Joseph Kosinski Not Returning for Top Gun 3! Bad Sign?
It’s almost four years since Top Gun: Maverick flew into theaters. Since then it’s been announced and confirmed that a third Top Gun is in development. We’ve also recently gotten an update that Joseph Kosinski will not be returning to direct the film. What do I think about it? Should we be concerned? Let’s talk about it!
The News: The news broke yesterday morning as legendary producer Jerry Bruckheimer said that Joseph Kosinski likely won’t be returning to direct the sequel.
Bad Sign?: Immediately there’s two negative thoughts that people had regarding this information.
First up, what does it mean for the quality of the film? The 1986 Top Gun is a beloved film that a whole generation grew up with, it propelled Tom Cruise to being an action star. Top Gun: Maverick came out 32 years later and surprised the original to almost everybody that saw it. One of my favorite film critics on YouTube, Sean Chandler, had Top Gun in his top 40 favorite movies and thought that Top Gun: Maverick surpassed it, which is rare for him to say. I’m in a similar boat, I love the 1986 film but I thought Top Gun: Maverick easily surpassed it in almost every aspect. So much of the reason why Top Gun: Maverick worked was because Joseph Kosinski is a great director and was able to craft a great film. The basic story and formula of the film is very similar to the original. But he was able to take the emotions and flying sequences and elevate them to crafting a fantastic blockbuster that’s awesome from start to finish. I think Kosinski not directing is a legitimate reason to be concerned because a third film with a new direction was able to capture even the slightest bit of magic that Top Gun: Maverick was able to deliver.
Second, there’s some people wondering if there’s some bad blood between Kosinski and Tom Cruise, or something related to that. I don’t take Kosinski being out as there being beef between the two. I’m guessing the reason behind this is because Kosinski is working on his Miami Vice remake with Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler. He signed on to do the Miami Vice remake a while ago so that’s probably his top priority with this. I think him doing something different is probably a good idea for his career. He did two back-to-back films with Top Gun: Maverick and F1 that are dad movies, movies that make audiences “they don’t make them like this anymore”, and star movie stars of decades past. Both of them got critical acclaim and received Best Picture nominations. He’s mastered doing that type of film really well, so the fact he wants to move on and do something different makes sense to me. I think the best directors are the ones that have well-rounded filmographies with great movies in multiple different genres. Steven Spielberg should be viewed as one of the goats because he has great adventure films, sci-fi films, war films, drama films, and more. If Joseph Kosinski wants to build out his filmography by doing something different that’s totally fine and acceptable to me.
Why I’m Not Concerned
As I’ve mentioned, I’ve seen some people view these red flags for the film and say that their excitement for the film dropped with this announcement. I totally get where they’re coming from. Joseph Kosinski is a great director and made one of the best sequels this decade with Top Gun: Maverick that made over $1 billion and got universally praised by everybody of all generations. F1 was also one of my favorite movies of last year, I was so happy that it got into Best Picture at the Oscars. But he made two movies back-to-back that are very similar in their tones, style, and what makes them great.
Even beyond that, I feel like whenever you’re working on a Top Gun or Mission Impossible film, you’re working for Tom Cruise. I don’t feel like the director of either project matters all that much because Tom Cruise is so involved and hands-on as the producer that they just need a director to help get the movie made. But since I trust Tom Cruise to make a great movie, I trust him to make a great film here. I’ve seen some people joking and making bets waiting to see how long until Christopher McQuarrie is announced as the director. I don’t know who I would want to direct the film. If it’s a good director that I trust then I’m not worried. McQuarrie is the safe and obvious answer, is he the best answer? I have no idea.
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