Val Kilmer's Iceman Return Plan Made Both Top Gun & Maverick Better
Val Kilmer's idea for the return of Top Gun friend and rival, Iceman in Top Gun: Maverick, Tom Cruise's highest-grossing film ever, made the movie even better. Maverick, which flew into theaters its first weekend grossing $290M, pleased audiences and heralded worldwide critical acclaim. During the original, Pete «Maverick» Mitchell (Tom Cruise) shared a rivalry-turned-friendship with fellow pilot Iceman, paving the way for lifelong camaraderie. In Top Gun, Maverick's renegade character juxtaposed Iceman's by-the-book flying style, causing friction between them. At the end of Top Gun, though, Maverick's rogue style saved Iceman's life, solidifying their bond.
In Top Gun: Maverick, it appeared that not much had changed. Maverick, now a Navy Captain, is called back to duty to train aspiring pilots for a dangerous mission. Maverick, losing his confidence over having to train Miles Teller's Rooster, the son of Goose (Anthony Edwards), whose life he could not save when Rooster was a young boy, sought the counsel of Iceman. Sadly, Iceman had become ill and was largely unable to speak, but still offered wisdom to his old friend. The character played by Val Kilmer, who in real life had throat cancer and underwent a tracheostomy, was able to speak to Maverick in the movie via both a computer screen and AI.
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This scene became both the most emotional and pivotal to tying Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick together and created a framework that built on the original film's foundation. In Top Gun, Iceman pushed past Mitchell to become the best fighter pilot in the world, with Maverick's unrestrained style to blame. It was the appearance of Iceman, in all his
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