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Tom Cruise surprises James Corden with fighter jet flight: 'You're an actor, not a pilot'

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James Corden lived the Top Gun: Maverick experience to the extreme when Tom Cruise visited The Late Late Show .

In 2018, Cruise took Corden skydiving ; this time, he flew him in a vintage fighter plane and a modern war jet.

"I'm gonna go up in a 75-year-old plane with someone who isn't a pilot? Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Corden says before running in the opposite direction.

Cruise promises Corden that he's not just an actor, but a pilot too, to which Corden retorts, "With all due respect, you played a lawyer in A Few Good Men , I wouldn't want you to represent me in court."

Through Corden's quips asking for the plane's Wi-Fi password and holding up a sign that reads "Help me," he laughs through much of the fear, mixed in with some blood-curdling screams.

As Cruise smiles for the duration of flight, in his element, he plays with Corden, taking him along for a dogfight with a neighboring plane, flying right over mountains and dropping at a 90-degree angle.

"The fact that this is your idea of a fun day out just tells me how different we are as human beings," a winded Corden says.

When the pair gets out of the plane and heads back to camp, Cruise reveals that the day is not yet over. They prepare for a second flight the way any high-intensity fighter pilots do: a game of slow-motion volleyball and a "You've Lost That Lovin Feelin" serenade.

"You're the first half of the film Goose," Cruise reassures Corden, comparing him to the Anthony Edwards Top Gun character before his death in the second half of the film.

Terence Patrick/CBS

The new Hollywood power duo ends their night in a tent, where Corden confesses, "Tom, if you kill me tomorrow, I'll haunt you for the rest of your life." Cruise replies, "James, if I kill you tomorrow, I'll be dead too."

When Corden and Cruise board the next plane, a much cushier, newer vehicle, the host seems to feel more at ease. Upon Corden's request, the action star says, "We'll just fly straight, just relax, just take it easy for a little bit" while he shakes his head at the camera. But Cruise doesn't hold out, nearing the plane to trees and cliffs and pulling off 360-degree loops and spins.

Finally done with the adventure, Corden seems relieved to be returning to the comfort of his studio: "You can be my wingman anytime," Cruise says. "You know what? I think I'm good," Corden replies with a laugh.

Hopefully for Corden's sake, Cruise won't sign him up for any other wild antics in his eighth and final season.

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Tom Cruise Makes James Corden His Reluctant Goose on a Wild ‘Top Gun’ Jet Ride

By Jon Blistein

Jon Blistein

Tom Cruise made James Corden his extremely reluctant Goose stand-in as he took the Late Late Show host out for a ride in a pair of fighter jets to mark the release of Top Gun: Maverick .

The segment began with Cruise picking up Corden at the airport at five in the morning, then taking him for a topsy-turvy ride on a 1944 airplane. But the real fun — or horror, for Corden — began when Cruise started prepping Corden for a ride on a much faster, modern jet. When Corden tried to run off, Cruise stopped him and insisted the comedian was his Goose — the character played by Anthony Edwards in the first Top Gun flick.

As Corden quickly noted, however, “When you say, ‘I’m your Goose,’ it makes me feel excited, and then I realize that Goose dies at the end of the film.” Cruise then eased Corden’s anxiety by insisting he was only Goose from the movie’s first half. “That’s the Goose I want to be,” joked Corden. “I want to be in a bar, singing ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling.'”

From there, Cruise set about trying to acclimate Corden as best he could to the experience of flying in a fighter jet, dropping into “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” each time the comedian’s nerves began to spike. And with some time to kill before the flight the following day, they attempted to play a little beach volleyball, but the game was cut short when Corden hurt his wrist on the first volley.

For all his anxiety, Corden seemed to enjoy the first few moments in the jet with Cruise, but that swiftly changed as the actor began dive-bombing, zipping through narrow mountain gaps, and making big fat loops in the sky. After safely getting back to Earth, Cruise even told Corden, “You can be my wingman anytime.” Corden swiftly retorted, “You know what, I think I’m good.”

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Tom Cruise Takes James Corden to the Danger Zone with Frightening Flight in 'Top Gun' Fighter Jet

Monday's Late Late Show with James Corden featured the host going on a pair of flights with Top Gun: Maverick star Tom Cruise

Dave Quinn is a Senior Editor for PEOPLE. He has been working at the brand since 2016, and is the author of the No. 1 New York Times best-selling book, Not All Diamonds and Rosé: The Inside Story of the Real Housewives from the People Who Lived It.

James Corden feels the need — the need for a speedy landing.

The Late Late Show host, 43, had an adventurous two days with Tom Cruise on Monday night's show, joining the Top Gun: Maverick actor for a terrifying trip in the air on a pair of fighter jets.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime getaway that Corden wasn't necessarily excited about. In a package of the high-flying experience, he played as an unwilling participant in Cruise's plan — admitting, "When Tom Cruise calls, you sort of have to say yes."

Cruise, for his part, was thrilled to be palling around with Corden again, as the 59-year-old actor previously jumped out of an airplane with Corden while promoting 2018's Mission: Impossible — Fallout .

"I'm very excited that James is doing this," Cruise said, before piloting Corden in both planes. "Was he the first late night show that I asked? Hell no. He was just the first one, the only one , to say yes."

To kick things off, Cruise took Corden for a ride in a 1944 fighter airplane, Corden quickly putting up a sign in the window that said "Help Me."

Things got serious when a dueling plane popped up to challenge them. "We're in a dog fight," Cruise said, as Corden screamed, "I don't give a s---."

For more on Tom Cruise and James Corden flying on fighter jets, listen below to our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day.

"You did good," Cruise assured Corden after they landed, the comedian teasing, "The fact that this is your idea of a fun day out tells me how different we are as human beings."

Just when Corden thought he'd survived, Cruise informed him the two would be going up again, this time in a jet fit for modern aerial warfare.

Amid Corden's "I don't want to do it" objections, Cruise told the host, "You are my Goose," a reference to his Top Gun character's best friend in the original 1986 movie.

"When you said I'm your Goose it makes me feel excited and then I realize that Goose dies in the film," Corden explained in response. "You're the first half of the film Goose," Cruise insisted. "That 'You've Lost that Loving Feeling' Goose."

"That's the Goose I want to be," Corden quipped. "I want to be in a bar, singing..."

From there, Cruise and Corden followed through with some additional Top Gun experiences (like a game of volleyball and a camping getaway) before heading up in their flight.

"You look like a fighter pilot, I look like a hamster," Corden said, as they suited up for the flight.

Corden loosened up for his second flight, even channeling his "Carpool Karaoke" segment by singing Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone" and Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band's "Old Time Rock and Roll" — two tunes famously featured in Cruise's movies.

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But when Cruise started stunting, even flipping the plane upside down, Corden got scared. "Oh my God," he screamed. "This is absolutely ludicrous. This is the craziest thing... this is the stupidest thing I have ever done."

"You absolute bastard," he told Cruise. "I've got an idea, why don't we fly straight for a bit?"

"Okay, we'll fly straight," Cruise said, before flipping them over again.

Back on the ground, Cruise praised Corden for how he handled it all. "You can be my wingman anytime," he said.

"You know what, I think I'm good," joked Corden.

Top Gun: Maverick opens in theaters on Friday. The long-awaited sequel sees Cruise making his triumphant return as Capt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, this time returning as an instructor for the elite fliers three decades after his graduation from the TOPGUN Naval aviation program.

Among his young charges is Lt. Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, the son of Goose ( Anthony Edwards in the first movie). Miles Teller , who plays Rooster, is among the actors cast as new class of pilots. Also joining are Glen Powell , Greg Tarzan Davis and Lewis Pullman .

Aside from the hands-on skills required for the film, Cruise still had more to share with his costars, when the training was over and the cameras turned off.

"There were times after we were wrapped for the day, we would spend an hour circled around him, listening to the stories that he's been through," Davis, 28, told PEOPLE in a new all- Top Gun special edition .

Added Pullman, 29, "Every one of the pilots has a story of him talking about what he thinks is great about them, what they can do with that quality. He teaches you, basically, how Tom Cruise became Tom Cruise ."

The Late Late Show with James Corden airs weeknights (12:30 p.m. ET) on CBS.

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Tom Cruise felt the need to terrify James Corden in a ‘Top Gun’ fighter jet

The danger zone met the funny bone when Tom Cruise took James Corden up for a pair of unforgettable flights he piloted on Monday night’s “Late Late Show.”

The “Top Gun: Maverick” star, who previously went skydiving with Corden, took the late-night host out to the desert where Cruise revealed he would fly the two of them in a vintage fighter plane.

“With all due respect, you played a lawyer in ‘A Few Good Men.’ I wouldn’t want you to represent me in court,” Corden said.

Corden tried to run away, but that couldn’t dampen Cruise’s enthusiasm.

“I’m very excited that James is doing this,” he said. “Was he the first late-night show that I asked? Hell, no. He was just the first one — and the only one — who said yes.”

The pair prepped for the flight and Cruise explained what he would do if there’s a malfunction — roll the plane over and dump Corden out.

“I’m going to plop you out,” Cruise said, which had Corden looking stupefied.

If the flight had Corden’s stomach in knots, it had viewers’ stomachs hurting from laughing.

As they took off, Corden asked Cruise for the Wi-Fi password. While they were flying, Cruise took a dive to the left and Corden posted a note saying “Help me” on the window. They also got into a “dogfight” with another plane next to them.

“You’re a madman!” Corden said after Cruise flew over a mountain.

After they landed, Cruise said they were going to go up again in a plane with air conditioning before they engaged in some in “Top Gun” training.

Corden said he has no interest in flying the new plane, but Cruise kept him seated.

“You are my Goose,” he said, alluding to Anthony Edwards’ doomed character in the original “Top Gun.”

“When you say I’m your Goose, it makes me feel excited and then I realize that Goose dies at the end of the film,” Corden said.

Cruise then touched his face to simulate how Corden will feel with negative G and positive G forces. They walked around with Corden’s hands on Cruise’s hips to feel what the flight will be like.

Cruise felt the need for speed. Corden? Not so much.

“We’re doing the conga!” an exasperated Corden said.

The segment went into full-blown “Top Gun” parody mode when Cruise started singing “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” after Corden complained about going up again. They also played volleyball, a reference to one of that movie’s most famous scenes.

