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Photos: Tom Cruise stars in 'Top Gun: Maverick'

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Top Gun: Maverick

After thirty years, Maverick is still pushing the envelope as a top naval aviator, but must confront ghosts of his past when he leads TOP GUN's elite graduates on a mission that demands the ... Read all After thirty years, Maverick is still pushing the envelope as a top naval aviator, but must confront ghosts of his past when he leads TOP GUN's elite graduates on a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those chosen to fly it. After thirty years, Maverick is still pushing the envelope as a top naval aviator, but must confront ghosts of his past when he leads TOP GUN's elite graduates on a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those chosen to fly it.

• Joseph Kosinski
• Jack Epps Jr.
• Peter Craig
• Jennifer Connelly
• Miles Teller
• 4.3K User reviews
• 437 Critic reviews
• 78 Metascore
• 107 wins & 234 nominations total

• Capt. Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell

• Penny Benjamin

• Lt. Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw

• Adm. Tom 'Iceman' Kazansky

• CWO4 Bernie 'Hondo' Coleman

• Adm. Beau 'Cyclone' Simpson

• Adm. Solomon 'Warlock' Bates

• Lt. Natasha 'Phoenix' Trace

• Lt. Robert 'Bob' Floyd

• Lt. Reuben 'Payback' Fitch

• Lt. Mickey 'Fanboy' Garcia

• Lt. Jake 'Hangman' Seresin

• Lt. Neil 'Omaha' Vikander

• Lt. Billy 'Fritz' Avalone

• Lt. Callie 'Halo' Bassett

• Lt. Javy 'Coyote' Machado

• Lt. Brigham 'Harvard' Lennox

• Lt. Logan 'Yale' Lee
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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• Trivia According to Miles Teller , the cast got to choose their own call signs. He chose "Rooster" because it was in the same family as "Goose."
• Goofs At 1h12'10" Coyote is in G-LOC, releases the stick and his aircraft falls towards the ground. Super-hornet are equipped with auto GCAS (automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System), which would react to the situation and take control to climb and level at a safe altitude with no obstacles.

Rear Admiral : Maverick. Thirty-plus years of service. Combat medals. Citations. Only man to shoot down three enemy planes in the last 40 years.

[Cain looks through pages of Maverick's records]

Rear Admiral : 'Distinguished.' 'Distinguished.' 'Distinguished.' Yet you can't get a promotion, you won't retire, and, despite your best efforts, you refuse to die. You should be at least a two-star admiral by now, if not a senator. Yet here you are: Captain. Why is that?

Maverick : It's one of life's mysteries, sir.

Rear Admiral : This isn't a joke. I asked you a question.

Maverick : I'm where I belong, sir.

Rear Admiral : Well, the navy doesn't see it that way. Not anymore.

Rear Admiral : These planes you've been testing, Captain, one day, sooner or later, they won't need pilots at all. Pilots that need to sleep, eat, take a piss. Pilots that disobey orders. All you did was buy some time for those men out there. The future is coming, and you're not in it.

[Cain faces the officer by the door]

Rear Admiral : Escort this man off the base. Take him to his quarters. Wait with him while he packs his gear. I want him on the road to North Island within the hour.

[surprised look on Maverick's face]

Maverick : North Island, sir?

Rear Admiral : Call came in with impeccable timing, right as I was driving here to ground your ass once and for all. It galls me to say it, but... for reasons known only to the Almighty and your guardian angel, you've been called back to Top Gun.

Maverick : Sir?

Rear Admiral : You are dismissed, Captain.

[Maverick proceeds to leave Cain's office]

Rear Admiral : The end is inevitable, Maverick. Your kind is headed for extinction.

[Maverick turns around]

Maverick : Maybe so, sir. But not today.

• Crazy credits "Top Gun 001: Tom Cruise" is listed among the other pilots who worked on the film.
• Connections Featured in Conan: Tom Cruise (2019)
• Soundtracks Danger Zone From Top Gun (1986) Original Soundtrack Written by Giorgio Moroder & Tom Whitlock Performed by Kenny Loggins Courtesy of Columbia Records By arrangement with Sony Music Entertainment

User reviews 4.3K

• pucciarello
• May 28, 2022
• How long is Top Gun: Maverick? Powered by Alexa
• What is the strange-looking black-colored aircraft Maverick is test-piloting at the start of the film?
• Is there a post-credits scene?
• Is it realistic that Maverick would still be in the Navy on active duty as a captain (O6) 36 years after the events of this first film?
• May 27, 2022 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• Official site
• Phi Công Siêu Đẳng Maverick
• Eldorado National Forest, California, USA (Forested mountain aircraft staging area)
• Paramount Pictures
• Skydance Media
• Jerry Bruckheimer Films
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $170,000,000 (estimated)
• $718,732,821
• $126,707,459
• May 29, 2022
• $1,495,696,292

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 10 minutes
• Dolby Atmos
• IMAX 6-Track
• 12-Track Digital Sound

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Tom Cruise returns as Maverick in these exclusive images from the Top Gun sequel

Plus, a new look at Miles Teller as Goose’s son, Rooster

For a sequel to a film built around the need for speed, Top Gun: Maverick has been a long time coming. Recent additional delays caused by the pandemic mean that this sequel is finally touching down 36 years after the original landed.

That’s a long wait for fans who’ve been clamouring for more since Tony Scott’s fighter-pilot drama took their breath away in 1986. But, Maverick, true to his call sign, has never played by the rules.

In the cover story of the new issue of Total Film magazine , Tom Cruise and the cast and filmmakers of Top Gun: Maverick talk in depth about the years in the making sequel. Below, you can check out three exclusive new images from the issue:

The long-anticipated sequel sees Tom Cruise’s titular aviator, Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, back in the cockpit once more. When we pick up with Mav in Top Gun: Maverick, he’s still taking to the skies as a test pilot, having avoided the promotions that would chain him to a desk.

A highly specialised mission requires him to train a detachment of graduates from Top Gun (the United States Navy’s Fighter Weapons School, to give it its more formal name). So we’re talking the best of the best *of the best* young Naval Aviators. Of course, among their number is Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw (Miles Teller), the son of Mav’s former Radar Intercept Officer, Nick Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards), better known as Goose. Goose died in the first film during an ejection gone wrong, sending Maverick into a guilt-ridden crisis.

