Where are top gun actors now: 59 Photos
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Top Gun was released in May 1986, starring Tom Cruise as Maverick and Val Kilmer as Iceman. Cruise, who's now an action star, is reprising his aviator role for a sequel called Top Gun: Maverick. Meg Ryan had a minor role in the film, but is now known for starring in When Harry Met Sally.
McGillis currently lives in Hendersonville, North Carolina. As of 2013, she has taught acting at the New York Studio for Stage and Screen (NYS3) in Asheville, North Carolina.
Summary. Director Joseph Kosinski defends Meg Ryan's absence as Carole Bradshaw in Top Gun: Maverick, arguing that it was in the best interest of the story. The director explains that Carole's absence is what gives power to the Maverick and Rooster arc and that it was a hard choice.
Cruise reprised his role in the sequel 36 years later, this time to mostly positive reviews. Val Kilmer, who was critical of warmongering in the first film, also returned for the sequel.
Why were Meg Ryan and Kelly McGillis excluded from 'Top Gun: Maverick'? I don't believe Meg Ryan is acting in movies anymore, but as the wife of his dead co-pilot, she wouldn't have fit into the script as written. Put a different way, pretty much everything the wife could say was said during the first movie.