While camping out that night, Cruise explained why he called his movie “Cocktail” and how the missions in the “Mission: Impossible” movies were actually possible.

The next day, they took off in the new plane, singing the “Top Gun” classic “Danger Zone” and “Old Time Rock & Roll,” made famous by Cruise’s movie “Risky Business.”

“This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever done,” Corden said as Cruise pointed out the nearby trees.

James freaked out as Cruise dipped and then ascended.

“You absolute bastard,” Corden said before motioning to a camera in another plane that Cruise is crazy.

Cruise said he’d fly straight for a bit, then motioned to the camera that he won’t before he went upside down.

“Oh my god,” Corden said.

They finally touched down and hugged.

“I love you and I hate you at the same time,” Corden said,

“You can be my wingman anytime,” Cruise said, prompting Corden to reply, “I’m good.”

Drew Weisholtz is a reporter for TODAY Digital, focusing on pop culture, nostalgia and trending stories. He has seen every episode of “Saved by the Bell” at least 50 times, longs to perfect the crane kick from “The Karate Kid” and performs stand-up comedy, while also cheering on the New York Yankees and New York Giants. A graduate of Rutgers University, he is the married father of two kids who believe he is ridiculous.

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Tom Cruise takes James Corden on 'terrifying' flights ahead of 'Top Gun: Maverick' release

Tom cruise and james corden fly jets for 'top gun' sequel.

Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines 5/24

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what clicked this week in entertainment.

Tom Cruise put his pilot's license to good use as he took "The Late Late Show" host James Corden on a few "terrifying" flights in the sky ahead of the "Top Gun: Maverick" release on Friday, May 27.

"I'm very excited that James is doing this," Cruise admitted in a special segment where he prepped to fly Corden in both a vintage fighter plane and a modern war jet.

"Was he the first late night show that I asked? Hell no. He was just the first one, the only one, to say yes."

"I'm gonna go up in a 75-year-old plane with someone who isn't a pilot? Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Corden said.

After Cruise insisted he was in fact a pilot, the talk show host said: "With all due respect, you played a lawyer in ‘A Few Good Men.’ I wouldn't want you to represent me in court."

Tom Cruise and James Corden suit up for a flight

Tom Cruise and James Corden go for a joyride ahead of "Top Gun: Maverick" release. (Terence Patrick/CBS)

JON HAMM FELT LIKE HE WAS ‘AT HOME’ ON ‘TOP GUN: MAVERICK’ SET WITH TOM CRUISE

Cruise took Corden for a ride in a 1944 fighter airplane, which Corden admitted "even this is terrifying" as he climbed in.

" The Cats" star quickly hoisted up a "Help Me" sign in the window after joking about asking for the WiFi password.

Things took a more serious turn when a dueling plane popped up in the sky to challenge them.

"We're in a dog fight," Cruise said while dropping the plane to a 90-degree angle, to which Corden screamed, "I don't give a s---."

"You did good," Cruise told Corden upon landing.

James Corden and Tom Cruise walk the runway before flying.

James Corden participated in a few aerial stunts with Tom Cruise as the pilot for a sketch on "The Late Late Show." (Terence Patrick/CBS)

TOM CRUISE SAYS ‘TOP GUN: MAVERICK’ WAS ‘NEVER’ GOING TO STREAMING SERVICE

"The fact that this is your idea of a fun day out tells me how different we are as human beings," Corden quipped.

The talk show host thought he was done for the day, only for Cruise to jump back in action with a new thrilling journey as they played a game of volleyball, similar to the famous 1986 movie sequence.

Corden attempted to object to any more aerial adventures until Cruise referenced a classic Top Gun trope: "You are my Goose."

"When you said I'm your Goose it makes me feel excited, and then I realize that Goose dies in the film," Corden explained.

Cruise tried to get Corden back on his good side: "You're the first half of the film Goose. That 'You've Lost that Loving Feeling' Goose.'"

Tom Cruise admitted James Corden was the only late night host to agree to do any stunts

James Corden was happy to be back on the ground after Tom Cruise flights for "Top Gun: Maverick" stunts. (Terence Patrick/CBS)

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"That's the Goose I want to be," Corden said. "I want to be in a bar, singing."

As the newfound flying partners tucked away in their tents for the night, Corden said: "Tom, if you kill me tomorrow, I'll haunt you for the rest of your life."

Cruise was quick to comment: "James, if I kill you tomorrow, I'll be dead too."

The next day, the pair boarded a newer and nicer vehicle with ease, seemingly to Corden's approval.

"We'll just fly straight, just relax, just take it easy for a little bit" Cruise said, while also shaking his head at the camera. Seconds later, the Mission Impossible star was barreling through the air and spinning to his heart's content.

Tom Cruise congratulates James Corden for a successful flight on a fighter jet.

"The Late Late Show" host had the ride of his life with Tom Cruise ahead of "Top Gun: Maverick" debut on Friday. (Terence Patrick/CBS)

Once on the ground and back in the studio for good, Corden was relieved to no longer have to bear witness to Cruise's need for speed.

"You can be my wingman anytime," Cruise said. "You know what? I think I'm good," Corden replied.

Cruise first starred as Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, a young naval aviator aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, in 1986. He worked with Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan, Tim Robbins and Anthony Edwards.

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Tracy Wright is an entertainment reporter for Fox News Digital. Send story tips to [email protected].

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Tom Cruise hilariously torments James Corden with aerial stunt in a fighter jet

Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

On The Late Late Show Monday, Tom Cruise took James Corden to Top Gun training school, which ended up being super awesome and totally hilarious. Before airing the clip, Corden prefaced it by saying everything "is completely real" and he "was completely terrified."

At 4:56 a.m. at the Burbank Airport, Cruise picked up Corden in a private plane, where Cruise himself flew them to the desert. Some might remember the last time Cruise was on the Late Late Show in 2018, when he forced Corden to go skydiving. Now, Cruise is promoting his highly anticipated Top Gun sequel, Top Gun: Maverick , so it was only fitting that this time around they stay in the plane, but with Cruise as the pilot.

"You're not a pilot, you're an actor," a skeptical Corden pointed out.

"With all due respect, you played a lawyer in A Few Good Men , I wouldn't want you to represent me in court, OK? I'm going to go up in a 75-year-old plane with somebody who is not a pilot," asked Corden before he took off running in the opposite direction.

Eventually, Cruise got Corden strapped in, where he warned him that, should the engine catch fire, he would "get rid of the canopy, pitch the nose up 45 degrees and then go inverted" and ultimately "dump" Corden out of the airplane. Understandably, the late-night host was petrified.

Corden had a tough time with that first flight, even feeling a little sick when he finally got back on stable ground. So you could imagine his reaction when Cruise pointed to a modern fighter jet, and told him they would be going up in that plane next.

However, after some Top Gun training, a little bit of singing, and even a conga line that included a small model airplane, Corden was strapped in and on the highway to the danger zone.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Tom Cruise flight without Maverick going inverted, which he proceeded to do after telling Corden he would "just fly straight."

"I love you and I hate you at the same time. That was absolutely outrageous," said Corden.

Back in the studio, Corden admitted that 24 hours before filming the segment, he emailed Cruise saying that he got cold feet and needed to back out. Fortunately, Cruise would not accept that, and called up the host saying, "It's going to be OK. I would never do anything to put you in danger. And I promise you if you do this I think it will be a day you will never, ever forget."

In the end, Corden told Cruise, "I am so thrilled that you convinced me to do it," as they embraced each other in a hug.

The Late Late Show With James Corden airs weeknights at 12:37 a.m. on CBS .

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Tom Cruise takes terrified James Corden on Top Gun fighter jet ride

Tom Cruise managed to talk James Corden into the back of a Top Gun -style plane for the flight of his life to celebrate the latest movie.

As part of The Late Late Show, the host held up a 'help me' sign in the window from the back of a 1944 fighter jet, while Tom Cruise rode in the front.

“Are you good?” Cruise said to Corden while flying the plane.

“Why don’t we just head back and get a drink or something?” Corden replied.

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Simple Flying

What planes does tom cruise own.

Let’s take a look at Tom Cruise’s aircraft collection.

Tom Cruise is a licensed pilot with qualifications as a multi-engine instrument-rated pilot and helicopter flying skills.
Cruise owns a collection of airplanes, including a vintage P-51 Mustang fighter from World War II and a Gulfstream IV G4 jet.
There may be additional aircraft in Cruise's fleet, such as a HondaJet and a Bombardier Challenger 300 jet, according to a travel expert.

It wasn't just a show for 'Top Gun.' Tom Cruise is one of the few actors who genuinely love aviation. He has been a licensed pilot since 1994 and is able to fly several types of aircraft. However, it doesn't stop with a license. The famous Hollywood actor also has a collection of airplanes varying from vintage fighters to business jets.

What kind of license does Cruise have?

In various discussions, Tom Cruise has revealed that his affinity for aviation was crucial to his initial attraction to the original 'Top Gun.' He shared that he holds qualifications as a multi-engine instrument-rated pilot and has continued to enhance his skill set throughout his life. Notably, he acquired helicopter flying skills for the remarkable stunts seen in the 2018 film 'Mission Impossible: Fallout.'

Plane collection

North American P-51 Mustang fighter

During a segment on The Late Late Show, Cruise took host James Corden for a ride in his own vintage P-51 Mustang fighter plane. Tom Cruise acquired this World War II fighter in 2001, which was initially built in 1946.

The P-51 Mustang was an American long-range fighter bomber that served alongside other conflicts during World War II and the Korean War. It was developed by North American Aviation and was retired in 1984. Nevertheless, even today, the fighter is utilized for air racing by civilian pilots. After being donated to an Illinois museum, the plane underwent restoration in 1997.

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Making his recent performance in ' Top Gun: Maverick ,' Tom Cruise takes to the skies in the P-51 Mustang fighter. What adds intrigue to this is the revelation that he wasn't just portraying the pilot on screen – he was actually at the controls of his very own P-51 Mustang fighter.

Gulfstream IV G4 jet

With an estimated price tag of $20 million, this jet boasts the capability to accommodate as many as 19 passengers. Notably, it reportedly comes furnished with luxuries, including a jacuzzi and a dedicated movie-screening room, according to Business Insider.

