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Tom Cruise shares new footage from Top Gun 2

Tom Cruise has teased some exciting new footage of Top Gun: Maverick in a trailer that was shown ahead of yesterday's AFC Final

Tom Cruise shared some new footage of Top Gun: Maverick ahead of last night’s AFC Final between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals. In a video packed full of metaphors that can be applied to both Top Gun and football, Cruise does his best to whip up excitement for both the game and the long-awaited sequel, which is finally being released this May.

The advertisement starts with the opening bars of the iconic Top Gun Anthem and Cruise profoundly saying; “Football. America’s game… After all, life is more fun when it comes with a little action.”

The video concludes with further connections between football and flying fighter planes; “Expectations are as high as the sky…it’s the Kansas City Chiefs verses the Cincinnati Bengals in a dogfight for the AFC championship. So let’s kick the tires and light the fires because the time is now.”

The footage of the new action movie is speedily intercut with shots of the two football teams, so it’s very much a case of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it. But for fans of the first film released in 1986, there is plenty to see that will be familiar and offer that nostalgia high.

New cast members joining Cruise in the sequel include Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Jennifer Connelly, Ed Harris, Manny Jacinto and Jon Hamm. Val Kilmer will be returning as Maverick’s nemesis Iceman.

One shot sees a fighter plane speed vertically up into the air between two others that are already flying horizontally. The pilot is shown with a helmet that reads ‘Fanboy,’ who is played by Danny Ramirez. We also see Maverick landing on an aircraft carrier. Some of the locations for the spectacular dogfights include snowy mountains and the desert.

In addition to the 35 year wait we’ve already had for this sequel, it has also had its release date pushed back several times due to the pandemic. Cruise and everyone else involved will very much be hoping that it now sticks to its May 27, 2022 release date.

The plot synopsis is as follows; “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 Top Gun 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.”

You can watch the AFC Finals/Top Gun 2 mash up video below;

If you’re excited for Top Gun 2, check out our guide to the best 80s movies.