Top gun 2 has its fair share of death-defying moments, even for a Tom Cruise movie. One stunt was so scary it even scared an actual pilot. Yet, there’s a particular scene in the action movie that takes place on the ground that proved particularly tough on the crew.
In an interview with TheWrap, director Joseph Kosinski shared that Jennifer Connelly and Cruise out on a boat was actually one of the harder things to get right. “That sequence was in some ways the hardest to get because it was largely out of our control,” he says. “We’re relying on wind to make the sequence great, and we had to go find wind.”
Being at the mercy of the elements can be tricky for any crew or director. Christopher Nolan famously rued the day he decided to make war movie Dunkirk out in the ocean. Kosinski sound like he has similar regret, learning first-hand about the age old Hollywood adage not to film on actual water. However, he feels it was all for the quality of the picture.
“I think the audience feels that effort when they see the film,” he adds. “That’s why I think people respond to it, because it wasn’t shot on stage. It was a movie where we went out there and tried to capture as much as we could for real. And you can feel that when you’re watching it.”
That certainly rings through for the lasting appeal of Top Gun: Maverick. The thriller movie has grossed over one billion dollars globally, a first for Tom Cruise. In the film, Cruise returns as Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, a navy captain who must lead a group of young recruits on a daring mission. Glen Powell and Miles Teller are among his cohorts for the dazzling blockbuster.
It’s a triumph of a film, but it sounds like if Top Gun 3 happens, we shouldn’t be surprised if no boats are involved. Oh well – have a look at our guide to the best adventure movies if you’d like to venture into the high seas.