The Gulfstream IV G4 is a long-range executive jet designed and built by Gulfstream , a General Dynamics company based in Savannah, Georgia, United States, from 1985 until 2018. Its production spanned from 1985 to 2018, resulting in over 900 G4 units taking to the skies. This jet can cover distances of up to 7,100 kilometers and achieve a top speed of 850 kilometers per hour.

Is there more?

Whether the actor has more aircraft in its fleet has been under speculation as it was never officially confirmed. But according to a Business Insider report, in addition to the vintage fighter jet and the Gulfstream IV G4, Jack Sweeney, who is famous for reporting the travel habits of numerous celebrities, including Elon Musk, said he has been able to identify Cruise's HondaJet and a Bombardier Challenger 300 jet.

Want answers to more key questions in aviation? Check out the rest of our guides here .

Sources: Business Insider , South China Morning Post

James Corden is Tom Cruise’s new Goose in Top Gun inspired Late Late Show clip

Tom Cruise and James Corden (reluctantly) take to the skies to promote Top Gun: Maverick.

Tom Cruise and James Corden in a fighter Jet on The Late Late Show with James Corden

Tom Cruise got a new (reluctant) copilot this week in talk show host James Corden. On Tuesday, May 24, The Late Late Show with James Corden aired a video feature with the Top Gun: Maverick star that saw Cruise and Corden take to the skies in both a vintage and more modern fighter jet; a very different kind of ride than Corden is used to in his popular Carpool Karaoke segments .

The clip begins with Corden arriving at Burbank airport at the request of Cruise, seemingly unaware of what awaits him. Cruise then takes Corden to the desert and reveals that they are going to have a Top Gun day, starting off with Cruise flying him in a 1944 fighter, which looks like the one that is featured in Top Gun: Maverick . Corden is not particularly thrilled with the idea, but as Cruise points out, they’re in the desert, he really can’t run away from it.

Doing some awesome aerial acrobatics is just the start of things, as Cruise springs another surprise on Corden when another World War II fighter shows up itching for a dog fight. A terrified Corden can only hang on for dear life as Cruise performs aerial maneuvers with the other plane and around the natural terrain.

When they come in for a landing, Corden thinks the worst is over, but Cruise quickly reveals there's another flight on the itinerary in a modern fighter jet. Cruise says Corden is going to be his Goose, who Corden quickly points dies in the original Top Gun , though Cruise is quick to qualify that he’s the Goose from the first half of the movie ("the 'You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling' Goose").

However, they can’t go back up into the air until the next morning. This gives Cruise time to provide Corden with a bit of training on the fighter jet, though one part seems to be just doing a conga line. The pair also grow their bond as copilots by playing volleyball and then sharing some stories over a campfire.

The moment finally arrives the next morning and at first Corden is much more pleased with the more modern plane, as the two even do some singing of "Danger Zone." But of course, things pick up a notch from there.

Watch the full video from The Late Late Show with James Corden directly below.

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Top Gun: Maverick releases in movies theaters worldwide on May 27 (it is currently open in the UK).

More Top Gun: Maverick content

How to watch Top Gun: Maverick
Top Gun: Maverick review
Meet the Top Gun: Maverick cast
Best Tom Cruise stunts

Michael Balderston is a DC-based entertainment and assistant managing editor for What to Watch, who has previously written about the TV and movies with TV Technology, Awards Circuit and regional publications. Spending most of his time watching new movies at the theater or classics on TCM, some of Michael's favorite movies include Casablanca , Moulin Rouge! , Silence of the Lambs , Children of Men , One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and Star Wars . On the TV side he enjoys Only Murders in the Building, Yellowstone, The Boys, Game of Thrones and is always up for a Seinfeld rerun. Follow on Letterboxd .

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Tom Cruise TERRIFIES James Corden while flying him around in a vintage fighter plane during a trip to the desert

Tom Cruise left James Corden absolutely terrified after convincing the talk show host to be his wingman as he flew them around the desert in a fighter jet
The action star, 59, and the English actor, 43, boarded a small aircraft and headed to a desert, where Tom revealed they would be flying in a fighter jet
Tom, who got his pilot's license in 1994, flew James across the desert in a '75-year-old' plane and performed nail-biting maneuvers
In scenes reminiscent of Top Gun, Tom got into a 'dogfight' with another jet, which chased them as they flew daringly close to a mountain peak
The pair also took flight yet again in another fighter plane with Tom flying the aircraft upside down as James appeared terrified for his life

By Deirdre Simonds For Dailymail.com

Published: 02:42 EDT, 24 May 2022 | Updated: 06:39 EDT, 25 May 2022

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Tom Cruise left James Corden absolutely terrified after convincing the late night talk show host to be his wingman as he flew them over the desert in two fighter jets.

After accepting the 59-year-old action star's invitation to meet him at the Hollywood Burbank Airport at 5am, the English actor, 43, boarded a small aircraft with his friend headed to a remote desert.

Upon their arrival, Tom reminded James of their last adventure in 2018, which saw the The Late Late Show host jump 15,000ft out of a plane with the Mission Impossible actor.

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'But you're not a pilot, you're an actor,' James cheekily reminded Tom.

The Top Gun: Maverick star was quick to retort that he also flies planes, which did little to comfort James.

Facing fears: After accepting the 59-year-old action star's invitation to meet him at the Hollywood Burbank Airport at 5 a.m., the actor, 43, immediately boarded a small aircraft with his friend headed to a remote desert

Wingman: Upon their arrival, the father-of-three was informed that their next activity would be even scarier than their last adventure, which entailed jumping out of a plane

Cruise control: Tom and James had their names printed on the side of the plane

'You also played a lawyer in a Few Good Men, but I wouldn't want you to represent me in court,' James quipped.

James continued to list his concerns about flying on a '75-year-old plane' with someone who isn't a professional pilot, before hilariously running away from Tom.

Finally, James reluctantly agreed to the flight, before admitting that even boarding the plane was 'terrifying' as he climbed up the wing and into the cockpit.

As James sat in the cockpit, Tom walked him through the safety measures, including how they would have to use a parachute to land safety if they somehow lost the engine due to a fire or other unlikely scenario.

Scary: Tom went on to reveal his plans to pilot James in a vintage fighter plane for the afternoon, which left the Emmy winner nearly at a loss for words

Funny: While looking slightly uneasy, the Cats star questioned 'who' would be flying them, to which Tom, who got his pilot's license in 1994, replied: 'Ill fly you in it'

'Are you joking,' a terrified James asked, before quizzing Tom on how many engines the plane had, to which the actor replied 'one'.

'So when you say lose an engine, you mean lose the engine?' James asked.

James, who is set to step down as host of the Late Late show next season, could be heard swearing as the pair finally began their journey, heading down the runway and taking flight in the vintage craft.

During the flight, Tom flew them over the desert landscape and turned the plane on its side as James jokingly held up a sign reading 'help me'.

'But you're not a pilot, you're an actor,' James cheekily reminded Tom

Making a run for it: The Top Gun: Maverick star retorted he also flies planes, which still did not comfort the The Late Late Show host

Oh no: Corden continued to list his concerns about flying on a '70-year-old plane' with someone who isn't a professional pilot, before running away from Tom

Another plane then flew up along side them and Tom joked that they had a 'dogfight' on their hands in scenes reminiscent of Top Gun: Maverick.

The second aircraft began chasing the pair's jet and Tom began evasive maneuvers which left a terrified James swearing and screaming.

Tom decided to give his friend yet another fright as he glided over the top of a mountain, flying close to the peak despite James's objections that he was a 'mad man'.

After the bumpy ride, James looked queasy as he made it back to solid ground and was seen doubling over while Tom patted him on the back.

The Gavin and Stacey star told Tom he couldn't believe this was his 'idea of a fun day out'.

Fearless: Finally, James reluctantly agreed, before admitting that even boarding the plane is 'terrifying'

Up in the air: Tom tries to walk him passenger through some of their safety measures, including how they would have to use a parachute to land safety if they somehow lost the engine due to a fire or other unlikely scenario

'Are you joking,' James asked, before they took off in the air

Struggle: James couldn't keep it together as he was flown around by the Hollywood A-lister

But Tom revealed that the daredevil activities were not over yet as he told James: 'The next plane has air condition.'

As they staged a Top Gun training session, Tom joked that they were going to get into some 'serious Top Gun stuff' before showing him the modern fighter jet they would be flying in the next day.

While training him for their next escapade, Tom told him: 'You are my goose.'

'When you say I am your Goose, it makes me feel excited and then I realize that Goose dies at the end of the film,' James fired back.

Mirroring scenes in Top Gun: Maverick, the pair went on to train, play volleyball and tell stories beside a campfire before howling at the moon together.

Happy place: While James looked scared for his life, Tom was beaming

Wow! The pair went upside down in the fighter plane as they jetted over the desert

Grateful to be alive: Despite a bumpy ride, James grimaced through and made it back on land

Making memories: They go on to train, play volleyball and sit down by a fire and tell stories before howling at the moon together

While making s'mores, Tom burst out laughing as an uneasy James told him if he killed him during the next flight then he would haunt him for eternity.

The next day, the pair took to the air once again as they climbed into the cockpit of a sleek fighter plane.

During the flight, the duo sang a few bars of Kenny Loggins' Danger Zone together as James appeared to be in better spirits as he laughed while Tom performed stunts.

But his jovial mood didn't last long as James appeared terrified as Tom once again flew them close to the mountainside, with Cordon joking that he could 'touch the trees'.

'This is the stupidest thing I've ever done,' he added.

Nervous: As they made s'mores, Tom burst out into laughter before James told him if he killed him tomorrow he'd haunt him for eternity

Sporty side: The talk show host spun a volleyball on his finger at one point

Second flight: After taking to the skies in a fighter jet for a second time, Tom told his pal: 'You can be my wingman, anytime'

Daredevil Tom continued to scare James as he continued to fly terrifyingly close to the mountaintop with James saying that the flight was 'crazy'.

In the grand finale, Tom nosedived towards the ground as he said he thought he 'saw something in the terrain' before soaring at speed back into the skies and flying upside down.

'You absolute b*****d!', James said.

After their intense flight together, Tom told his pal: 'You can be my wingman, anytime.'

'You know what? I think I'm good,' James concluded with a laugh.

The skit marked the release of Top: Gun Maverick, which has been unanimously praised in early reviews with one even declaring that it 'improves upon the original in every conceivable way'.

