be a Top Gun Day without you’
He and his costars Kilmer and Anthony Edwards were glimpsed in a still from the first Top Gun showing them getting a briefing in an airplane hangar
A final photo showed a beaming Cruise as he chatted with Top Gun producer Jerry Bruckheimer while wearing his bomber jacket
In January, it was reported that Cruise would be back for a third Top Gun film, but it has been delayed so he can finish the eighth Mission: Impossible film; seen in July 2023 in NYC
He and his costars Kilmer and Anthony Edwards were glimpsed in a still from the first Top Gun showing them getting a briefing in an airplane hangar.
A final photo showed a beaming Cruise as he chatted with Top Gun producer Jerry Bruckheimer while wearing his bomber jacket.
Back in January, Puck News reported that the A-lister would reprise his role as Maverick in a third Top Gun movie.
However, despite the success of Top Gun: Maverick, which grossed nearly $1.5 billion, the third film has been delayed so that Cruise could wrap up filming and promotion for the eighth Mission: Impossible film.
