Top Gun 3 is quietly taxiing toward the runway. Jerry Bruckheimer just dropped a useful little update that suggests the new movie is actually moving, not just living in sequel limbo.
So, what actually happened?
At TheWrap's TheGrill 2025 conference, Bruckheimer said screenwriter Ehren Kruger (one of the writers on Top Gun: Maverick) is expected to hand in the latest draft of Top Gun 3 next month. Translation: the script is still being actively shaped, and a new milestone is around the corner.
Who is in, who might direct, and what they say the story is
Joseph Kosinski, who directed Maverick, is the studio's expected pick to return behind the camera for the third one. Tom Cruise is set to suit up again as Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell, and the plan is to pair him with Miles Teller and Glen Powell, back as Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw and Jake 'Hangman' Seresin. That trio makes sense given how Maverick ended and how much the Rooster/Hangman dynamic popped.
Back in May, Christopher McQuarrie — who co-wrote Maverick with Kruger — said the two of them figured out the core of the new film.
'Ehren Kruger pitched something, and I went, 'Mhm, actually,' and we had one conversation about it, and the framework is there... So, no, it's not hard to crack. The truth of the matter is, none of these are hard to crack.'
That 'framework is there' line is some real inside baseball: it usually means they have the spine of the story, and now it's about refining set pieces, character beats, and the emotional payoff.
When could we actually see it?
Paramount has not dated Top Gun 3 yet, and there is a scheduling wrinkle. Kosinski is also attached to direct the Miami Vice reboot, currently set to hit theaters on August 6, 2027, with production slated for 2026. If Paramount sticks with Kosinski for Top Gun 3, the earliest realistic window for Maverick's next flight is likely 2028. Not ideal if you are impatient, but also not shocking for a tentpole that relies on big, practical aerial work.
Why everyone is being careful
After nearly four decades, Maverick finally landed in 2022 and turned into a phenomenon: over $1.4 billion worldwide, six Oscar nominations, and a win for Best Sound. When a sequel hits that hard, nobody wants to rush the follow-up and break the streak.
Where things stand right now
- Script: Ehren Kruger is expected to deliver the latest draft next month.
- Story: Kruger and Christopher McQuarrie say they cracked the framework back in May.
- Director: Joseph Kosinski is expected to return, but he is busy with Miami Vice.
- Cast: Tom Cruise back as Maverick; plan is to pair him with Miles Teller (Rooster) and Glen Powell (Hangman).
- Release date: None yet; with Kosinski on Miami Vice (out Aug 6, 2027), Top Gun 3 is likely a 2028 play at the earliest.
- Context: Maverick was a monster hit ($1.4B worldwide) with six Oscar noms and a Best Sound win.
Bottom line: the new draft is imminent, the core team is aligned, and the studio seems committed. Now we wait for the script to lock, schedules to line up, and Paramount to plant a flag on the calendar.