Top Gun: Maverick opens in UK cinemas on May 25, and US cinemas on May 27. For much more from Cruise, Teller, the new cast and the filmmaking team of director Joseph Kosinski, producer Jerry Bruckheimer and screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie, check out the new issue of Total Film when it hits shelves on Thursday 31 March.

If you’re a fan of Total Film, why not subscribe so you never miss an issue? Sign up via MagazinesDirect and you’ll save money on the cover price, as well getting exclusive subscriber covers like the one you can see above. And with our current subs offer, you can also get a free pair of headphones.

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I'm the Editor at Total Film magazine, overseeing the running of the mag, and generally obsessing over all things Nolan, Kubrick and Pixar. Over the past decade I've worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+, and you can often hear me nattering on the Inside Total Film podcast. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.

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10 Behind-the-Scenes Facts You Might Not Know About ‘Top Gun: Maverick’

Alison foreman.

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“It’s not the plane, it’s the pilot.” When Miles Teller’s Rooster spits out that gem of a line toward the end of “Top Gun: Maverick,” the second-in-command action star certainly isn’t talking about Hollywood awards season. And yet, it’s an apt metaphor for the blockbuster Best Picture nominee and its spectacular ascent to Sunday’s Oscars.

A sequel to one of cinema’s most iconic fighter pilot movies was always flyable as a business idea: the metaphoric plane, if you will. But after the death of original “Top Gun” director Tony Scott — who passed in 2012 with his own unrealized vision of a follow-up in the works — recruiting the right people to pilot the tentpole for Paramount Pictures grew complicated. Not only did eventual director Joseph Kosinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer face the uphill battle of evolving a beloved property, but they also had to convince Cruise to come back as Maverick.

“We wanted to bring out a movie purely designed as entertainment,” said Bruckheimer in an interview with IndieWire . “It’s what I’ve been doing my whole career. Tom Cruise felt the same way: when entertaining audiences you hope to get the best story, characters, and scenes, and the best people behind and in front of the camera.”

As producer-star, Cruise was an essential linchpin from beginning to end: even vehemently advocating for a theatrical release when “Top Gun: Maverick” almost got relegated to Paramount+ . He’s not up for Best Actor this year, but Cruise could help collect the statuette for Best Picture should the fan-favorite win over “Avatar 2” and the category’s more traditional fare.

The crowd-pleasing sequel also received nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song (Lady Gaga and BloodPop’s “Hold My Hand”), Best Sound, Best Film Editing, and Best Visual Effects. It won big at the box office too, with “The Fabelmans” director Steven Spielberg even quipping that it “saved Hollywood’s ass” at an Academy Awards luncheon in February.

It’s not the plane, it’s the pilot. Here are 10 behind-the-scenes facts to know about Best Picture contender “Top Gun: Maverick” before the 95th Academy Awards.

Check out 10 behind-the-scenes facts you might not know about “The Fabelmans” next.

The Flight Scenes Were Shot Around Real Navy Operations

To get A-lister/notorious daredevil Cruise onboard, Kosinski agreed to shoot “Top Gun: Maverick” using real jets. Cinematographer Claudio Miranda discussed the aerodynamic challenges of “Top Gun: Maverick” with IndieWire, and said, “Since my Navy technical guys had all seen the original ‘Top Gun,’ they got behind the idea of pulling out a lot of gear. We ended up fitting six cameras in the cockpit, including one that had about two-and-a-half inches clearance.”

During pre-production, Miranda and a small crew joined the USS Abraham Lincoln on a training mission. They captured jet take-offs and landings, as well as the flight deck and other ship details. Miranda consulted extensively with original “Top Gun” cinematographer Jeffrey L. Kimball to better understand the obstacles facing him aboard an aircraft carrier. 

“Kimball had issues where he couldn’t turn his carrier around,” Miranda explained. “I found the right people to talk to, and they would just spin the boat around for me. It doesn’t cost them anything. To be super clear, we were shooting around their missions — they weren’t launching jets for us. And I couldn’t aim towards the sun. But we could turn it this way or that way to get our shots.”

Shooting High-Speed Jets Required Predicting Weather Up to 50 Miles Away

Not only did Miranda have to account for Navy scheduling and the extreme physics of flight, but he also had to contend with changing coastal weather. To get those flight sequences, Miranda had to set his camera exposures before takeoff, and hope they’d prove the right choice in the air.

“I had to guess what the weather was 50 miles down the road,” he said. “I would look to the east where they were flying and see some clouds and maybe open up a third. Then wait, hold on, they’re going away. Or are the jets going 50 feet down into a canyon? Then go with this exposure. I have to say, I didn’t miss.”

Miranda also needed three days to capture the shot of Maverick on his motorcycle, racing down the runway, because it was “too overcast.” 

“We got one in the can,” the Academy Award winner said. “But we decided to go back. It had to be at a certain time of day so the jet crosses right through the sun.”

Another scene, in which Penny and Maverick go sailing, presented problems too when there wasn’t enough wind. Two attempts were made in San Diego and San Pedro, before the final version was captured in San Francisco.

“I was just sitting on the boat rocking with Tom,” Miranda laughed of the failed shoots. “The third time in San Francisco was great. I had one camera on the side of the boat in the front, I operated another camera on the boat next to them, and we had a helicopter as well… I was operating, and [Kosinski] was hanging onto the seat. It was a pretty massive day. We blew a spinnaker. We flooded the Libra head. We had the camera department running out panicking.”

The Darkstar Flyover Scene Was Shot Just Once and Destroyed a Set

In the scene where Maverick reaches Mach 10 in the Darkstar, he flies over Ed Harris’ Hammer right as he’s pulling up to the base gate. As the jet takes off, you can see the roof fly off the guard station: a perfect middle-finger moment that wasn’t planned. The stunt destroyed the set, and the only take Kosinski got is the one used in the film. 

“That’s kind of the entire point of what we did,” VFX production designer Ryan Tudhope told IndieWire of the film’s largely practical approach. “If you look at the other pathway, with probably a group of really talented visual effects designers, who are creating all of the shots in the computer, it ends up lacking a little bit of the happy accidents because it’s overly designed.”

He continued, “There’s all kinds of pitfalls to going down that methodology. Whereas by the very nature of having a real pilot in a real jet being filmed by another real pilot and a real camera operator and another real jet…you end up with these beautiful imperfections.”