Tom, who is famous for doing his own stunts, is said to have trained to withstand G-force power and actually flew in real fighter jets for the sequel.

Peter Hoskin for the Daily Mail gave the sequel to Tony Scott's classic 1986 blockbuster Top Gun five stars, writing: 'Whenever the film threatens to become too cosy, it shocks itself – and us – back into the present with another madly ambitious action sequence.'

Tom - who plays Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell - underwent a full Aviation Survival Training Curriculum before going up in the US Navy F-18, as did his co-stars.

They worked up to the supersonic jets by going up in a succession of slower planes first over many months.

Much has been made of Tom's insistence on real flying scenes, with no CGI work. He has said in numerous interviews that he refused to even talk about a Top Gun sequel unless they flew in real planes.

Impressive: The sequel to Tony Scott's classic 1986 blockbuster Top Gun has been unanimously praised in early reviews (Tom Cruise pictured in character as Maverick)

Tom said: 'For years, people had said, 'Can't you shoot [the movie] with CGI?' And I always said, 'No. That's not the experience.' I said, 'I need to find the right story. And we're going to need the right team. This movie is like trying to hit a bullet with a bullet. I'm not playing.'

And Miles Tiller - who plays the son of Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw in - previously told how Tom put all of the cast through intense training to help them prepare for the project.

'We were all mini Toms making this movie. He put us through... I'll just call it a "Tom Cruise boot camp". We were getting in killer shape,' he told Total Film magazine.

He explained there was a lot of detail going into the performance, adding: 'For the stunts and stuff that Tom does in movies, it's usually a very specific type of training.'

'You're not just going into the gym and lifting some weights. We did flight training for three months before we started filming... We got put through the wringer.'

Preparing: And Miles Tiller - who plays the son of Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw in - previously told how Tom put all of the cast through intense training to help them prepare for the project

Elsewhere, it was revealed that James will step down as the host of The Late Late Show at the end of next season amid plans to spend more time back home in the UK.

The Brit, made the decision to quit at the end of season eight despite the best efforts of CBS executives who exclusively told DailyMail.com that they 'desperately tried to keep him for longer'.

The star and his wife of 10 years Jules are mulling over a return to the UK with their three children Max, 11, Carey, seven, and Charlotte, four, but they are still trying to 'figure out' what's next for the family.

An insider tells DailyMail.com that spending more time in the UK when the show ends is 'definitely on the horizon'.

'They sold their house in London so would have to look for a new base in the capital.'

He's out! Elsewhere, it was revealed that James Corden will step down as the host of The Late Late Show at the end of next season

The Late Late Show, which films out of Los Angeles, first premiered in 1995 with host Tom Snyder. Craig Kilborn and Craig Ferguson followed as host until James Corden came along in 2015.

James promised to 'go out with a bang' as he informed audiences of his decision to step down.

Revealing the news during the latest episode of the US talk show he said the show had 'changed my life' and promised there would be 'lots of tears' when his tenure came to an end.

'Seven and half years ago I started hosting this show and there's no other way to put it, it has changed my life,' he said.

'I never saw as it as my final destination, and I never want this show to overstay its welcome, I love making it and I really think in a year from now that will be a good time to move on and see what's out there.'

The next move: Jules are mulling over a return to the UK with three children Max, 11, Carey, seven, and Charlotte, four, but they are still trying to 'figure out' what they will do

He added: 'We are all determined to make this the best year we have ever had...we are going to go out with a bang.

'The fact that you watch this...all over the world...is an absolute privilege for me and every single person who makes this show.'

'We [CBS] desperately tried to keep him for longer but James only wanted to do one final year that will keep him on the show until next year,' a senior CBS source revealed. 'He's been such a hit for us for so many years, we will miss him very much.'

'It's very rare to find a talent who can redefine a long running format. His skits went viral globally, smashing records and creating the most watched online clips in the history of late night TV,' they continued.

'The biggest stars in the world have appeared on his show - which even took him to the White House!'

Hit! With the immense popularity of the Late Late Show and segments like Carpool Karaoke, James has become one of America's most beloved late night presenters

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Cruise doesn't even have to try and he looks cool!...

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Screen Rant

Tom cruise flew his own p-51 mustang in top gun: maverick.

Tom Cruise shares a lot with his Top Gun: Maverick character, including owning the vintage P-51 WW2 fighter plane from the final scene of Top Gun 2.

Tom Cruise's flying sequences in Top Gun: Maverick add to the excitement of the long-awaited sequel, as he actually flew in the film.
The movie's ending, where Maverick and Rooster restore and fly a vintage P-51 Mustang, has a special meaning, as Cruise owns the same plane in real life.
Cruise's dedication to doing his own stunts, both in Top Gun: Maverick and in other movies like the Mission: Impossible series, showcases his commitment to realism and adds to his reputation as a Hollywood movie star.

Top Gun: Maverick 's flying sequences are part of what made the long-awaited sequel so exciting and that was further added to by the fact that Tom Cruise did fly in Top Gun 2 . The movie follows Maverick training a new group of young pilots which includes Miles Teller as Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, the son of Maverick's deceased best friend Nick "Goose" Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards). Their tense relationship leads to a touching ending that relates to a plane that Tom Cruise flies in real life as well as in Top Gun 2 .

After surviving the mission together and proving the value of actual skilled pilots in the cockpit rather than just drones, Maverick and Goose form a bond that is similar to the one he shared with Goose. In Top Gun: Maverick 's ending , Rooster helps restore Maverick's vintage P-51 Mustang, which Maverick then flies Penny (Jennifer Connelly) out in. It's a fitting way to end Top Gun: Maverick , but there is a detail that many would have missed that makes the Tom Cruise P-51 Mustang scene even better.

Top Gun: Maverick New Cast & Returning Character Guide

Watch On Prime Video

Tom Cruise Owns The Top Gun Maverick P-51

The original top gun inspired cruise's love of flying.

The P-51 Mustang plane that Maverick and Rooster work on in that final scene of Top Gun: Maverick is owned by Tom Cruise in real life. His passion for aviation was sparked while filming the original 1986 Top Gun movie and in 1994, Cruise became a licensed pilot .

The P-51 Mustang used in Top Gun: Maverick was built in 1946 and Cruise has owned the plane, which has an estimated value of $4 million, since 2001. Cruise originally branded the aircraft "Kiss Me Kate" after his ex-wife Katie Holmes, but he has since removed the name from the P-51 following their separation.

Top Gun Maverick's Tom Cruise P-51 Scene Was Real

The p-51 mustang is not the only plane cruise owns.

Although Cruise didn't fly the F-18 while shooting Top Gun: Maverick due to Navy restrictions, he was piloting in the P-51 Mustang during the scene in which Maverick flies with Penny. It's not surprising he was flying the plane, given how well-known Tom Cruise is for doing his own stunts . As well as the P-51 Mustang used in Top Gun: Maverick , Cruise owns two more aircraft.

His most luxurious is the Gulfstream IV jet valued at $20 million , which includes a Jacuzzi and a screening room, but it did not feature in Maverick . Tom Cruise and Captain "Maverick" Mitchell are both thrill-seeking daredevils, and the subtle inclusion of Cruise's own P-51 Mustang in Maverick 's ending made the link between the two even deeper.

Why The Navy Wouldn't Let Tom Cruise Fly Maverick's F-18

Cruise wanted limited cgi in top gun 2.

While known for doing most of his own stunts, the P-51 Mustang scene in Top Gun: Maverick highlights how some feats are too dangerous even for him . One of the biggest stipulations the actor had going into Maverick is that CGI would not play a major role in the film. Cruise got his wish, as most of the aerial footage depicted in Maverick is done with real planes. Being the man of ambition that he is, Cruise initially wanted to fly the Boeing F-18 fighter jet that's featured heavily throughout the movie. However, this turned out to be impossible.

Despite being a certified pilot, the U.S. Navy denied Cruise's request to fly the F-18, which itself holds a $70 million price tag. While no definitive answer has been given as to why Cruise couldn't fly the F-18 in Top Gun 2 , despite piloting other planes and helicopters in Maverick , it probably has to do with insurance reasons.

The F-18 alone would take up half of Maverick 's budget , and insurance for having Cruise in the pilot seat would have meant an even more expensive gambit. Considering how expensive the jet is on its own, it's probably best that the actor wasn't allowed to pilot it on his own. Rather, Navy pilots assisted in filming the F-18 scenes for Top Gun: Maverick .

Paramount Used Tom Cruise's P51 Mustang For The Top Gun 2 Marketing

Cruise's dedication to the sequel was a big narrative surrounding the movie.

It's no secret that Tom Cruise is an aviation enthusiast. The actor has spoken openly about his love of planes and all things flying throughout his career, and it's something he's both known and admired for among Top Gun fans. Paramount was clearly aware of this, as they leaned heavily into the fact that Cruise flew his own P51 Mustang in Top Gun: Maverick when promoting the movie. Of particular note is the featurette Paramount released on YouTube in 2022, simply titled "Tom's P51 Mustang."

The short promotional featurette is summed up perfectly by its title and is multiple interviews with Top Gun: Maverick 's cast members and technical professionals from the set . They all recount their experiences working with Cruise flying his P51 Mustang, some interesting facts about the plane itself, featuring great behind-the-scenes footage. Paramount putting this out there as part of the Top Gun 2 marketing both shows how astute the studio is at knowing its target audience, and how integral Cruise is as a personality for the Top Gun franchise beyond his acting talent.

Tom Cruise Isn't The Only Famous Plane Enthusiast

Various actors, filmmakers and musicians all have their own planes for travel.

Tom Cruise's P-51 Mustang and collection of other planes is impressive, but he's not the only celebrity who's made a hobby out of owning a plane. A long list of celebrities also owns their own jets for their personal travel needs. The most common jets owned by celebrities are the Gulfstream G650, Dassault Falcon, and the Bombardier, with each jet costing over $50 million and then some.

Mark Wahlberg ( The Departed ) owns a Bombardier BD-700, with which he takes frequent trips overseas, and across the U.S. Harrison Ford ( Indiana Jones ) himself owns a Cessna 680 Citation that jets him quickly all over the U.S. Steven Spielberg has a Gulfstream G-650, visiting various locations overseas. Star Wars creator George Lucas also owns a Gulfstream, with which he flies overseas relatively frequently.

