Big Update Revealed on Tom Cruise’s Return for ‘Top Gun 3’

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Ever since news first emerged earlier this year that Paramount had greenlit “Top Gun 3,” the big question has been timing.

According to reports, star Tom Cruise has a jam-packed schedule, with the next project to receive his focus confirmed to be a sequel to another earlier hit, “Days of Thunder.”

However, Cruise’s “Top Gun: Maverick” co-star Miles Teller shared an update of when Cruise might be available to get started on bringing Maverick to the screen for a third time.

‘We’re Really Excited’

Teller recently dropped by “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and shared some news about what was happening with Cruise and the second “Top Gun” sequel.

Telling Kimmel that “everybody’s really excited” to return for more “Top Gun,” Teller told host Jimmy Kimmel, “Tom, I think he’s said the next thing he’s doing is he’s going to race some cars, that’s ‘Days of Thunder.’ And then I hope he wants to fly some planes, too, ‘cause we would love to do it.”

According to Teller, he’s 100 percent onboard whenever Cruise is ready to start, explaining to Kimmel just how deeply involved Cruise gets in whatever project he happens to be working on.

“Tom is very gracious and he was the closest thing to a mentor that I think a lot of us ever had in this business, and he’s always available,” Teller said. “I’ve had to hang up on Tom because he’s so excited, he really is so invested.”

A Blockbuster Sequel

Back in May, Cruise appeared on Australia’s “Today,” where he discussed his ongoing efforts to deliver the long-awaited “Days of Thunder” sequel and the third “Top Gun” movie.

“Yeah, we’re thinking and talking about many different stories and what could we do and what’s possible,” Cruise teased.

“It took me 35 years to figure out Top Gun: Maverick,’ so all of these things we’re working on, we’re discussing ‘Days of Thunder’ and ‘Top Gun: Maverick.’”

As Cruise pointed out, “Top Gun: Maverick” arrived in theaters 36 years after the 1986 original. Clearly, fans thought it was worth the wait, with “Maverick” generating nearly $1.5 billion at the box office.

‘Days of Thunder 2’

When news first emerged that Cruise planned to revisit “Days of Thunder,” the first question that arose was: would he reunite with his co-star in that movie, given that she also happens to be his ex-wife?

According the National Enquirer, Cruise is reportedly open to working onscreen once again with Nicole Kidman, even though the former spouses have reportedly had little contact since their 2001 divorce.

“Tom wants it to happen,” a source told the Enquirer. “Is there room for Nicole Kidman to show up in ‘Days of Thunder 2’? Yes, and in terms of dealmaking, it’s not a difficult path” for Kidman to reprise her character.

“But the ball is in Nicole’s, and only Nicole’s, court,” the source continued.

“It’s a big leap for Nicole to jump onto a ‘bro movie’ like ‘Days of Thunder 2’ for a male director from the universe of frat boy comedies,” added the source. “Even if she’s just going to do a signature, one-scene cameo, it has to be creatively perfect for her to do it.”