Val Kilmer Had the Idea for Iceman to Share His Illness

Val Kilmer’s Iceman is an intrinsic and unforgettable part of the original “Top Gun,” and a sequel wouldn’t have been the same without him. Kilmer has battled complications from throat cancer for some time, and it was the actor’s idea to have the character share his illness onscreen. An AI-generated voice was used for his dialogue, and was fed hours of old footage of Kilmer to capture his tone and speaking cadence.

“Obviously, the idea of Iceman being an important part of Maverick’s journey was something we all wanted, but didn’t know what Val’s health struggles were,” Kosinski told IndieWire. “This was five years ago, so this was before the documentary [‘Val’]. ”

Kosinski explained, “[Producer] Jerry [Bruckheimer] and I met with Val. He came over to Jerry’s office and we sat down with him and just told him of our desire to figure out a way to get Iceman into the film. It was Val who came up with the idea that Iceman was sick too, so he could integrate into the story in a way that felt authentic and not something that we were trying to hide. And then this notion of Iceman being a guardian angel for Maverick, from the moment they have that handshake at the end of the first film, this idea that Iceman would rise through the ranks as the ideal Navy officer, which he was.”

Tom Cruise Regularly Consulted on Sound

Doubling as producer and star, Cruise consulted heavily across “Top Gun: Maverick” but spent extra time sharing his insights on the mixing stage. Supervising sound editor James Mather, who also works with Cruise on the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, told IndieWire that the actor’s lived stunt experience played a critical role in shaping how they layered the sounds pilots hear — from their own breath to the clicking of joystick manipulation — with explosive jet engine booms.

“On this one, in particular, it was such a personal project for him,” said Mather. “The responsibility and the pressure, I guess, for the success of it was pretty heavy on his shoulders. And I think he came to see us every other day. He’d be training in the day doing jumps and motorbike stunts for ‘Mission: Impossible,’ and then he’d come and sit with us [to edit ‘Top Gun: Maverick’]. He can use his memory of what it was like in [the cockpit], and so there are probably certain nuances, sounds that for him were important that maybe he wants to focus on. When he hears or feels the sound, depending on the volume of it, he has to trigger the same response that reminds him of that experience at the time.”

There Were Multiple Versions of the Beginning and Ending

Though the flight sequences were undeniably challenging, both Kosinski and Miranda told IndieWire another proved more difficult to get. The opening scene in Penny’s bar was filmed twice to establish a stronger relationship between Cruise and Jennifer Connelly’s characters. 

“[Joseph Kosinski] wanted a little bit more history between Penny and Maverick,” Miranda explained. “I wasn’t happy about my lighting on the first one. Instead of a bar packed with extras, for the second we could take people away. That let me use a little more side light and move it differently.” 

The ending was shot multiple times as well. In the final version, Maverick returns to his desert hangar and is joined by Rooster, Penny, and Amelia. 

“I actually shot a version where Phoenix was there too, and Phoenix is talking to Amelia about airplanes, and they’re looking at plane models and having this nice moment together,” Kosinski told IndieWire . “We had versions where Hondo [Bashir Salahuddin] was there, so it was more like a big family. At the end, we narrowed it down to just Rooster and Amelia.”

He continued, “At first, Maverick goes to the bar and Penny’s [Connolly] not there, which was a scene we played with both in and out [of the film]. I’m so glad we put it in, because it’s a great way to reveal Penny at the end of the film with Maverick. It just felt like the right ending. We open the film in the hangar and Maverick is alone, and we end with him in the hangar and he’s surrounded by family, a new family. That’s the journey we wanted to take Maverick on.”

Glen Powell Injured Himself Playing Football

Asked about his most memorable day on-set at the Critics’ Choice Awards, Kosinski told IndieWire , “One that I get asked about a lot, which was a very memorable day, was when we shot the beach football scene,” Kosinski said. The fan-favorite scene is an homage to the original’s campy beach volleyball sequence. 

“The actors were in a very kind of stressed out state, they’d all been working so hard to get ready for that scene,” he continued. “They were under pressure, the weight of the original scene being so iconic. I remember Glen went out 110 percent on the first play and hurt himself, but he was able to recover quickly and we were able to get a great version of it.”

The football scene was also reportedly shot twice at Cruise’s insistence. Powell was also in the running for Rooster (Miles Teller’s part), before getting cast as cocky fighter pilot, Hangman.

Miles Teller Got Sick from Jet Fuel in His Bloodstream

“Top Gun: Maverick” was so intense to shoot that Glen Powell told IndieWire he left out certain details about his training and filming out when talking to his mom. But it was Miles Teller’s family who were given serious reason to worry when the film’s second-lead suffered from blood poisoning after a flight. 

“We landed, and I thought, ‘Man, I’m not feeling too good,’” Teller revealed on “Late Night with Seth Meyers” in June 2022. “I was really hot and I just started itching like crazy. So I got out of the jet. I’m just covered in hives. Head to toe. I go to a doctor. I do a blood analysis. I’m in an oatmeal bath that night. I have sensitive skin anyway, truth be told, Irish-Scottish skin. No dyes, no nothing.”

Teller continued, “I go to set the next day and Tom‘s like, ‘How did it go Miles? What did they find?’” Teller continued. “I was like, ‘Well, Tom, it turns out I have jet fuel in my blood.’ And without even skipping a beat Tom goes ‘Yeah, I was born with it, kid. So that was a very Tom moment for me.”

Joseph Kosinski Claims the Unnamed Enemy to the U.S. Was… Canada?

“The answer is it’s Canada,” Kosinski joked with IndieWire, when asked about the film’s unnamed foreign adversary. “We didn’t want to make this a movie about geopolitics. It’s a competition film. It’s a film about friendship, about sacrifice. It’s a rite-of-passage story. It’s all those things. It’s not a movie about the current state of world events which, by the way, have changed so much from when we made the film. If we had even decided [a country when we made it], it probably would’ve been outdated. The idea was always to make the enemy faceless and nameless.”

The director continued, “That’s why in designing this third act, I put it in a world that was not identifiable as, I think, any of the places people are guessing. I liked the idea of putting it in a snowy region, so we shot it in the Cascade Mountains of Washington state to also invert the ‘Top Gun’ aesthetic, to get away from the San Diego sunsets and flip it on its head. To me, that was an exciting way to really change the feeling of the film and make it feel like we were somewhere far away. I know people look at the F-14 [enemy fighter jets] or the fifth-generation fighter jets or the landscape and try to piece it together, but it really is nowhere.”