Movie stars aren't the only celebrities who own their own aircraft, as plenty of famous singers also like to travel in style as well. Country superstar Blake Shelton purchased a Gulfstream 4 and takes summer trips across the U.S. Country musician Kenny Chesney also owns a jet, a Dassault Falcon 900 to be exact, and also tours the U.S. Jay-Z owns a Gulfstream 5, taking frequent trips all over. Finally, Taylor Swift herself is the proud owner of a Dassault Falcon 7X, which she uses to travel the globe.

Top Gun 2: All 6 Jet Fighter Planes That Appear In Maverick

Top gun wasn't the only movie where tom cruise actually flew, the mission: impossible movies best showcase cruise's commitment to stunts.

The P-51 stunts in Top Gun: Maverick were certainly impressive and such stunts have become typical for Tom Cruise's movie roles as of late. His commitment to realism has been a common theme in Cruise's career and Top Gun: Maverick isn't the only time he has piloted an aircraft on camera. For Mission: Impossible - Fallout , rather than relying on CGI or stunt doubles, Cruise took helicopter flying lessons so that he could perform the movie's biggest action sequence.

Cruise's Mission: Impossible stunts have become the stuff of legends, including his much-talked-about motorcycle jump in Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1 . However, the skill and training involved in learning to not only fly a helicopter but also pull off the stunts required in that sequence is especially impressive. It is yet another reason Cruise has earned a reputation as one of the last movie stars in Hollywood as he is willing to put everything he has into his roles, from Mission: Impossible to Top Gun: Maverick .

Top Gun: Maverick

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Tom Cruise Takes James Corden For A Ride In P-51 Mustang

Youtube / The Late Show with James Corden

The time is almost near! Finally, after years of waiting, the 2nd Top Gun movie is coming out later this week. And what a warm up this segment was! So many Top Gun fans have been waiting and after delay after delay, it is finally set to hit theatres on Friday.

In this video we have late night show host James Corden and superstar actor Tom Cruise go for a ride in not just a fighter jet, but also a P-51 mustang! So cool to see one of the most beloved warbirds take to the sky by none other than the movie star who does crazy stunts himself, Tom Cruise….who is also an aviation enthusiast and flies planes. Such a legend.

What a hilarious segment! James wasn’t ready for it!

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'Top Gun: Maverick': Tom Cruise flew his own fighter plane in climax scene of the movie

Tom Cruise, arguably the most charming actor in Hollywood, just shattered numerous records with his Top Gun Maverick . Due to several delays, the much-anticipated sequel took a while to arrive.

The actor, who is recognized for doing his own actions, is licensed as a commercial pilot and is capable of flying both single- and multi-engine aircraft. The actor did not leave a chance to offer moviegoers what they wanted 36 years after the first Top Gun movie. Also, he did not want to miss the opportunity to fly one of his own aircraft in the photo.

Also read: Mission: Impossible 7: Netizens are shook after seeing Tom Cruise attempt cinema's biggest stunt

It might surprise you to know that Tom Cruise flew in his own vintage P-51 Mustang before meeting his new love interest Benjamin, played by Jennifer Connelly, in the film's dramatic conclusion. Moreover, the scene accurately depicted the growth of Rooster and Captain Mitchell's bond throughout the story.

In the film's last scene, Rooster Bradshaw, the son of Maverick's late best friend Nick "Goose" Bradshaw, is seen helping Maverick in restoring his vintage P-51 Mustang. Tom Cruise's passion for planes developed during the 1986 filming of the first Top Gun, which led him to get his pilot's license in 1994.

The plane, which cost an estimated $4 million, was originally bought for his former wife Katie Holmes. The plane was originally given the name "Kiss Me Kate," but Tom Cruise has changed it since their separation. In addition to the P-51 Mustang, the actor also owns a $20 million Gulfstream IV plane with a Jacuzzi and a screening area.

Every Tom Cruise movie has consistently emphasized its commitment to realism. It's interesting to note that Top Gun: Maverick isn't the only time he has flown a plane in front of the camera. Tom Cruise took helicopter flying training so that he could perform the film's most action-packed sequence without the help of CGI or stunt doubles in Mission: Impossible - Fallout .

I have to think that when Cruise told Paramount he'd be flying his own plane for Top Gun 2 they were just grateful he was actually in a plane instead of jumping out and/or hanging off of one. — Kaitlyn Booth (@katiesmovies) March 18, 2020

Also read: Kate Winslet pokes fun at Tom Cruise after breaking his underwater record: 'Poor Tom'

Cover Image Source: Twitter

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James Corden lifts lid on 'terrifying' plane ride with Top Gun legend Tom Cruise

The Late Late Show TV star James Corden flies in a vintage plane and a jet fighter with Tom Gun actor Tom Cruise, but admits he was so scared he tried to talk his way out of filming the stunt

James Corden in the cockpit of a fighter plane with 'wingman' Tom Cruise during filming in California

21:41, 25 Jun 2022

Top Gun’s Tom Cruise may still feel the need… the need for speed – but it’s not a desire shared by his prospective passenger James Corden.

In fact, at the last minute, The Late Late Show host tried to pull out of taking to the skies with Cruise, 59, at the controls.

The daredevil superstar loves doing his own stunts in the Mission Impossible films and in this year’s smash-hit sequel Top Gun: Maverick.

But Gavin and Stacey star Corden, 43, admits he was petrified by the thought of being Cruise’s wingman in a vintage plane and a jet fighter high over a Californian desert.

Corden said: “It was a really tense time filming and suddenly there was the prospect of being in an aeroplane with Tom Cruise.

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“Things can go wrong and if they do we are both dead; that was terrifying.”

He also had the overwhelming feeling that if there was a disaster it would haunt his family.

“For the rest of my children’s lives they’d be somewhere and someone would point and go: ‘You know who that is? ‘Their dad killed Tom Cruise’.”

Corden wrote an email expressing his fear at being taken aloft in an old single propeller plane by one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

He said: “Tom wanted to do the death dive and barrel rolls and all these things – and I was like I am just freaking out about it.”

It took a personal phone call from Cruise to put jittery James’ mind at rest and persuade him to go ahead with the stunt.

Corden, doing a pretty good impression of Cruise, said the star told him: “‘I promise you I would never ever do anything to put you in any kind of danger. James, listen to me I give you my word’.

“Then you’re like, all right, sure I just got Mavericked or Ethan Hunted or Jerry Maguired.”

The pair went up in a vintage fighter plane over the Californian desert where Cruise showed a few of his tricks. Then they took to a fighter jet and Cruise, who got his pilot licence in 1994, pulled a move worthy of his Top Gun character Pete “Maverick” Mitchell and flipped the plane upside down.

Fortunately there was no life imitating art moment and Corden didn’t share the fate of Maverick’s Top Gun flying partner, Goose.

And when they touched down Corden had not lost that loving feeling for his action superstar pal.

He said: “It was amazing. I love him, I absolutely adore him. Every time he has been on the show he has come through in the most extraordinary ways.”

This week Corden is back in the UK for a special run of The Late Late Show being aired from Freemasons’ Hall in London’s West End.

His line-up of guests includes actors Vin Diesel, Jamie Dornan, John Boyega, David Harbour and Tessa Thompson and music stars Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Ed Sheeran , Alanis Morissette and Sam Smith.

An interview with US President Joe Biden filmed at the Oval Office will be broadcast as part of the specials.

In April, Corden shocked fans by announcing he will be leaving the show in 2023 after eight-and-a-half years as host. It has been reported he, wife Julia and their three children plan to move back to Britain.

He said: “I always saw it as an adventure rather than a final destination.

“I never took it thinking, ‘Wow, that’s it I’ve got one of these seats at one of these desks and I’ll be here forever’.

“I think of myself first and foremost as a performer. I had a career before I took this show. I am very proud of the show.

“I felt like some of the things we’ve done have been extraordinary and never wanted to be a show that outstayed its welcome.

“I wanted it to be a show that always punched above its weight.”

Corden, who has won a BAFTA for Gavin and Stacey and a Tony Award for the play One Man, Two Guvnors, is keen to try new things.

He said: “I just felt like it was probably the right time to jump and see if there’s other things out there.”

The Late Late Show is screened in 155 countries and is renowned for its segment Carpool Karaoke during which world-famous stars, such as Adele and Madonna, sing while being driven in a car by Corden.*

Adele’s appearance received 236 million views on YouTube, One Direction 177 million, Justin Bieber 155 million, while he claims Lady Gaga told him her rendition on Carpool led to a number one album.

After a six-week break this summer Corden and The Late Late team plan to make a mind-blowing finale.

He added: “The only thing I am intent on doing is to go out in the manner we came in, with an almighty bang.”

At least after his aerial excitement with Cruise this is something he can do with both feet on the ground.

MORE ON Sunday People Tom Cruise James Corden Top Gun Films

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Welcome to Tom Cruise’s Flight School for ‘Top Gun: Maverick’

If there was to be a sequel to the ’80s classic ‘Top Gun,’ it was going to need to be even better than the original—and way more realistic. Before the movie hits theaters, the cast of ‘Maverick’ explains what it took to become on-screen pilots.

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In the middle of shooting Top Gun , producer Jerry Bruckheimer realized he had a huge problem: With the exception of Tom Cruise, all the actors playing Navy pilots kept vomiting in the cockpit. “Their heads were down, and when they got their heads up, their eyes were rolling back,” Bruckheimer says. “It was terrible. They were all sick.”

On a scrappy budget with clunky 1980s technology, an untrained cast, and new studio leadership, filming eventually moved to an L.A. soundstage, where those actors could settle their stomachs while pretending to fly on a gimbal instead. The disrupted, piecemealed experience stuck with Cruise long after—despite the movie’s eventual massive box office success and canonization as a modern classic, the A-list actor had little desire to revive Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. “Originally, I wasn’t interested in doing a sequel,” he told Total Film magazine , at least not until technology—and his castmates—could “put the audience inside that F-18.”

Three decades later, Bruckheimer and director Joseph Kosinski flew to Paris to convince him they could. During a 20-minute break on the set of Mission: Impossible—Fallout , Kosinski pitched a sequel centered on Cruise’s aging fighter pilot and his strained relationship with his best friend Goose’s son. “I wanted it to be a rite-of-passage story for Maverick,” says Kosinski, who tried appealing to his star’s extremist sensibilities by promising to shoot everything practically. The director had seen Navy pilots use GoPros on their flights, documenting a first-person experience above the clouds that was “better than any aerial footage I’d seen from any movie,” he says. “I showed that to [Tom] and said this is available for free on the internet. If we can’t beat this, there’s no point in making this movie—and he agreed.”

