Despite all the recent casting news regarding Top Gun: Maverick and the excitement it generated among fans, some bad news has arrived, as the long-awaited sequel has been delayed by almost a year by Paramount. Originally planned to arrive July 12, 2019, the film will now hit cinemas June 26, 2020 instead.
Pre-shoots, as they’re now called, took place in May just before star Tom Cruise headed off for press duties for Mission: Impossible – Fallout. Principal photography is set to get underway about now, but hitting that 2019 release date quickly became a pretty impractical goal given the technical nature of the shoot.
Reportedly, the move is being made to allow for time to create “incredible” fight sequences, something that would have been close to impossible if the film stuck with its slated 2019 release date. While the news is disappointing for fans, they would surely rather wait an extra year and have the film live up to expectations, rather than have a rushed production and disappointing final product just to hit a certain date.
The story itself is still mostly under wraps. We know that Maverick is now an instructor at the flight academy, and Miles Teller, playing the son of Maverick’s deceased partner Goose, arrives on the scene looking to follow in his father’s footsteps. The rest of the cast includes the return of Val Kilmer, plus Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell, Jon Hamm and Ed Harris. Joseph Kosinski (Oblivion) is directing.
The release date shift now leaves a hole in the middle of July 2019, but the month is still shaping up to be a bit of a juggernaut. Spider-Man: Far From Home arrives July 5, before Disney’s The Lion King arrives two weeks later, and Quentin Tarantino‘s much-anticipated Once Upon A Time In Hollywood rounds off the month on the 26th.
Whatever film attempts to fill Maverick‘s vacated spot on the 15th better be confident.
Maverick‘s new date in 2020 currently has it scheduled to go against the musical adaptation In The Heights, and will open a week after an untitled Pixar film.
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