After four decades in the movie biz, Tom Cruise continues to impress audiences with Top Gun: Maverick, which screened at the Cannes Film Festival yesterday where it received a five-minute standing ovation. The movie star was also honored with a surprise honorary Palme d'Or in a tribute that was preceded by French fighter jet flybys that streaked the sky with red, white, and blue.

If this wasn't enough of a testament of the power of Cruise when it comes to the Hollywood machine, a recent interview producer Jerry Bruckheimer gave to the Hollywood Reporter attributes Top Gun: Maverick happening completely to a single phone call the dedicated movie star made to Paramount head Jim Gianopulos.

Of the all-important call, Bruckheimer recounted, "Joe [Kosinski] had a look book, a poster and the title, Top Gun: Maverick, and then he told Tom the journey of the character and the story he wanted to tell. Tom then looked at him, pulled out his phone and called the head of Paramount at that time and said, 'I want to make another Top Gun'' And that was it."

In the same article, Bruckheimer revealed that Cruise's insistence was also behind Val Kilmer's return as Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, a reunion that has wowed audiences. Bruckheimer acknowledges, "[Tom] said, 'I'm not making this movie without Val.' When we filmed it, it was a very emotional day, having Val there and seeing him work with Tom after 35 years."

With all this great press for Top Gun: Maverick, Cruise is going through a bit of a media makeover. Long derided for his high-profile devotion to the Church of Scientology, which led to cringey moments such as when he jumped on Oprah's couch, the aging superstar was once written off as the last of the great movie stars, whose only real claim-to-fame was his willingness to take on dangerous stunts despite rapidly approaching age 60.

However, with Top Gun: Maverick firmly sweeping audiences off their feet with nostalgia, we're getting glowing career roundups, like this article by Deadline pondering why exactly Cruise's star "shine[s] so brightly." Is this the sign of a new Cruise career resurgence, à la Keanu Reeves' Keanusance? It's hard to tell. However, one can't doubt that such a hardworking, talented actor, whose dedication to perfection and apparent willingness to mentor the next generation of actors is unmatched, is certainly having his day in the sun once more.

Will you go see Top Gun: Maverick? Are you ready for Cruise's career to blow up once again? Let us know!

Top Gun: Maverick hits theaters exclusively May 27, 2022.

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Tags
Tom Cruise, Top Gun Maverick, Cannes Film Festival