Top Gun: Maverick is a 2022 American action drama film directed by Joseph Kosinski and written by Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie, from a story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks. The sequel to Top Gun (1986), the film stars Tom Cruise as Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell reprising his role from the original, alongside Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Monica Barbaro, Lewis Pullman, Ed Harris, and Val Kilmer. Set 36 years after its predecessor, it follows Maverick’s return to the United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program, where he must confront his past as he trains a group of younger aviators, among them the son of Maverick’s deceased best friend.

Development for a Top Gun sequel was announced in 2010 by Paramount Pictures. Cruise and Kilmer were approached to return in their roles from the original, as were producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Tony Scott. By mid-2012 a draft of the screenplay was finished; however, Scott died by suicide and the film’s pre-production was put on hold. The film is dedicated to Scott’s memory. In June 2017, Kosinski was hired and wrote a new draft of the script. Principal photography took place from May 2018 to April 2019 in California, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. The film was shot using IMAX-certified 6K full-frame cameras. Its release was initially scheduled for July 12, 2019, but was delayed first by efforts to shoot several complex action sequences, and then by the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the film industry and scheduling conflicts.

Top Gun: Maverick premiered at CinemaCon on April 28th, 2022, and was theatrically released in the United States on IMAX, 4DX, ScreenX and Dolby Cinema on May 27th, 2022, by Paramount Pictures. It will also be released on Paramount+ after its theatrical run. The film was released to widespread critical praise, with many reviewers deeming it superior to its predecessor. The film broke several box office records upon its release, including the largest Memorial Day four-day opening weekend, and has grossed $769.6 million worldwide, making it the third-highest grossing film of 2022.