Losin’ It Star Rebounds

Top Gun: Maverick—the sequel to the 1986 blockbuster that established Tom Cruise as an international action star—surpassed $1-billion in worldwide box-office earnings. So says the film’s maker, Paramount Studios.

In a career spanning north of forty-years, Cruise has put up some big numbers. Neither Interview With the Vampire, A Few Good Men, The Firm, Jerry Maguire, Rain Man, nor the Mission Impossible franchise were box-office slouches—but none powered past the billion-dollar milestone as Maverick has.

In a rare instance of concordance, critics have added their enthusiasm to that of Maverick’s audiences. The film—in which protagonist Pete “Maverick” Mitchell guides a gaggle of Generation “Z” megalomaniacs from idiocy to mere stupidity has a dazzling, 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

To date, Maverick has bagged more than $520-million domestically and more than $468-million overseas.

It’s the 50th film in history to earn more than $1-billion at the global box office—not accounting for inflation—and only the second movie of the pandemic era to surpass the lofty mark, joining last December's Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscor—an American media measurement and analytics company that provides marketing data to media concerns, advertising agencies, and publishers—states: “For any film to join the $1-billion club is a monumental achievement, but Top Gun: Maverick hitting $1-billion during the pandemic is a bit different.” Mister Dergarabedian added: "It was the perfect movie at the perfect time because it starred one of Hollywood's last movie stars, in a movie that delivered on all fronts to all audiences around the world,"

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