Why Top Gun: Maverick Director Went With a Football Scene Over Volleyball
Warning: MAJOR SPOILERS for Top Gun: Maverick
Joseph Kosinski, director of Top Gun: Maverick, shares why they chose a football scene over a volleyball scene. The highly anticipated follow-up to 1986's Top Gun premiered just over two weeks ago to eager audiences. The sequel has so far proved to be a major success, even for the star-studded Tom Cruise. The seasoned actor portrays Captain Pete «Maverick» Mitchell and follows his journey of leading a team of young Top Gun pilots into an impossible mission, something that proves to be difficult in more ways than just one for the Captain.
One of the most iconic scenes from the original Top Gun was the beach volleyball scene, where many viewers began to wonder whether or not Top Gun: Maverick would add one of their own. The original scene features Maverick and his partner LTJG Nick «Goose» Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards) against Maverick's rival Lieutenant Tom «Iceman» Kazansky (Val Kilmer) and his partner Ron «Slider» Kerner (Rick Rossovich) taking a break from their pilot duties to compete against each other in a game of beach volleyball, where the four flyers are seen shirtless and oiled up. While the football scene in Top Gun: Maverick follows in the same vein, the chosen sport clearly isn't the same, despite each pilot still being oiled up and showing off to the satisfaction of their audience.
Related: Top Gun 2's Ending Plane Has A Deeper Tom Cruise Link Than You Realize
Now, Kosinski has revealed exactly why football was chosen over volleyball in their ode to the iconic scene. In making his decision, the director shares with THR how important it was to make the scene fit into the narrative rather than simply relying on nostalgia. He credits the screenwriters for finding the
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