‘Top Gun’ Then & Now: Celebrate ‘Top Gun Day’ With Photos Of Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis & More

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May 13, 2022 10:10AM EDT

May 13th is ‘Top Gun’ Day and with ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ just around the corner, fans are flying high. Check out the stars of the original film and where they’ve come since, here.

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‘Top Gun’ Stars Then & Now: Tom Cruise & More

‘Top Gun’ Stars Then & Now: Tom Cruise & More
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

‘Top Gun’ is one of the most memorable movies of the 80s, with an A-list cast and hit-packed soundtrack. The 1986 Tom Cruise flick followed the high-flying adventures of Navy fighter pilots in training and starred Kelly McGillis and Val Kilmer, with songs from Kenny Loggins. It became to biggest box office hit of 1986 and managed to take home 3$57.1 million worldwide. With the much-awaited sequel ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ soaring into theaters on May 27, 2022, we thought we’d take a look back at the original movie, and where the cast is today. 

Leading man Tom Cruise was just 24 when he played fighter pilot Maverick in ‘Top Gun’. In the years following he became an action icon, starring in the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise, ‘Minority Report’, and ‘Jack Reacher’, as well as appearing in critically acclaimed dramas like ‘Jerry Maguire’ and ‘Interview With A Vampire’. And now he’s back for ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and fans couldn’t ‘be more thrilled.

Want to learn about the rest of the cast? Click through the gallery.

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Kelly McGillis

Kelly McGillis
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

Kelly McGillis played Charlotte “Charlie” Blackwood, Maverick’s love interest, in the original ‘Top Gun’. Other notable roles were in 1987’s ‘Made in Heaven’ with Timothy Hutton, 1988’s ‘The House on Carroll Street’ with Jeff Daniels and Jessica Tandy, and as Kathryn Murphy in ‘The Accused’ (1988) with Jodie Foster. Her career slowed down in the 90s and 2000s, but later in her career, she starred in acclaimed independent horror films like ‘Stake Land’ (2010), ‘The Innkeepers’ (2011), and ‘We Are What We Are’ (2013).

 

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Val Kilmer

Val Kilmer
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

Val Kilmer played LT Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, in ‘Top Gun’. His fiesty character was one of Top Gun’s students and Maverick’s rival turned wingman. From there, he continued his rise to fame by starring in ‘Willow’ and ‘Kill Me Again. In Oliver Stone’s biopic, ‘The Doors’ he played Jim Morrison. After that, Val put on the cape and cowl for ‘Batman Forever.’ His take on the Caped Crusader was mixed, and his career took a few bumps. In 2005, his role in ‘Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’ was well-received by critics despite its limited release. Val continued to act in the following decades, including appearances in ‘The Traveler’, ‘MacGruber’, and a cameo in Tenacious D’s video ‘To Be The Best.’ He was diagnosed with throat cancer later in life, permanently affecting his voice and his acting career.

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Anthony Edwards

Anthony Edwards
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

Anthony Edwards was LTJG Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, Maverick’s best friend and Radar Intercept Officer, in the movie. His most recognized role would come in the 90s with ‘ER’, where he played Dr. Mark Greene for the first eight seasons. Anthony received a Golden Globe award and six Screen Actors Guild Awards for the role. He also enjoyed parts in ‘Zodiac’, ‘Miracle Mile’, ‘Revenge of the Nerds’, ‘Planes’, ‘Northern Exposure’, and ‘Designated Survivor’.

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Tom Skerritt

Tom Skerritt
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

Tom Skerritt was Commander Mike “Viper” Metcalf in ‘Top Gun’. His character was a veteran of the Vietnam War who served with Duke Mitchell, Maverick’s father. Tom was already an established actor by the time of ‘Top Gun’, having appeared in ‘MASH’, ‘Harold and Maude’, ‘Cheech & Chong’s Up in Smoke’, and ‘Alien’. His future roles would include parts in ‘A River Runs Through It’, ‘Steel Magnolias’, and an Emmy-winning turn on CBS’s 1992 to 1996 series ‘Picket Fences’.

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Meg Ryan

Meg Ryan
©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection/Shutterstock

Meg Ryan had a bit part as Goose’s wife Carole Bradshaw in ‘Top Gun’. The rom-com queen would become an icon with cute roles in classics like ‘When Harry Met Sally’, ‘Sleepless In Seattle’ and ‘You’ve Got Mail’. Her further credits include a reunion with Val Kilmer in ‘The Doors’ (1991), ‘When a Man Loves a Woman’ (1994), ‘Courage Under Fire’ (1996), ‘Addicted to Love’ (1997), ‘City of Angels’ (1998), ‘Proof of Life’ (2000), and ‘The Women’ (2008). In 2015, she made her directorial debut with ‘Ithica’, which she also starred in.

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