Get ready to feel the need for speed this weekend as Joseph Kosinski's hotly-awaited Top Gun: Maverick finally soars into theaters and according to Fandango, it could swiftly become one of the biggest films of Tom Cruise's career as it's already on pace to become his top pre-selling movie of all-time, besting 2018's Mission: Impossible - Fallout.
While Paramount is estimating a conservative $92 million launch over the four-day Memorial Day weekend, box office experts are forecasting that the long-awaited sequel will top the $100 million mark by next Monday, possibly even reaching or surpassing $125 million by the end of the holiday.
There are still a lot of variables at play, but it's seeming increasingly likely the film will easily top the $64.8 million opening of 2005's War of the Worlds to become the biggest launch of Cruise's illustrious career. It should also be one of the leggiest films of the summer, so expect strong returns through the rest of the summer.
Also, according to a survey of more than 2,000 “Top Gun: Maverick” moviegoers on Fandango:
- 98% are excited to see the cutting-edge innovation in the film’s flight sequences.
- 85% say Tom Cruise’s return to the big screen as Maverick is a main reason to see the movie.
- 73% love to quote their favorite line from the movie (“I feel the need…the need for speed”).
- 68% have been anticipating this movie since its original 2019 release date.
- 67% are excited to see the return of Val Kilmer in the movie.
Plus, check out this hilarious video from his recent appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden:
Cruise, who will reprise his iconic role as Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, is joined by original co-star Val Kilmer as Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, with an all-star supporting cast consisting of Jennifer Connelly as Penny Benjamin, Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, Jon Hamm as Vice Admiral Cyclone, Glen Powell as Hangman, Lewis Pullman as Bob, Ed Harris as Rear Admiral, Monica Barbaro as Phoenix, Charles Parnell as Rear Admiral Warlock, Danny Ramirez as Fanboy, Manny Jacinto as Fritz, Bashir Salahuddin as Coleman, Jay Ellis as Payback, Jake Picking in an undisclosed role, Raymond Lee in an undisclosed role, Lyliana Wray as Amelia Benjamin, Jean Louisa Kelly as Carole Bradshaw, Greg Davis as Coyote, and Bob Stephenson in an undisclosed role.
Top Gun: Maverick jets into theaters on May 27, with exclusive Early Access screenings beginning on Top Gun Tuesday, May 24.
After more than thirty years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him. When he finds himself training a detachment of TOPGUN graduates for a specialized mission the likes of which no living pilot has ever seen, Maverick encounters Lt. Bradley Bradshaw (Miles Teller), call sign: “Rooster,” the son of Maverick’s late friend and Radar Intercept Officer Lt. Nick Bradshaw, aka “Goose.”
Facing an uncertain future and confronting the ghosts of his past, Maverick is drawn into a confrontation with his own deepest fears, culminating in a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those who will be chosen to fly it.