Top Gun: Maverick is 2022’s highest-grossing movie, and will likely remain so unless Avatar: The Way of Water has something to say about it. A good chunk of the Top Gun sequel’s nearly $1.5 billion box office total comes from people who watched it multiple times (like the guy who went to the theater 45 days in a row), but only a select few — possibly only one person! — have noticed the easter egg in the beach football scene.
“My favorite party trick is showing people that they sampled the volleyball scene audio in top gun 1986 for the beach football scene in top gun maverick,” @msmegalodon tweeted, along with evidence of Top Gun: Maverick‘s Hangman (played by Glen Powell) having the same distinctive (and shirtless) howl as the original’s Slider (Rick Rossovich).
my favorite party trick is showing people that they sampled the volleyball scene audio in top gun 1986 for the beach football scene in top gun maverick pic.twitter.com/S6jPYDQKPH
— emma (@msmegalodon) November 12, 2022
The viral tweet caught the attention of Top Gun: Maverick editor, Eddie Hamilton, who wrote, “Emma I am stoked you noticed this. Very deliberate little nod to the original iconic beach volleyball scene. Bravo. Well played.” In a follow-up tweet, he added, “No one else has spotted this as far as I’m aware. Enjoy your time in the smug zone.”
Hamilton passed along the tweet to Tom Cruise and Top Gun: Maverick co-writer Christopher McQuarrie, who tweeted, “Tom and I were most impressed when Eddie showed us this over breakfast this morning. Keep on smugging, Emma.”
Tom and I were most impressed when Eddie showed us this over breakfast this morning. Keep on smugging, Emma.
— Christopher McQuarrie (@chrismcquarrie) November 14, 2022
Smug zone > danger zone.
(Via Cinema Blend)