Val Kilmer’s idea for the return of Top Gun friend and rival, Iceman in Top Gun: Maverick, Tom Cruise’s highest-grossing film ever, made the movie even better. Maverick, which flew into theaters its first weekend grossing $290M, pleased audiences and heralded worldwide critical acclaim. During the original, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) shared a rivalry-turned-friendship with fellow pilot Iceman, paving the way for lifelong camaraderie. In Top Gun, Maverick’s renegade character juxtaposed Iceman’s by-the-book flying style, causing friction between them. At the end of Top Gun, though, Maverick’s rogue style saved Iceman’s life, solidifying their bond.
In Top Gun: Maverick, it appeared that not much had changed. Maverick, now a Navy captain, is called back to duty to train aspiring pilots for a dangerous mission. Maverick, losing his confidence over having to train Miles Teller’s Rooster, the son of Goose (Anthony Edwards), whose life he could not save when Rooster was a young boy, sought the counsel of Iceman. Sadly, Iceman had become ill and was largely unable to speak, but still offered wisdom to his old friend. The character played by Val Kilmer, who in real life had throat cancer and underwent a tracheostomy, was able to speak to Maverick in the movie via both a computer screen and AI.
This scene became both the most emotional and pivotal to tying Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick together and created a framework that built on the original film’s foundation. In Top Gun, Iceman pushed past Mitchell to become the best fighter pilot in the world, with Maverick’s unrestrained style to blame. It was the appearance of Iceman, in all his wisdom, made more poignant by his inability to speak, that both lent significance to Maverick’s predecessor and gave Maverick’s and Iceman’s relationship a richness that made both Top Gun and Maverick better movies.
It was also Iceman’s wise counsel that gave Maverick the strength to continue leading his risky mission in Top Gun: Maverick. The pressure of being reprimanded for disregarding the safety of his pilots in exchange for the success of the mission ate at Maverick. That, as well as the tension between himself and Rooster due to Maverick holding him back in flight school to keep him safe, caused Maverick enough stress to step down (or be removed) from the mission. Had it not been for the appearance and intervention of Iceman, with his simple and gentle words, Maverick would have returned to obscurity, never leading his pupils to success.
If Maverick and Iceman never met, Maverick would not have had the opportunities he did over the course of his career. Nor would he have had a strong confidant and friend in Top Gun: Maverick. Iceman, having progressed to the rank of admiral, provided both a friendly ear and source of support for Maverick throughout his career. Iceman’s wisdom in telling Maverick, “It’s time to let go,” in Top Gun: Maverick were simple words, but said much. They spoke to Maverick’s guilt about Goose, the fact that Iceman’s life would soon come to an end, and that aviation, in general, may no longer utilize human pilots. In one scene, in one sentence, Iceman gave Maverick all he needed to continue on and get the job done.