Test Audiences Didn’t Have to See “Top Gun” to Love Its Sequel

In the same interview with IndieWire , Kosinski said he was relieved to learn audiences unfamiliar with the 1986 original were as onboard with its decades-in-the-making sequel as longterm fans. 

“We did a little bit of audience testing,” he said. “What was a surprise to us was, whether or not you had seen the first film, people were rating the film exactly the same. There was no difference between ‘Top Gun’ fans and non-‘Top Gun’ fans. I could have never anticipated that, but I do think people could potentially get more out of it if they’ve seen the first film.”

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Photos of Kate Middleton, Prince William, Tom Cruise at the 'Top Gun: Maverick' Premiere in London

Prince William and Kate Middleton got all dressed up to welcome the stars of Top Gun: Maverick to London's Leicester Square on May 19

In London on Thursday night, May 19, Prince William and Kate Middleton helped welcome Tom Cruise and his castmates to the U.K. premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in Leicester Square.

The royals went glam for the evening, with William in a navy tux (and loafers embroidered with F-18 planes!) and Kate in an off-the-shoulder gown by Roland Mouret

Cruise graciously helped Kate up the steps and into the theater.

Outside the venue, William and Kate met more of the film's stars, including Miles Teller and Jennifer Connelly.

The duchess chatted with the actors; she previously met Cruise at the 2021 Euro final in London, according to the Express .

Cruise was fresh off the Top Gun: Maverick premiere in France at the Cannes Film Festival, where he received an extended standing ovation.

Kate also caught up with Top Gun: Maverick star Jon Hamm.

On the way down the theater steps, Cruise and William were deep in conversation.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer was also on hand for the big premiere.

The cast took five for a group photo in front of a plane brought to the red carpet for the starry occasion.

Related Articles

Tom Cruise Looks Into the Past in New 'Top Gun: Maverick' Behind-the-Scenes Image

The photo shows Cruise admiring a classic moment from the original film.

After a 37-week dry spell, Tom Cruise has returned to Instagram to celebrate Top Gun Day . The veteran action star joined the platform in January 2018 during the production of Mission: Impossible - Fallout , and uses it to promote his upcoming films. His newest post celebrates the fans who have made Top Gun  a classic, while also hyping fans for the upcoming sequel, Top Gun: Maverick . 

“[Top Gun Day] is a day created by and dedicated to the fans. I can’t wait for you guys to see Top Gun: Maverick later this year,” Cruise wrote in the caption of the new post. In the image that accompanied it, Cruise can be seen looking at a large framed photo of a scene from the original Top Gun movie. It’s a classic moment — Maverick and Iceman ( Val Kilmer ) smiling and locking hands while they’re cheered on by fellow pilots. Cruise is being filmed as he stares at the photo, while a boom mic operator holds a microphone above his head.

RELATED: 'Top Gun: Maverick' Director Joseph Kosinski Explains the Crazy New Cameras Used for the Sequel

Today also marks the re-release of Top Gun in theaters , to celebrate Top Gun Day and the upcoming sequel. The completely remastered film is being released in Dolby Cinema AMC theaters for a limited time. Top Gun Day is also three days early than the anniversary of the debut of the original film on May 16, 1986. Top Gun is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, further proving that Cruise simply doesn’t age.

Several production delays due to the ongoing health crisis have pushed Top Gun: Maverick back more than once. If the COVID-19 pandemic hadn’t happened, the sequel would have been well in our rearview now with an original premiere date of December 23, 2020. The film was then slated to premiere on July 2 but was pushed back again to later this year.

Top Gun: Maverick lands in theaters on November 19. Check out Cruise’s new behind-the-scenes photo for Top Gun Day below.

KEEP READING: Every Tom Cruise Movie Ranked from Worst to Best

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Behind-the-Scenes Action Photos of Tom Cruise Filming Top Gun: Maverick (aka Top Gun 2) in South Lake Tahoe

One unique aspect of Tahoe’s local history is that Lake Tahoe and the surrounding Sierra Nevada Mountains have provided the backdrop or centerpiece for countless Hollywood movies.

In fact, during December of 2018, mega-star Tom Cruise was filming a pivotal winter action scene for Top Gun: Maverick aka Top Gun 2 in Washoe Meadows State Park. This relatively small state park is located in South Lake Tahoe, and happens to be in my (figurative) backyard.

And, other than the production crew, I believe I’m the only person on the planet to have witnessed and captured images of Tom Cruise filming this brief but exciting winter action sequence.

Support Tahoe Trail Guide with a financial contribution via PayPal (single contribution) or Patreon (reoccurring contributions) . Your support of Tahoe Trail Guide is very much appreciated!

Top Gun: Maverick originally would’ve premiered in June of 2020. However, the production company pushed the release date back due to the COVID pandemic of 2020.

Fast-forward two years and Top Gun: Maverick is finally in theaters as of May (2022)! Honestly, I have yet to see it as of this writing (May 29, 2022), so I don’t know if any of my theories about this particular winter scene are accurate. So, I look forward to actually watching the movie, particularly because most of the reviews are favorable.

This movie is the long-awaited sequel to the original hit action film Top Gun (1986), which essentially rocketed Tom Cruise into stardom.

Here’s a video I created featuring many of behind-the-scenes photographs of Tom Cruise filming a winter action scene at Lake Tahoe. Additionally, I recorded (and included in the video) an audio transcription of my humorous story about the experience.

The story I wrote (and transcribed) is titled Hunting Big Game, Or That One Time I Stalked A Movie Star . Lake Tahoe Community College’s annual literary publication, The Kokanee , published it alongside some of my pen illustrations in its 2019 edition.

Top Gun: Maverick Official Trailers

Here are the official trailers to Top Gun: Maverick released by Paramount Pictures. Very exciting stuff!

The first official trailer for Top Gun: Maverick released in July of 2019.

The studio then released the second official trailer for Top Gun: Maverick in December of 2019.

And, I’m starting to think that the scene I captured in the following photos may be related one of the last scenes in the second trailer (2:03).

