Tom Cruise always goes all out, but Top Gun: Maverick pushed far beyond expectations and proved to be an amazing film in a multitude of ways. It is beloved by both the generation that grew up with the first Top Gun as well as younger audiences due to the sequel presenting all necessary information and fallout from the first.
The Pete "Maverick" Mitchell character is joined by a younger cast that he leads and trains, including Rooster, the son of his old pal Goose, played by Miles Teller (Fant4stic). Joining him are a number of other actors, including Danny Ramirez (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier).
Even though The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was released over a year ahead of Top Gun: Maverick, the Tom Cruise-led flick had been filmed first and kept on hold during the pandemic. This means even though fans saw his work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe first, the actor was applying skills he learned from a movie that wasn't even released yet while playing Joaquin Torres, a character that comic fans know eventually becomes The Falcon.
When we spoke with Danny, he told us about his stunts and work in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier due to the confidence the team had in him after working with Cruise. Most interestingly, he mentions how his character can benefit from what he learned flying during Top Gun: Maverick.
While Danny goes out of his way to avoid giving any spoilers, it does sound like he knows things about the future of his character since when we chatted with him, he was worried co-guest Greg Tarzan Davis would give something away, going so far as to cut him off. Considering The Falcon and the Winter Soldier suffered massive plot changes, it is definitely possible that things were cut from the show that involved his character that we could see down the line.
Below you can listen to our chat with Danny Ramirez and Greg Tarzan Davis, along with this portion of the transcript. For those looking for a fully immersive experience, scroll to the bottom for the full exclusive youtube interview.
Danny Ramirez: In The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, I didn't take to the air. I know what you're alluding to, and I'm gonna walk around that one. (Laughs) But I think that the experience is going to bring to I think, all the work for the rest of my life outside of just the Marvel Universe. But filming in the air shows you the extent of what you can handle.
And it breaks through this glass ceiling. You think you had this cap, but then you burst through it, and we had to wear seven different hats when we were up there. We had to clean our visors. We had to make sure make-up was done. We had to memorize our lines. We had to memorize what line is coming out when depending on the Sun and where in the route, and what part of the mountain we were in order for it to edit with the other sequences within that same moment. So if we missed the beat, it would be obvious that we said that line in a different place when Rooster was flying in that third act.
So everything had to be a precise watch and so being able to then do the precise watch thing and then also pour your heart and soul into it, to me, opens up the possibilities of what I could possibly do. And I think the rest of my work is going to benefit from it, and anything that has to do with g-forces and/or flight is also going to benefit from it. Whatever that may be, whether it's my private pilot's license or another part of my career.
Greg Tarzan Davis: I will say this, it was really cool to get the call from Danny. He was one of the first ones to apply all the knowledge we learned from Top Gun, and I remember he called me and told me he was on set for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and he was saying, 'yeah, now I'm approaching it like, hey, is this good? Is this good? Everything that Tom taught us in how to prepare, I'm in there driving it by myself, but I'm also putting these steps Tom showed us.' He was driving, and he had to figure it out.
Danny Ramirez: Oh yeah, the hum v! I was wondering what you were about to say, my man. (Laughs) I was whipping around in the hum v myself, and they gave me the keys because they trusted me. They were like, 'oh, he was up in a jet; he could drive a hum v.'
Greg Tarzan Davis: 'He was up in Top Gun. He worked with Tom.' That just shows you how much faith people have in Tom, and the reason why is because he develops talent like ourselves, being able to be prepared for future projects.
Danny Ramirez: I would say that those keys weren't tossed willy-nilly. They had my driver's license, but when that moment came across, it wasn't a question of whether I was going to do it or not. It was because I came through the Tom Cruise school of doing your own stunts it was like, 'not only is he going to be able to do it, but we're going to be able to do creative shots of him looking up while whipping it around this really tight ridge.'
Which, you don't actually see a ridge, but it ended up being like, on either side, I could have fallen off. So that was really exciting to be able to be like, alright, let's do this. I've driven my whole life and never crashed, but I also went through the Tom Cruise stunt school. School of everything, really.
What do you think of these comments from Fanboy and Coyote actors Danny Ramirez and Greg Tarzan Davis? Did you check out Top Gun: Maverick on digital yet?
Regardless of your take, be sure to watch the full video interview below. And, as always, share your thoughts in the comments.
This episode features two actors from Top Gun: Maverick. Danny Ramirez and Greg Tarzan Davis play Fanboy and Coyote in the film, so we dug into those characters to start. We went on to discuss the bonding process on set, and Danny and I touched lightly on The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. They're great guys, so have a wonderful time!
Top Gun: Maverick is now in theaters and on digital.