Over the next 15 months, Kosinski collaborated with naval advisers and aerospace corporations, building six specialized IMAX cameras for an F-18 cockpit, mapping out highwire action sequences through tight canyons, and developing a specialized “CineJet” with aerial coordinator Kevin LaRosa II to capture it all from the air. “A lot of what we did was cutting-edge,” LaRosa says. “That technology came to fruition as the story came to fruition, and Top Gun: Maverick became a real thing.” At the same time, Cruise started his own preparations, vetting a cast of young pilots—Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Jay Ellis, Monica Barbaro, Greg Tarzan Davis, Lewis Pullman, and Danny Ramirez—before developing a specialized flight training gauntlet so that everyone could conquer the sky. “He knew the goal was to not only get his footage in the plane, but to get them all in the planes,” Kosinski says. “He just wanted them to be prepared, and he knew exactly what it was going to take.”

Leaning on years of his own piloting experience, Cruise put together a detailed aviation curriculum, connecting actors with trusted flight instructors, building up their G-force tolerance to unthinkable levels, and readying their transition into the F-18 cockpit. The result is breathtaking, a collage of immersive, madcap flying sequences and high-octane performances—a testament to Cruise’s unrelenting drive to pack as much thrill-seeking euphoria into Top Gun: Maverick as humanly possible. “He will do whatever it takes to give audiences the ride of a lifetime,” Powell says. “It’s so infectious to be a part of.”

Part 1: “I Never Signed That Waiver.”

Because Top Gun: Maverick would be shot practically, Kosinski and Bruckheimer needed actors who were unafraid to fly and could subject themselves to intensive training. Not everyone who auditioned was truthful right away.

Joseph Kosinski (director): I made it very clear from the very first meeting: We’re going to shoot this for real. This means you’re going in a real F-18 and flying in these scenes. A lot of people tapped out.

Lewis Pullman (Robert “Bob” Floyd): You go to an audition like that and you’re like, “Damn, that would be cool but it’s never going to happen.” Then they said, “We want to sign you up as long as you’re not scared of flying.” I fly all the time commercially—Spirit Airlines, all the greats. They were like, “It might be a little different than that.”

Monica Barbaro (Natasha “Phoenix” Trace): Joe asked me if I was afraid of flying, to which I said, “No”—then he told me that we’d be flying in jets. I got goosebumps.

Greg Tarzan Davis (Javy “Coyote” Machado): I lied to Joe. I was just given a piece of paper for the audition saying, “Are you afraid of flying?” “Are you afraid of heights?” Of course I said, “No.”

Danny Ramirez (Mickey “Fanboy” Garcia): We had to sign a paper before we stepped into the audition room because otherwise I would have lied to him, and that would have started the relationship on the wrong foot.

Glen Powell (Jake “Hangman” Seresin): I keep hearing all the other guys talk about signing a waiver that you were not afraid of flying. I never signed that waiver.

Pullman: It kind of snuck up on me what we were really doing. They were like, “You’re going to actually fly in these planes.”

Ramirez: I was absolutely terrified whenever I was on commercial flights. My routine was two glasses of wine and Bose headphones to tune everything out.

Kosinski: I looked at hundreds of actors, narrowed it down to my favorite two or three [for each role] and then I sat with Jerry and Tom and, drawing on their decades of experience, we selected our final team.

Jerry Bruckheimer (producer): You look at their body of work, you look at who they are. They sit down in front of you, look you in the eye, and you can tell that they’re committed and that they want to advance their career through a movie like Top Gun .

Kosinski: I think it’s gut instinct, really.

Barbaro: I genuinely love flying. I told Joe in the room that I weirdly enjoy turbulence, and he quietly looked down at his notes like, “OK.” I was like, “That was a weird thing to say.” And then later I thought about it—that was probably the perfect thing to say.

Powell: None of that stuff had ever fazed me. One of the reasons I decided to sign on to the movie was the opportunity to be in the back of real F-18s and shoot this thing all practically. I didn’t want to pass it up. I was all in.

Ramirez: The first week, Monica was like, “It’s crazy this is going to be the peak of our careers,” and Tom’s like, “No, no, no, don’t you repeat that.” He’s like, “We didn’t just cast you guys because you’re great for [your roles]. We cast you because we think you’re going to be the next great movie stars.”

Part 2: “It Feels Like You’re Strapped in by a Couple Shoelaces.”

As part of Cruise’s extensive training program, actors learned to fly inside single-engine Cessnas before graduating to the EA-300 and L-39—aerobatic planes capable of pulling more G’s—to mimic the feeling of being inside an F-18.

Pullman: Tom had personally designed a training regimen that would basically condense two years of flight training into three months—and it was all done in a way that Tom had wished he’d had for himself on the original Top Gun .

Kosinski: He’s a licensed pilot. He flies aerobatics, he flies helicopters, he’s very familiar with what it takes to be in these planes.

Ramirez: Before we even got on a flight, they taught us about what creates lift and the physics of flight. That popped the bubble of fear for me.

Davis: Tom makes sure you feel comfortable with it, then he lets the instructors do what they need to do.

Kevin LaRosa Jr. (aerial coordinator): My dad and I started training all the cast in Cessna 172s. Where to look, how to talk on the radio, how to take off and land, basic flying technique—where and how to look like pilots while flying.

Barbaro: We never flew solo because legally you can’t unless you have a pilot’s license, but we got to a point where we were talking with the tower.

Powell: I’d been cast first, so I’d had a couple more opportunities to be in the Cessna. But I’d never done a takeoff and landing.

Ramirez: We showed up at Van Nuys Airport. I see Glen’s car parked with a big Texas license plate, and I’m like, “Oh, I’ve seen this guy from Scream Queens , he was pretty funny.”

Powell: I remember grabbing a Subway sandwich, getting to know each other in the parking lot. And then it’s like, “All right you guys, ready to fly?!”

Ramirez: It’s my first time, so I’m also a little nervous. As we’re on the runway and taking off, I’m looking at Kevin LaRosa Sr.’s hands, but they’re really relaxed, and they slowly start slipping off. I look over and we’re taking off because Glen is the one pulling back on the controls. I just panicked: Glen Powell from Scream Queens is the first person in this whole movie that’s taking me up in the air? What the hell?

Powell: We got up in the air and I could see he was kind of breathing a little heavier than normal. I looked back and said, “Everything good?”

Ramirez: We ended up flying for about an hour. He lands the plane, and I was like, “I would have never sat in that Cessna had I known that Glen was going to be the one that took me up.”

Powell: We were thrown in the deep end. The amount of trust that these guys had in us from the get-go was wild.

LaRosa: There were definitely actors who were very forward-leaning—fearless, loved every second of it. And then the normal person who’d be like, “Oh my goodness, I can’t believe I’m going to do this.”

Barbaro: We moved on to an Extra-300, which does all kinds of crazy loops and can pull nine G’s with two people in it.

LaRosa: G-forces are created when we apply a velocity or direction change to mass. They can be formed by the jet changing direction. The best analogy is when you’re on a roller coaster and you enter a corkscrew or loop, you feel your body being pressed into the seat—that might only be two G’s.

Pullman: Tom figured you could pull more G’s in the Extra-300 than the F-18, so if we could master that without a G-suit, once we got up in the F-18s, it would be like we had been running with weights on.

Powell: It’s almost like you’re spiraling down in a tornado formation, and you get these big wide turns that get smaller and smaller to increase the G’s until you’re on the verge of blacking out.

Davis: I have video footage of my face being distorted to the maximum. All the life drained out of my body.

Pullman: When you go inverted and you’re upside down, you’re just dangling over nothing. It feels like you’re strapped in by a couple shoelaces. I basically took it upon myself to go skydive. I was like, “If I can jump out of a plane willingly, then I can do all this stuff.”

Powell: Monica and I had this amazing competition every time where we could see who could pull more G’s. You’d do these fake bombing runs over and over, and I think Monica and I got to 6 or 7 at one point. That girl is tough.

Barbaro: We moved on to an L-39 jet. We did some dogfighting with each other, and then we got to fly in the F-18s. And then as refreshers we would fly in the EA-300 just to keep up with our training.

Pullman : We would do these little surveys after each flight. You write down how many G’s you pulled, what maneuvers you did, what challenges you may have had.

Davis: It was like a review-all questionnaire. How do you feel up there? What did you learn? How can we improve on your experience to make you more comfortable?

Pullman: In the beginning, we were all just filling them out not really thinking, Who is reading this? But whenever we saw Tom, he would come up to us and say, “Hey man, I saw that on your last flight you had a little trouble pulling zero G’s. Here’s what I do.” It was like, “Holy smokes, Tom Cruise is taking the time out of his jam-packed day to give me personal tips.”

Kosinski: We had our hands full. It was great to have Tom.

Bruckheimer: He checked the log, found out if somebody didn’t show up. He made sure everybody was there and did what they had to do.

Davis: He’s like the greatest Yelp reviewer ever.

In addition to the aerial training, the cast also needed to pass a Naval Aviation Survival Training course to simulate an ocean landing.

Kosinski: For people who didn’t like to swim, it was really difficult.

Ramirez: Tarzan didn’t even know how to swim when the whole thing started. We all felt like little tadpoles, but our instructor was a U.S. Olympic coach.

Pullman: I grew up swimming a lot, but it’s still different from swimming. It was like forced drowning. They drag you on a zip line to simulate being ejected overseas.

Davis: We had to gear up in about 40 pounds of Navy equipment. The helo-dunker submerges itself in water and flips upside down—it’s a complete 180, and you’re tied to a chair and you have to make your way out through a window.

Pullman: You have to have one hand on some part of the cockpit at all points, and if you have both hands off, you get disqualified. It was a challenge, to say the least.

Davis: Then we had a few tries with blackout goggles on our faces, and that’s when Lewis tried to drown me. [ Laughs .] He couldn’t get out the window fast enough.

Pullman: I also had a 101-degree fever that day and I couldn’t change the appointment so I basically had to do it all while incredibly sick.

Powell: You’re literally in a washing machine under water blindfolded and strapped in.