At that time, you can hear pilots yelling, “Smoke in the air!” and “Break Right!” This indicates, to me, that they’re probably under attack.

I’m starting to believe that the scene I captured in this article must be a major plot point.

The studio either omitted the scene from the trailer because they cut it from the movie. Or, they left it out because it’s an important part of the plot. I lean toward the later theory.

A behind-the-scenes trailer by Paramount Pictures highlighting the fact that all of the flying performed in Top Gun: Maverick was real. Very cool!

The following is the Big Game Spot teaser of Top Gun: Maverick that aired during Super Bowl LIV (February 2, 2020).

Tell me what you think in the comments below!

Tom Cruise Comes to Tahoe

In December of 2018, Tom Cruise and the movie’s production crew filmed at two locations in South Lake Tahoe.

One location was the Lake Tahoe airport and the other was in Washoe Meadows State Park.

I took the bulk of the photos presented in this article at the state park on December 11, 2018.

I’ve previously published articles about hiking Washoe Meadows State Park , as well as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing at Washoe Meadows State Park .

So, you can actually visit the exact same location of this scene from Top Gun: Maverick . See either of those articles for a map illustrating where this scene took place.

Please note that I photographed all of these images of Tom Cruise filming this scene for Top Gun: Maverick on public land.

And, I did not impede, distract, or otherwise interfere with the filming of this scene.

Also note that all images published in this article are mine and subject to copyright law. Copyright © 2018 Jared Manninen. You may not use, share, or copy any of these images without my consent (Jared Manninen), and then only after I receive full payment from you.

Filming Top Gun 2 at Washoe Meadows State Park

According to flyers posted at homes located near Washoe Meadows State Park, the production company would film in the park on Friday (12/7/18) and Monday (12/10/18) .

Then, the production crew would spend Tuesday (12/11/18) and Wednesday (12/12/18) cleaning up and restoring the site.

The reality, however, was that they actually had to return on Tuesday to finish filming.

The weather conditions were too different between the Friday and Monday shoots.

The skies were dreary and overcast the previous Thursday (12/6) when the production crew began preparing the site.

Those cloudy skies persisted until midday Friday.

The weather cleared up Friday afternoon.

When they returned on Monday to continue filming the winter scene for Top Gun: Maverick , the lighting and landscape had completely changed.

Now the skies were mostly clear and blue.

I spoke with a crew member on Monday (12/10). She confirmed that they needed to return to film a third day since the conditions were so different.

The reason for this was so they could create plausible continuity between scenes.

For me, this altered filming schedule was fortuitous because I completely missed Friday’s shoot due to my job. And, I didn’t make it down to the state park the following Monday until later in the day.

Had the production company not come back to film on Tuesday, I would’ve never seen Tom Cruise.

Nor would I have ever captured these images of him filming this exciting winter scene for Top Gun: Maverick .

Maverick is Grounded (speculation on a winter action scene)

If I were a professional paparazzi or celebrity gossip reporter, I might insert a SPOILER alert here. However, I’m a nobody without any connection to the production of Top Gun: Maverick .

So, take my interpretation of the following featured Top Gun: Maverick winter scene with a grain of salt.

The scene I captured was on December 11, 2018.

In the scene, Tom Cruise stands up from the snow-covered ground and running in the direction of the forest.

Although this scene is brief, I believe it has the potential to be a pivotal scene for the movie.

Click this paragraph for a GIF I created of Maverick getting up from the snow and running for his life after having to eject from his jet. I admit the quality of this GIF is a bit rough, but the sequence was created out of 50 photos I shot. I also happened to be laying on a sheet of ice in 25 degree (F) weather at the time and without a tripod. This was the third and final take of the scene of Tom Cruise running through the snow. It was also the most dynamic of the three attempts and I hope it’s the one that makes the final cut of the movie. © Jared Manninen

At its most basic level, Top Gun is about a gifted pilot (Maverick) who has the ability to fly and maneuver his jet in extraordinary ways.

Maverick is a total risk taker, hence his nickname.

And, he mirrors that behavior and willingness to push the envelope in his personal life.

Metaphors aside, Top Gun is ultimately an exciting movie about a fighter pilot flying jets.

But here we have that exceptional pilot grounded, literally. For reasons unknown, Maverick had to eject from his jet.

I believe he’s running from an enemy who shot down his jet.

Whether that enemy consisted of another fighter jet or a surface-to-air missile strike (or both), I couldn’t say.

But I believe he was attacked in flight rather than experiencing a mechanical failure with his jet (causing him to eject).

My assumption is based on his reaction upon getting up.

At first he appears slightly disoriented. However, when he gains his bearings he stands up and tries to immediately run away.

Although, his parachute harness prevents him from getting far. So he takes a knee and releases himself from the harness.

Then he sprints across the snow as if he were running for his life.

Throughout the scene, he looks to be under duress.

Therefore, I believe there’s either a follow-up strike by a pursuing jet fighter or a ground component (perhaps on snowmobiles?) in hot pursuit of him.

I lean toward the latter based on the local casting call for extras (mentioned below).

The direction from which he’s running is an open meadow and the sun is overhead and to his back. He’s also dealing with at least knee-high snow. So, his pursuers have the advantage. They most likely will launch a follow-up attack since he’s totally exposed.

For all intents and purposes, Maverick is dead in the water (snow!). That is, unless he can reach the forest and find some cover.

Casting Call for Extras for Top Gun: Maverick

Talking with friends around Tahoe, I heard there was a casting call for local men willing to be extras in Top Gun: Maverick .

Apparently, the prerequisites for applying to be an extra were:

• Former military or law enforcement
• Familiarity with hand-to-hand combat training
• Capable of running through the snow without getting winded easily
• You had to be clean-shaven

I heard about this casting call well after the fact. However, the beard thing would’ve eliminated me from the pool outright.

Although, I would’ve considered shaving if it would’ve meant going mano a mano with the Maverick himself.

I did find the clean-shaving criteria (if it was actually true) to be humorous. South Tahoe is a mountain town and we were in winter.

Basically, it’s near impossible to find clean shaven dudes in December at Lake Tahoe!

Alternate Tahoe-related Filming Location for Top Gun: Maverick that Never Happened

Another story I heard, after the fact, was that instead of filming the winter scene at Washoe Meadows State Park, a location scouting crew for Top Gun: Maverick had originally visited Tahoe Donner.

