It feels like we’ve been waiting forever for Tom Cruise and Top Gun: Maverick to hit the big screen. Just as the long awaited sequel was about to take flight last fall, a new delay pushed the film to Memorial Day 2022, in response to the further delay of Cruise’s next two Mission: Impossible sequels. While Ethan Hunt’s return saw yet another delay come down the line, the need for speed is still running strong, as Top Gun: Maverick is finally set for a pretty huge screening at the Cannes Film Festival.
According to unnamed sources that have spoken with Deadline, Paramount Pictures will be taking Tom Cruise’s high flying legacyquel to the legendary film festival. While unconfirmed, this report also states that there will still be a San Diego world premiere for Top Gun: Maverick, which should take place before this festival showing. So for those of you who thought that there was going to be yet another release date shift, you might want to ditch those negative vibes.
It’s not like people haven’t been party to the delights of director Joseph Kosinski’s big follow up to Tony Scott’s iconic original. Last summer we had reporters on the ground who were able to see a beautiful 15 minute reel of footage at CinemaCon, plus there was a lucky group of fans who got to see Top Gun: Maverick as early as last December. However, the San Diego world premiere, as well as this Cannes Film Festival screening, seem to be the high profile screenings we’ve been waiting for.
This isn’t something to be taken lightly, as Top Gun: Maverick is apparently so good the CEO of IMAX tried to stop the move to a 2022 release date. Who could blame him, as the original plan was to see Tom Cruise’s Captain Pete Mitchell return in a July 2019 theatrical debut. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down theaters, and triggering a huge release date exodus, Top Gun’s sequel would have to circle the runway a couple more times.
Our almost three year wait is coming to a close though, and Top Gun: Maverick co-star Manny Jacinto assures fans that it’ll be worth it. With Cannes now in view as one of the major debuts for this high stakes second round, that familiar Kenny Loggins siren song is calling once more. It’s time to head back to the Danger Zone, and see what Maverick’s skills can do for a new generation that wants to call themselves Top Guns.
The 2022 Cannes Film Festival is set to run between May 17th – 28th, which coincides with Top Gun: Maverick’s planned theatrical opening on May 27th. For all other information on upcoming movies in 2022, the full schedule can give you all the dates you need to make sure the pattern’s not full for your next trip to the movies.