Ramirez: Glen and I had just passed the blindfold test, but Tarzan had failed one of the runs, so Glen was like, “Let’s go in there with him out of solidarity.” I felt a little cocky like, “Hell yeah, I’ve done it already.” We’re upside down, and I keep trying to open this harness, and Glen’s like, “All right, see you later.”

Powell: I’m literally blindfolded trying to find my way out like he is. He tells this story like I looked at him in the eyes and then abandoned him. Danny, you know that’s not how it happened, man.

Ramirez: I’d forgotten the emergency sign for the scuba divers to pull me out. I was about to open my mouth and swallow a bunch of water. Finally the harness slightly opens up, I squiggle my way out of there, break through the window, breach, and take the biggest gasp of air I’ve ever taken. I went up to the guys: “You didn’t see me down there unable to get loose on the screens?” And they were like, “No dude, we thought you were just chilling, you looked so composed and collected.”

Powell: I thought it was really fun, but if you’re having trouble with your harness and something gets stuck, it’s a pretty scary environment. I never panicked, but that moment for Danny I know is pretty scary. If I knew he was having a problem I would have totally gone over to help him. But I had a blindfold on.

Pullman: At the end of the day, everyone was always checking in on each other, making sure nobody was falling behind. It felt like a very safe space and everyone wanted each other to succeed.

Ramirez: The swim element was more like trauma-bonding.

Part 3: “You Can See the Tunnel Start to Close.”

Though none of the actors actually flew F-18s by themselves, they rehearsed repeatedly on the ground with their professional pilots to mimic each other’s movements and maneuvers, making it easier to perform and stay coordinated in the air. Still, sustaining eight G’s and flying at low altitudes provided all kinds of challenges.

Kosinski: We would do a two-hour brief every morning where we would go through everybody’s work—storyboard by storyboard, line by line, where the sun had to be, what the terrain had to be, what the choreography of the planes had to be. We had to make sure the Navy pilots and actors were in perfect sync.

Pullman: That was pivotal. Once you’re up there in the cockpit, you’re kind of on your own. You can’t walk down to Joe Kosinski and be like, “Did we get that take? Can we move on?”

LaRosa: He can’t be in the air with his cast, so he’s so involved in the planning and briefing stage. We always went through the same formula: What are we going to do on this flight? How are we going to obtain all of that on this flight? And we end it with safety being paramount.

Kosinski: After that we would move to something called “the buck,” which was a plywood mockup of the F-18 cockpit with all the instruments and switches in the same place, but on the ground. We would walk through the entire day’s work shot by shot—spray the sweat on, turn the camera on, turn the camera off. It was a very tedious process to go through.

Pullman: Tom would sit on the outside of the buck and run the scene with you and give you direction and tips about how to make it more dynamic or more intense. Because these cameras are more stagnant and fixed onto the frame of the F-18, you have to kind of create your own dynamics within the frame.

Barbaro: There were four cameras facing us that were fastened to the cockpit, and two pointing toward the front of the plane over the shoulder of the actual pilot that was flying us.

Ramirez: As weapons system operators, [Lewis and I] had a tougher task of being back there and not looking in the direction we were flying. When we were banking to the right, we’re looking to the left.

Barbaro: We would have to sort of direct or remind our pilot exactly where to line up with the sun. For example, if I was flying in a certain direction in the morning and Lewis was flying with the same pilot later in the day, they had to fly in the opposite direction so that there was continuity.

Kosinski: I wanted it to be muscle memory because when you’re pulling six or seven G’s, you don’t want to think about anything.

LaRosa: Typically, jets would go on an hour-and-a-half mission, return, and then debrief. We’d sit there and watch all the footage with the pilots and the cast and Joe would say, “Oh I need you to look a little more this way, need you to fix your mask here, furrow your brow more.”

Powell: You’re running cameras, you’ve got to remember your lines, you’ve got to [remember] sun position and keep that consistent, know where the other airplane is so you don’t run into another aircraft, the altitude, the airspeed—all these things have to be together. When you’re up there, you’re the pilot in command, you’re the only one who is in charge of this stuff. It’s a very empowering experience.

During a training run in Top Gun: Maverick, in which the pilots must ascend at a vertical angle to eclipse a mountain peak, Coyote (Davis) blacks out at eight G’s and descends into a free fall before regaining consciousness. One of the movie’s most extreme scenes, it epitomizes the physical toll required to be an F-18 pilot.

Kosinski: It was one of the first sequences we shot, and it was such an important one because the footage that Tarzan got on that flight was so spectacular that when we put it on the big screen, it really motivated everybody.

LaRosa: There’s a shot from behind the F-18 slow-rolling toward the ground. That is a real, practical shot. That’s me in the CineJet chasing an F-18 toward the earth as if the pilot has passed out. We’re doing 400 miles per hour.

Pullman: What we learned in preparation of getting into the F-18 and pulling G’s was you have to do this thing called the “Hick maneuver” to stop the blood from leaving your brain and rushing to your legs. You flex from your calves, to your thighs, to your core, to your chest, to your head in succession so it flushes all the blood up to your head.

Davis: I realized if I were to do the Hick maneuver well, I’m not really passed out, and the audience would see that on camera. So as I’m going, I am literally dying not being able to do the Hick maneuver—and I still have to act.

LaRosa: For Tarzan, he’s on a jet rolling toward the ground.

Davis: I definitely have to trust my freaking pilot. He also played limp, so they could match the cut in the edit. I’m like “Yo, when are you going to pull up?” At one moment we were really close to the ground. Pull up! Pull up!

Kosinski: He swore to God he didn’t pass out, but we all think he might have.

Davis: People thought I really passed out. I did not—that was just some damn good acting.

Barbaro: It takes a lot of core strength and a lot of clenching to stay awake and control the aircraft.

LaRosa: You have like 1,700 pounds of pressure on your chest.

Pullman: It’s sort of like your spine is sliding back into the chair and a rhinoceros just popped a squat on your lap.

Powell: In order to breathe in those face masks, you have to push out air in order to suck in air, so you’re almost hyperventilating in order to breathe. If you’re not doing the Hick maneuver correctly, you can see the tunnel start to close in and you’re like, “Oh no.” You just try to keep pushing blood back in your head so you don’t black out.

Davis: When you have motion sickness, they say to look at the horizon and it will settle your stomach. You can’t do that in the F-18 because the cameras are directly in front of you. You have to look inside the cockpit—that makes you even sicker.

Powell: I’ve got to give Lewis and Danny credit as WSOs. They’re looking all around this canopy and when a turn happens, they’re looking in the opposite direction, which is the easiest way to get sick. It is brutal.

Pullman: I tried [Dramamine] on the first flight, but you have to be so cognitively alert. I couldn’t have any fog, I had to be incredibly sharp up there. So I had to find some ways to settle the stomach.

Ramirez: Lewis and I will be the first to admit that we puked.

Powell: You keep your puke bag in your leg pocket. Sometimes when you’re pulling these really dynamic maneuvers with high G’s, you can’t even bend your body to grab that bag.

Ramirez: You just open it up and send your lunch back down.

Davis: You have to push through, you have to rally. You have to know once you get down, everybody’s going to be watching you.

LaRosa: If someone goes out in an aircraft and gets sick, typically you’re done for the day. You feel washed out and tired, you want to rest. We got our cast to a level where they would get sick and fight through it. There’s no pulling over.

Powell: The rite of passage after every flight is you have to go straight from the plane to the briefing room. You would show your empty puke bag to kind of be like, “Did it.” So I would end up taking two puke bags back there—one to puke in and one to show. And then at a certain point I just owned it.

Ramirez: Monica for sure never puked. She was also the person that pulled the most G’s on the EA-300. But Lewis has the most grit of anyone I’ve ever met. He was going to puke and instead said, “Not today,” and swallowed it all back down.

Powell: I’d have a stick and throttle in the back, and if I could put my hand on the stick and throttle and do some kind of maneuvers, there was something mentally [about] controlling the aircraft instead of being a passenger, it changed everything.

Kosinski: Every day was a struggle for those pilots—and the Top Gun pilots themselves. If you haven’t flown in a week or two, and you get back in that jet, they get sick as well. But you have to just learn how to work through it.

Ramirez: In college, I never learned how to puke and rally. So in a confined space, and to be able to push through it, I was very proud of it. I was like, “I don’t want to be cut out of this movie.”

Part 4: “Tom Cruise Is Maverick.”

Cruise’s reputation as an extreme stunt performer and adrenaline junkie preceded his arrival to set, but throughout shooting Top Gun: Maverick , his ambition and daredevilish feats blended with his character and continued to defy the cast and crew’s expectations.

Kosinski: We were shooting the third-act scene in the snow-covered mountains at Whidbey Island. One day, the weather was so spectacular and we had so much work to do, so Tom flew three sorties in a day. Most of our actors would fly once a day. On the last flight, he came back to the debrief room. I could tell he was exhausted and he just sat down on the chair and he put his black Ray-Bans from Risky Business on. I was like, “How did it go?” And he said, “We crushed it.” And he did crush it.

Davis: At one point we were too high up above the canyons, and Tom saw the footage and was like, “This doesn’t work, there’s no danger in this.” And when he says it, you’re like, “Oh, God, Tom, no.”

Bruckheimer: They were 50 feet off the ground, it’s unbelievable. When the pilot got on the ground, he turned to Tom and said, “I’ll never do that again.” Tom pushes them. He said, “We’ve got to make this look real, we’ve got to do this right, it’s got to be a love letter to aviation. We’ve got to be able to make people feel what it’s like to be in one of these planes.”

Powell: The rules are not the rules, the accepted boundaries are not the accepted boundaries. He’s a guy that is constantly pushing everyone around them to do things they never thought were possible.

Barbaro: He really was an incredible resource. Not only did he design the entire aviation training course, but he also taught us how to make a film, how to study film. He would really look you in the eye, and talk to you, and make you feel heard.

LaRosa: There was one day where he came out of the parachute and helmet shop and passed me to the F-18. He was in his Maverick helmet and his full getup. I just remember looking at him going, “That’s Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell.” Instant goosebumps.

Davis: You’re like, “Wow, this is Maverick. This is the real life Maverick.”

Powell: Tom Cruise is Maverick.

Davis: What is Tom not good at? I remember I threw a pass to him [playing football] and he just went gunning. He took off down the sideline in the sand in jeans, and nobody was catching him. I was like “OK, I’m glad you’re on my team.”