Specifically, the group was looking to film in the Euer Valley in Tahoe Donner Association, near Truckee, CA.

Why is this interesting (at least to me)? Because I work at Tahoe Donner Cross Country in the winter. And, one of my friends and former co-workers was the person who drove the scouting team around the property.

Access to the Euer Valley is along a narrow dirt road. Since filming was going to occur in December, the whole situation had the potential to turn into a shit sandwich.

A major snowstorm had the potential to derail the operation if they staged their gear down in the valley. Essentially, that could’ve left their equipment stranded until the spring. That threat is always real. For example, at Donner Pass received over 16 feet of snow in December (2021)!

Just think the Donner Party!

So, my friend asked about airlifting the gear in and out of the valley via helicopter. They agreed it was possible. But once they started mentioning the low flying jets they’d be sending over the property, the deal was basically off.

Interestingly, jets never flew low over anywhere near Tahoe anyway. So, it seems they could’ve filmed at Tahoe Donner after all.

That would’ve been funny since their first day of filming in South Tahoe was the start of my work weekend at Tahoe Donner Cross Country. I may have seen some of the filming on Friday after all!

Final Piece of Gossip about the Lake Tahoe Filming of Top Gun: Maverick

The last anecdote about the Top Gun: Maverick filming at Lake Tahoe deals with scenes from the Lake Tahoe airport.

I’m an opportunist not a paparazzi. So, since Washoe Meadows State Park is just a street away from my home, that was convenient for me to visit.

On the other hand, I had no interest in trying to get pictures of Tom Cruise at the airport location.

The South Lake Tahoe City Council chambers are located at the airport.

So, locals with business at the airport stated that the production company posted signs at the airport discouraging people from taking pictures or video when the production crew was onsite.

Along those lines, there was a fantastic rumor about taking unauthorized photos of the production. Basically, authorities would confiscate your recording device (whether that be a phone or camera) if you were caught.

But then the production company would write you a check for $10,000 (?) to compensate you for your loss.

This sounds like bullshit to me but if it was true, it would’ve been a nice payout!

Lastly, if you’re ever driving through the town of Lone Pine, I highly recommend visiting the Lone Pine Film Museum . The museum is located on US 395, just east of Mount Whitney.

The museum was founded in 2006. It has information and movie memorabilia dating back to the first movies filmed in the Southern Sierra (circa 1920).

OK, the photos I took aren’t the best. I was 350 meters away and I only have a 300mm lens. However, they’re mine. So enjoy looking at my photos of Tom Cruise as he’s filming this winter action scene for Top Gun: Maverick , but don’t steal my shit. Just because it’s on the internet doesn’t mean it’s free.

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Although I encourage you to venture out of your comfort zone, you need to know your limits and when to turn back. Tahoe Trail Guide and its contributors are not liable for property loss or damage, personal injury, or death. Always consult multiple sources when venturing into the backcountry. Always be prepared for the worst case scenario. Your safety is your responsibility. Tahoe Trail Guide copyright © 2016-2023 by Jared Manninen. All rights reserved.  This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Per the Associates Program Operating Agreement I must disclose the following statement: “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases” when you buy something via an Amazon.com advertisement.

‘Top Gun: Maverick’ copyright lawsuit dismissed

Paramount Studios secured a win after it faced a copyright lawsuit in 2022.

Ehud Yonay's 1983 magazine article inspired the original "Top Gun" film that was released in 1986. After the sequel, "Top Gun: Maverick," was released in 2022, Yonay's family hit the network with a lawsuit, alleging that Paramount failed to renegotiate a new license before creating the film. 

U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson for the Central District of California dismissed the case on Friday and said the article and the sequel film are "largely dissimilar," per the Hollywood Reporter .

The elements of "Maverick," including plot, theme, setting and dialogue, did not overlap with Ehud's 1983 article, according to the judge.

PARAMOUNT HIT WITH ‘TOP GUN: MAVERICK’ COPYRIGHT LAWSUIT  

A Paramount Pictures spokesperson shared a statement with Fox Business following the lawsuit being dismissed: "We are pleased that the court recognized that plaintiffs’ claims were completely without merit," the statement said.

READ ON THE FOX BUSINESS APP

Marc Toberoff, the plaintiff's attorney, also shared a statement with FOX Business after the ruling: "We respectfully disagree with the ruling, particularly on summary judgment, and will exercise our right of appeal to the 9th Circuit," Toberoff said.

"Once Yonay's widow and son exercised their rights under the Copyright Act to reclaim his exhilarating Story, Paramount hand-waived them away exclaiming ‘What copyright?’ It’s not a good look," he added.

The lawsuit, which was filed by Shosh and Yuval Yonay, alleged that Paramount's rights to the article ended in 2020. The family also said that filming for "Top Gun: Maverick" was not completed until May 8, 2021.

However, Paramount has reportedly said the film was "sufficiently completed" before its rights to the original article were terminated.

The family sent a cease-and-desist letter to Paramount on May 11, 2022, weeks before the release of "Top Gun: Maverick," according to the Hollywood Reporter.

"This case arises out of Paramount’s conscious failure to re-acquire the requisite film and ancillary rights to the Yonays’ copyrighted Story prior to the completion and release of their derivative 2022 Sequel," wrote attorney Toberoff and former federal appellate judge Alex Kozinski, who are representing the Yonays.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

Paramount denied the sequel is derivative from the original article, according to the outlet.

"These claims are without merit, and we will defend ourselves vigorously," a spokesperson for Paramount told Fox News Digital at the time of the lawsuit.

"Top Gun: Maverick" premiered in May 2022 after two years of delays due to the coronavirus pandemic. The film pulled in $160.5 million in the first four days. "Top Gun: Maverick" stayed afloat its second weekend, bringing in $86 million.

The film also marked a career-best for Cruise , who had not had a film opening exceed $100 million in the first weekend.

FOX Business' Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report.

Original article source: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ copyright lawsuit dismissed

Screen Rant

Top gun 3's biggest maverick twist would avoid tom cruise's $4 billion franchise curse.

Top Gun 3 could use a shocking Maverick twist to pull off something that even Tom Cruise's most successful franchise has never been able to do.

