Top Gun: Maverick producer explains why Tom Cruise-starrer outshone MCU & DC films and emerged as a roaring success

Headlined by Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise, Top Gun: Maverick hit theatres on May 27 and turned out to be a massive success within days of its release. In its journey to become one of the highest-grossing films ever made, the action drama outperformed MCU and DC biggies at the box office.

The Top Gun sequel is now the sixth-highest-grossing film ever at the domestic box office. It is also Cruise’s highest-grossing film. It has left behind such juggernauts as Doctor Strange 2, Jurassic World Dominion, and Thor: Love and Thunder in terms of box office collection and reached $679 million this weekend. The film prides itself on being Paramount Pictures’ biggest film ahead of Titanic, which currently sits at No. 8 on the all-time domestic box office list.

Explaining why Top Gun: Maverick has turned out to be such a massive success at the box office, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, known for bankrolling such blockbusters as Pirates of the Caribbean, Beverly Hills Cop, and National Treasure, told a publication, “It’s always the characters, the themes, the story. That’s what it’s all about; it’s about the emotion, it’s about bringing Iceman back, it’s about seeing a real movie.”

Adding that sometimes audiences want to see films that are real, Bruckheimer said, “The audiences love the Marvel, they love the DC stuff. They're beautifully made by really talented people. Sometimes you want to see something that's real, and that's what Top Gun gave us. “These aviators are out there protecting our country right now, flying around the world, and you're taking a ride with them. You're seeing what they do, you're seeing what their life is like, and the trials and tribulations that they have to go through. You're actually experiencing it with our actors.”

Heaping praises on his leading star Tom Cruise, Bruckheimer said, “Top Gun was the benefit of all of Tom's learning and being with all these terrific actors, directors, and writers. He helped us craft this movie. He designed the aerial sequences with [director] Joe Kosinski. … All that energy that Tom puts into it… Nobody works harder.”

The celebrated producer also added that he hopes the Oscars take notice of Cruise’s natural performance in the film. “Nobody cares more, nobody works harder than Tom. You look at his performance, it's deceiving, because it's so good, it's so natural. It's something that audiences understand and realize, and we hope the Academy will feel the same way,” he concluded.