Ramirez: I had just finished my last F-18 flight—we were doing a really intense sequence. We land, we’re in the briefing room, we show the footage. Tom is super excited. “Ah, you nailed it.” We’re all hyped. And then Tom’s like, “You heading back to L.A. today? Grab your bags.” So, Tarzan and I are flying back with Tom in his private jet. He’s like, “Yeah, I just bought this.” We land, and then he just jumps onto his motorcycle and hauls ass away. We’re like, “What the hell?” It was the most Hollywood thing I could have ever imagined.

Davis: He may seem intense, because what we’re doing is serious, but he’s a character.

Bruckheimer: I work with actors that can’t wait to go home. It’s so much fun when you have an actor like Tom who understands all this.

Powell: On this movie I’m doing next with Richard Linklater , Tom’s already given me notes on the script, how to build character. That level of TLC and the fact that I can actually call him a real friend … he’s not just bouncing after wrap, he’s really special.

Pullman: There was this moment where Tom brought us into his trailer to show us the first trailer of Top Gun: Maverick . I will always remember Glen Powell looking at Tom and sort of jokingly going, “Tom, you realize now the only way to top yourself is to shoot a movie in space.” Everyone was laughing. And with a sense of seriousness, Tom just nodded: “Yes, that’s true.” Like, this is what’s next for me, this is my duty . And I think he is going to space with Doug Liman .

Powell: You’ve got to watch saying things like that, because Tom will figure out a way to get there.

Part 5: “Welcome to the Skies.”

During the more than 10 months of shooting (and 800 hours’ worth of footage), Top Gun: Maverick pushed everyone’s technological, physical, and mental limits to the brink, creating an instant bond and camaraderie between the cast and crew.

LaRosa: It is no joke what they were doing every single day.

Kosinski: Nothing was easy on this film. We’d only get a few minutes of usable stuff every day, but it’s the only way to get what we got. That was the way it had to be done.

LaRosa: With practical aerial stunts and aerial cinematography, it’s a more visceral feel. You’re not watching a cartoon, you’re not looking at anything fake. You’re looking at something that actually happened. And that means something to people.

Bruckheimer: When the aerial stuff was done, that was my biggest relief. Machines can break, they can have problems. But the pilots were so terrific; the Navy was so great surrounding us with the best mechanics, best aviators—and the precautions that Tom took, which he always does, made sure our actors were all safe.

Barbaro: There was a scene we shot before we did all our pilot training. But after we learned how to become pilots, we apparently walked with more swagger. They were like, “Oh, you guys are walking differently, we have to go reshoot that scene.”

Davis: When you see us in the bar, those are some cocky mothersuckers in there. Why? Because we went through it.

Powell: I’m really proud to look back and go, “Wow, I accomplished way more than I ever thought was possible,” and it’s because of a guy like Tom, who has been pushing for 40 years.

Barbaro: It’s kind of incredible, we stay in touch all the time. Ten months after being in a particular character’s world, it takes a minute to shed that.

Kosinski: It was clear there was a natural chemistry there that got stronger as they went through the flight training and swim training—and the shoot itself.

Pullman: I definitely miss it. I miss going up there.

Powell: For Christmas, Tom gave all the young guns the iPad with ground school on it, and so we all had the opportunity to study it and pick it up.

Pullman: Everyone wants to continue their aviation journey in some sense or another.

Barbaro: I’m almost done with ground school. I’m kicking myself for not just doubling down during the pandemic, but I have every intention of doing it.

Powell: I started flying on my own, and Tom was with me every step of the way. After I got my private pilot’s license, there was a note waiting for me on the ground from Tom that said, “Welcome to the Skies.”

Davis: Tom got us skydiving lessons. Then we went through drifting lessons. Then weaponry training. Dirt bike lessons. I’ve done everything I can think of.

Pullman: I was craving those adrenaline spikes because there’s nothing like it.

Davis: There’s nothing I can say I’m afraid of. Maybe a bee. Other than that, I can do whatever the hell I want now.

Jake Kring-Schreifels is a sports and entertainment writer based in New York. His work has also appeared in Esquire.com, GQ.com, and The New York Times .

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Tom Cruise landed in a helicopter in a family's field then offered them a ride

By Caitlin O'Kane

August 24, 2021 / 7:24 AM EDT / CBS News

Imagine Tom Cruise landing from the sky right in your back yard – literally. A family in the U.K. got a surprise treat when the actor landed in a helicopter in their field, then let them go for a ride.

Cruise is in Europe filming the latest "Mission: Impossible" movie and was supposed to be shooting in Birmingham, U.K. The nearby airport was closed and Cruise, who was traveling by helicopter, needed a place to land, BBC News reports.

Alison Webb was asked if her field in nearby Warwickshire could be used to land a helicopter for an unnamed "VIP who was running late," she told BBC News.

When the helicopter landed, none other than Tom Cruise emerged.

"I thought it would be kind of cool for the kids to see the helicopter land in the garden," Webb said. "He [Tom Cruise] basically arrived and got out and it was like, wow."

Webb said Cruise immediately walked over to her children and "elbow bumped" them to say hello and thank them. "Then he said if the kids would like they could go up in the helicopter," she said.

Cruise let the kids take a ride while he went to a meeting. "It turned out to be an incredible day," Webb said. "It was surreal, I still now can't believe it happened."

Cruise has spent a lot of time in Europe in recent months. According to Reuters , production on the seventh "Mission: Impossible" was shut down in February 2020 while filming in Italy. Filming resumed in September and moved to London in December.

The movie, from Paramount Pictures (a division of ViacomCBS), was scheduled to premiere in November 2021, but was pushed to May 27, 2022, according to Variety .

Cruise has been spotted several times during his time in Europe. Dozens in Birmingham have snapped photos of the actor filming at Grand Central shopping center, BBC News reports. Part of the center is closed to the public through Wednesday this week as filming takes place.

It was an absolute pleasure to welcome Tom Cruise to Asha's Birmingham yesterday evening 🌟 Tom ordered our famous... Posted by Asha's on Sunday, August 22, 2021

Cruise was also spotted at a local Indian restaurant on Saturday. After reportedly ordering two chicken tikka masala dishes at Asha's, locals began calling him "Two Tikkas Tom," BBC News reports.

Some speculated if it was actually Cruise, but Nouman Farooqu, general manager of the restaurant, told BBC News it was "100%" him. He came with a group of five and ordered dishes to share – then ordered seconds, Farooqu said. The restaurant also posted photos of Cruise with staff members on Facebookl.

Caitlin O'Kane is a New York City journalist who works on the CBS News social media team as a senior manager of content and production. She writes about a variety of topics and produces "The Uplift," CBS News' streaming show that focuses on good news.

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'Top Gun: Behind Closed Doors': Tom Cruise threw up in first plane ride before saying yes to Maverick's role

It took a nauseous airplane ride for Tom Cruise to be completely sold on 'Top Gun'. The star, who plays the role of hotshot aviator Maverick in the film, was reluctant about taking up the film, as revealed in 'Top Gun: Behind Closed Doors' — a documentary that gives an insight into all the drama that went into making the film. Screenwriter Jack Epps Jr says that they wrote the film for Cruise. "I gave the script to Jerry Bruckheimer and told him, think Tom Cruise when you read the script."

Film producer Bruckheimer revealed that when they handed the script over to Cruise, he wasn't "terribly excited" about the film. "He had just broken up with his girlfriend and was travelling around the country, and wasn't into making committments." However, Bruckheimer and Don Simpson were insistent on Cruise being in the film. They told technical advisor Pete Pettigrew that they couldn't do the film without him. They knew he was going to be the next big star and they needed him, but he was "waffling" whether he wanted to do the film or not. This is when Bruckheimer decided to send him up in an airplane. So, he arranged for Cruise to fly with the Blue Angels in California. Cruise arrived on his motorcycle with long hair and the pilots looked at him and said, "We're going to give this hippie the ride of his life." They took him up and Cruise was throwing up, through his mask. But this rough ride seemed to have sealed the deal as Cruise rushed to call Bruckheimer and confirm that he was doing the film. "He had the time of his life," Bruckheimer recalled.

However, the price was quite high as well. "Don said, Paul Wagner (Tom Cruise's agent) wants a million dollars for Tom, who else is there? I said I'll call you back, I went through the notebooks, I called him back and said there was no one else who was good for the part," said casting director Margery Simkin. All said and done, in retrospect, the role of Maverick was tailor-made for Cruise. The sequel, 'Top Gun: Maverick', will hit the screens in December.

IMAGES

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Tom Cruise Casually Stands On A Flying Plane In Mission: Impossible
Tom Cruise’s Plane Stunt in ‘Mission: Impossible

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Tom Cruise put his pilot's license to good use as he took "The Late Late Show" host James Corden on a few "terrifying" flights in the sky ahead of the "Top Gun: Maverick" release on Friday, May 27.
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At 4:56 a.m. at the Burbank Airport, Cruise picked up Corden in a private plane, where Cruise himself flew them to the desert. Some might remember the last time Cruise was on the Late Late Show in ...
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Here's a great video that you've got to watch in which Top Gun: Maverick star Tom Cruise takes James Corden up in a jet and gives him the ride of his life! As you might expect, Corden is absolutely terrified, but at the same time, you know he's loving the experience! Cruise takes Corden up on a ride in two different planes and watching ...
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On Tuesday, May 24, The Late Late Show with James Corden aired a video feature with the Top Gun: Maverick star that saw Cruise and Corden take to the skies in both a vintage and more modern fighter jet; a very different kind of ride than Corden is used to in his popular Carpool Karaoke segments. The clip begins with Corden arriving at Burbank ...
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The P-51 Mustang plane that Maverick and Rooster work on in that final scene of Top Gun: Maverick is owned by Tom Cruise in real life.His passion for aviation was sparked while filming the original 1986 Top Gun movie and in 1994, Cruise became a licensed pilot.. The P-51 Mustang used in Top Gun: Maverick was built in 1946 and Cruise has owned the plane, which has an estimated value of $4 ...
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In this video we have late night show host James Corden and superstar actor Tom Cruise go for a ride in not just a fighter jet, but also a P-51 mustang! So cool to see one of the most beloved warbirds take to the sky by none other than the movie star who does crazy stunts himself, Tom Cruise….who is also an aviation enthusiast and flies ...
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