• Top Gun 3 could replace Tom Cruise's beloved character, Maverick, with Miles Teller's Rooster as the new hero.
• Mission: Impossible failed to replace Cruise's Ethan Hunt, making Top Gun 3's potential twist unique.
• Killing off Maverick may be necessary for the franchise's longevity, as Cruise's presence dominates the series.

While Top Gun 3 may want to steer clear of one risky twist, this surprising reveal would allow the series to do something that Tom Cruise’s other franchise has never managed. For the longest time, it seemed like Top Gun would never spawn a profitable franchise. The original movie was a huge hit in 1986 and became a cult classic in the decades that followed, but its sequel spent an almost unprecedented 30 years in Development Hell before pre-production began in earnest. It was another six years before Top Gun: Maverick arrived, so hopes of the movie spawning another sequel were muted.

However, by Top Gun: Maverick ’s triumphant ending , it was clear that Tom Cruise had another huge series on his hands. Inevitably, Top Gun 3 was soon confirmed , although no release date has been announced for the sequel yet. Top Gun: Maverick ’s historic box office success proved that Maverick’s lengthy absence from the multiplex didn’t harm his popularity one bit, while the comparative under-performance of 2023’s Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One reaffirmed that the sequel was something special. Top Gun 3 ’s story could ensure that the series lasts a lot longer, but this will be risky.

Killing Off Maverick Would Let Top Gun Replace Him

Miles teller’s rooster could become the franchise’s new hero.

Top Gun 3 killing off Tom Cruise’s Maverick could allow the series to replace him , something that the actor’s other blockbuster franchise has never managed to pull off. Maverick dying wouldn’t be a huge shock in Top Gun 3 , especially after the original movie killed off Goose and Top Gun: Maverick killed off Iceman. These deaths proved that life as a Navy test pilot was risky and that Maverick’s age was catching up with him, two things that will still be true when Top Gun 3 brings Cruise’s antihero back to screens. Furthermore, Maverick isn’t exactly a risk-averse character.

Maverick’s Darkstar test flight was so dangerous that some viewers even hypothesized that he secretly died in Top Gun: Maverick ’s opening scene and the remainder of the movie was his dying dream. While this theory is a little extreme, there is no doubt that Maverick’s death would make perfect sense in Top Gun 3 . There is no reason for Top Gun 3 to rush into production while Cruise is still making Mission: Impossible sequels, and the character’s death grows more likely the older he gets. Meanwhile, Top Gun 3 already has a perfect Maverick replacement lined up in Miles Teller's Rooster.

Tom Cruise’s Other Major Series Couldn’t Replace Him

Mission: impossible failed to dethrone ethan hunt.

If Top Gun 3 does kill off Cruise’s character, this would be the first time that one of the actor’s blockbuster movie franchises has successfully replaced him. Cruise was technically replaced by Alan Ritchson in the role of Jack Reacher, but this only worked because the franchise changed from theatrical movies to an unrelated streaming series. In contrast, when Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol tried to establish Jeremy Renner’s Agent Brandt as a potential replacement for Cruise's Ethan Hun t, this effort ended in failure. Top Gun 3 could avoid this fate by killing off Maverick, something the Mission: Impossible movies never tried.

Killing off Maverick would ensure that Miles Teller’s Rooster could fill his role as the next movie’s protagonist. Much like Top Gun: Maverick ’s Iceman death gave Maverick a reason to grow and change, Maverick’s death could be the conduit for Rooster becoming a leader. One of the main reasons that Renner’s Brandt failed to convince as an action hero in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol was that Cruise’s Hunt remained a more interesting, dynamic character throughout the sequel. To give Rooster a real shot at headlining the series, Cruise’s character couldn’t remain a presence in the franchise.

Top Gun 3 Can’t Replace Maverick Without Killing Him

Cruise’s best franchises couldn’t make him a supporting star.

Cruise is a leading man and, as such, Mission: Impossible and Top Gun would both be unable to replace him without killing off his character. Since Top Gun: Maverick gave Maverick a happy ending , Top Gun 3 could always retire the character and see Rooster replace him as a teacher for young recruits. However, it would be hard to get viewers invested in Rooster’s story if Cruise’s Maverick was still around. Maverick is the center of the Top Gun franchise’s universe, with both of the original movies focusing on his character arc.

This means that Top Gun 3 killing off Cruise is the only way to replace Maverick . However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the series needs to take this approach. Maverick could remain the star of the series, especially given how enduringly popular the Mission: Impossible movies are. Although the franchise’s most recent outing underperformed financially, the series remains a critical darling. As such, Top Gun 3 may end up keeping Cruise around thanks to his persistent popularity.

Top Gun: Maverick

‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Cleared of Copyright Infringement in Lower Court

By Jon Blistein

Jon Blistein

Paramount has prevailed in the lower courts in a copyright infringement case over Top Gun: Maverick . 

In a decision handed down last Friday, April 5, a district judge dismissed the case , brought by the family of Ehud Yonay, a journalist whose 1983 story for California magazine, “Top Guns,” inspired the original 1986 film. At the time, Paramount secured the exclusive movie rights to the story and Yonay received a “based on” credit. 

In 2018, six years after Yonay’s death, his family began trying to retrieve the copyright to the story. It reverted back to them in January 2020, and though Top Gun : Maverick went into production in May 2018, the original suit claimed Paramount still needed to secure a new license because production was not completed until May 2021. 

To the extent there was some overlap between Top Gun: Maverick and Yonay’s article, Anderson ruled those specific details were not protected by copyright law. For instance, he said the themes in both works (“the bonds that form in military service,” “the sheer love of flying”) were “unprotected stock themes.” And there couldn’t be any copyright claim over the characters, because the characters in Yonay’s original story are “real people and therefore not protected by copyright law.”

And, the judge ruled, the only phrase the two works shared, “Fight on,” is one that’s “not entitled to copyright protection.” 

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But the Yonays’ attorney, Marc Toberoff, a seasoned copyright lawyer, said the family plans to appeal the ruling. “Paramount’s actions speak much louder than its counsel’s words,” he said. “In 1983, soon after Ehud Yonay’s cinematic ‘Top Guns’ Story appeared in California Magazine, Paramount literally raced to lock up the Story’s copyright to the exclusion of other Studios. … And unsurprisingly Yonay received credit on the resulting derivative film, Top Gun , spawning a lucrative franchise for the studio. Yet once Yonay’s widow and son exercised the rights Congress gave them in the Copyright Act to reclaim the author’s captivating Story, Paramount hand-waived them away exclaiming ‘What copyright?’ It’s just not a good look.”

