Tom Cruise marks 40 years of Top Gun: Nostalgic photos have fans buzzing for big screen return
Tom Cruise celebrates 40 years of Top Gun with nostalgic photos as the film returns to theatres. Get the latest on Top Gun 3 and the legacy of Maverick's journey
Hollywood legend Tom Cruise sent fans flying back in time with a new Instagram post celebrating four decades of his legendary role as Pete "Maverick" Mitchell. The 63-year-old actor shared a curated gallery of images, mixing black-and-white stills from the original 1986 blockbuster with vibrant, full-colour shots from its critically acclaimed 2022 sequel, Top Gun: Maverick.
The nostalgic collection features a young Cruise giving a thumbs-up from a cockpit, a classic handshake with Val Kilmer’s 'Iceman', and a lively bar scene with Anthony Edwards' 'Goose'. These are perfectly contrasted with modern images of an older Maverick on the deck of an aircraft carrier and in the cockpit of a futuristic hypersonic jet. “I’m excited to celebrate 40 years of Top Gun with you all,” Cruise wrote in the caption. “It’s so much fun to see these two films back on the big screen!”
His post, published on Wednesday, coincides perfectly with a special one-week theatrical re-release of both films organised by Paramount Pictures to mark the anniversary. Fans immediately flooded the comments section with praise. “Top Gun still my favorite movie ever,” one user wrote. Another shared their excitement, commenting, “This movie is a classic, I can't wait to see it again in theaters.”
The Legacy Continues
The anniversary celebrations are amplified by the recent confirmation that the story is far from over. During its CinemaCon presentation in April 2026, Paramount Pictures officially announced that Top Gun 3 is in development, with Cruise set to reprise his role as the daring aviator. The news has generated immense excitement, promising another chapter for a franchise that has had a profound cultural impact for decades.
The original film was not just the highest-grossing film of 1986; its incredible aerial sequences and charismatic hero famously led to a surge in recruitment for the U.S. Navy. The sequel revolutionised aerial cinematography further by placing actors in real F/A-18 Super Hornets to capture their genuine reactions to extreme G-forces.
As fans get to experience both films in cinemas once again, and with a new sequel on the horizon, it is clear that after 40 years, the world's need for speed-and Maverick-is as strong as ever.