Summary
- The actors of Top Gun: Maverick keep in touch in a group chat, but they deliberately close Tom Cruise so as not to disturb him with memes.
- Tom Cruise is busy with several projects, including Mission: Impossible 7, and was also involved in the strike and negotiations between SAG and AFTRA.
- His fellow cast members, including Lewis Pullman, consider Cruise a mentor and his guidance will come in handy as they navigate the recent turmoil in Hollywood.
Despite being the main character, Tom Cruise is not included in Top Gun: Maverick’s group chat. The 2022 film, directed by Joseph Kosinski, is a sequel to the original Top Gun released in 1986 and features Cruise’s return as Maverick along with new cast mates such as Miles Teller (as Goose’s son), Glen Powell , Jennifer Connelly and Lewis Pullman (as the likable weapons systems operator Bob).
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Pullman shared that the cast of Top Gun: Maverick keeps in touch via group chat, but with one notable exception: Tom Cruise. According to Pullman, the actors prefer not to bother Cruz with “all their memes” given that he has “more important things to do”. However, he stressed that Cruz would always call back “any time we need help.” Besides his father, Pullman (Sleepless in Seattle actor Bill Pullman), he considers Cruise one of his greatest mentors.
Pullman is right – Cruz has been very busy lately
While he doesn’t follow popular memes, Cruise is currently involved in several projects, Pullman said. Mission: Impossible: The Wage of Death Part One was released in July and sees Cruise returning as Ethan Hunt in the seventh film in the franchise. While the action movie received rave reviews, it didn’t do as well as last year’s Top Gun: Maverick. The 2022 film grossed $1.48 billion worldwide.
In addition to Mission: Impossible 7, like other Hollywood actors, Cruise was involved in the strike and the SAG-AFTRA negotiations. While a solution still seems far off, Cruz’s experience with stunts has helped the union better understand the responsibilities of the workers they represent in their day-to-day work. He also discussed the use of AI in the film industry, which most actors are currently protesting against.
Cruise’s character also served as a mentor of sorts in Top Gun: Maverick, where Maverick led a group of elite Navy pilots on a seemingly impossible mission. Given the recent turmoil in Hollywood, Pullman and his castmates, who have a mentor like Cruise, will likely prove to be an invaluable tool in getting through the turmoil.
Source: Vanity Fair