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Lewis hamilton says he regrets turning down role in ‘top gun: maverick’.

The Formula One driver said after he watched the action movie starring Tom Cruise, he thought, "It could’ve been me!"

By Carly Thomas

Carly Thomas

Associate Editor

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Racing superstar  Lewis Hamilton is opening up about the time he passed on an opportunity to work with Tom Cruise that he still regrets today.

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I said, ‘Dude, if you ever do  Top Gun 2 , I will even be a janitor,’” Hamilton recalled telling Cruise at the time. “’Just let me be in it.'”

Once the sequel started pre-production, the F1 driver said the Mission: Impossible star remembered his request and put Hamilton in contact with director Joseph Kosinski , who ended up offering the racer a role as one of the film’s pilots.

However, due to his busy schedule, including the 2018 title race, as well as his lack of acting experience, Hamilton said he ultimately passed on the opportunity. But he later regretted his decision once he saw the 2022 action film starring Cruise, Miles Teller and Glen Powell.

“Firstly, I hadn’t even had, like, an acting lesson,” he told the magazine. “And I don’t want to be the one that lets this movie down. And then secondly, I just really didn’t have the time to dedicate to it. I remember having to tell Joe and Tom — and it broke my heart. And then I regretted it, naturally, when they show me the movie and it’s: It could’ve been me! Oh, God, I’m still….”

Though the Top Gun sequel didn’t end up being the F1 star’s door into Hollywood, another opportunity to work with Kosinski came shortly after. Hamilton signed on to produce the director’s upcoming Formula 1 movie starring Brad Pitt to help make sure the film includes an accurate representation of the international racing league.

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The nearly two-year old dogfight between Paramount and the family of the writer of the 1983 article that inspired the franchise is over, at least for now.

In an order released late on April 5,  U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson grounded the copyright infringement, breach of contract, and declaratory relief action by the Israeli-based widow and son of Ehud Yonay

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“Plaintiffs contend that the Article and Sequel (collectively, “the Works”) are substantially similar because they have similar plots, sequences of events, pacing, themes, moods, dialogue, characters, and settings,” the judge said in a separate 14-page minutes in chambers document also made public last Friday ( read it here ). “Defendant contends that the similarities identified by Plaintiffs are either not similarities at all, or are similarities based on unprotected elements of the Works. The Court concludes that the Article and Sequel are not substantially similar under the extrinsic test.”

RELATED: Lewis Hamilton Regrets Turning Down Tom Cruise For ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Role

In that context, the case, first filed in June 2022 and amended two months later, has been through almost as many twists and turns as a F-14 in combat.

The Ehud Yonay penned “Top Guns” from the now-defunct California  magazine’s May 1983 edition, about the pilots and program “located in a second-floor cubby of offices at the east end of Hangar One at Miramar” saw its author credited in the iconic 1986 film. However, when it came to Maverick , Shosh Yonay and Yuval Yonay asserted the rights reverted to them in January 2020 under copyright statutes. The complaint claims the 2022 $1.5 billion box office hit violated termination rights and Paramount, Cruise and the producers had no right to make the long awaited sequel.

RELATED: Actor In Original ‘Top Gun’ Claims Paramount Used His Image In Sequel Without Consent

The Yonays’ lawyers obviously were not so pleased.

“We respectfully disagree with the Court’s ruling, particularly on summary judgment, and will exercise our right of appeal to the 9th Circuit,” attorneys Marc Toberoff and Alex Kozinski told Deadline today. “Paramount’s action speak much louder than its counsel’s words. 

“In 1983, soon after  Ehud Yonay’s cinematic  Top Guns  Story appeared in  California Magazine , Paramount raced to lock up the copyright to the exclusion of other Studios,” they added. “In the words of Top Gun’ s producers Simpson/Bruckheimer in a interview on the origins of  Top Gun : ‘We got to get this. We got to buy this,’ ‘Get on the phone with  California Magazine . We want this right away.’ And unsurprisingly Yonay received credit on the resulting derivative film,  Top Gun , spawning a franchise. Yet once Yonay’s widow and son exercised their rights under the Copyright Act to reclaim Yonay’s exhilarating Story, Paramount hand waived them away exclaiming “What copyright?”  It’s not a good look.

Judge Anderson clearly disagreed.

RELATED: James Cameron Cuts The Net As King Of The World Wins Deadline’s 2022 Most Valuable Blockbuster Tournament: The Data Behind The Dollars

“The Court concludes that Defendant was not required to credit Yonay because the Sequel was not ‘produced under’ the Assignment of Rights,” he wrote on April 5. “As an initial matter, the production of the Sequel continued after Plaintiffs terminated Defendant’s rights, and the Sequel was released in 2022. Additionally, the Sequel could not have been produced under the Assignment of Rights because it does not infringe on the Articles’ copyright. That is, the Sequel was produced independently of the rights conveyed to Defendant by the contract.”

Quite the shift from last June, when the judge set a trial date of May 7, 2024.

While Judge Anderson had denied Paramount’s initial motion to dismiss back in November 2022, in the fall of 2023 he took in new summary judgment filings from both the Yonay family (November 6, 2023) and the perhaps soon to be Skydance purchased Paramount a few weeks later (November 22, 2023). With a beat for Thanksgiving and Christmas, the court announced on December 26 that it was taking the pending Motions under submission.

The judgment last week came with no oral argument before the court from Paramount’s outside counsel Daniel Petrocelli and his O’Melveny & Myers associates nor the Yonays’ attorneys Toberoff and Kozinski.

Appeal or not, r]the decision certainly eases the immediate stress surrounding one of its biggest stars and biggest pieces of IP for Paramount in a delicate time for the studio.

Ellison’s Skydance Media is currently in an exclusive negotiating window with Shari Redstone ‘s National Amusements, which controls the voting shares of Paramount Global. The transaction is seen as a step toward a more complete combination of Skydance and Paramount, though the exact shape of the newly configured entity remains under discussion. One sticking point is the fact that while National Amusements owns more than three-quarters of Paramount’s voting shares, it only has about 10% of the company’s total equity, so other prominent shareholders are concerned about getting diluted.

Dade Hayes contributed to this report .

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