Top Gun Maverick Director Explains Why The Villains Are Never Revealed
Spoilers ahead for Top Gun: Maverick
Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski explains why the decision was made to never reveal who the villains are in the film. The long-awaited sequel to 1986's Top Gun, Top Gun: Maverick sees the return of Tom Cruise's hotshot pilot Pete «Maverick» Mitchell. The film chronicles Maverick's return to the Navy's Top Gun fighter pilot school to train a new batch of recruits for a dangerous mission in enemy territory. The film has been a hit with both audiences and critics and marks the biggest box office opening of Cruise's career.
Although much of the film sees Maverick and the other pilots competing against each other in aerial combat exercises, the third act puts the Top Gun pilots firmly in enemy territory. It is never revealed what country the operation takes place in, nor does it specify who any of the bad guys are. This follows in the tradition of Tony Scott's original Top Gun, which also keeps the villains both nameless and faceless throughout the film. In addition to Cruise, Top Gun: Maverick stars Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Lewis Pullman, Monica Barbaro, Glen Powell, and Jon Hamm.
Related: Why Top Gun: Maverick Uses «Danger Zone» Way Less Than The Original
In a new interview on The Big Picture podcast, Kosinski explains why the decision was made to keep the villains nameless and faceless. Ultimately, he explains, the film isn't about geopolitics, it's about Maverick's journey as a character. Not only that, but by not revealing who the villain is, the movie becomes timeless, in many ways, with audiences able to revisit it for years to come without fear of the film's events coinciding with the goings-on in the real world. Check out Kosinki's comment below:
«The film is
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