The REAL Maverick! Tom Cruise's 'Top Gun' sequel shatters box office records with $300M opening

'Top Gun: Maverick' Ending Explained: Does Maverick sacrifice himself to save Rooster?

These numbers confirmed that the movie had the best Memorial Day opening of all time, beating the previous record-holder ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End’. The Disney movie earned $153 million during the Memorial Day weekend in 2007.

Apart from shattering records at the domestic box office, the Paramount movie made an extraordinary start in the international markets as well. The action flick earned $139.5 million from 62 markets, taking the movie’s worldwide total to over $300 million.

‘Maverick’ also gave Tom Cruise his biggest debut in a career that has spanned over four decades. It is also the first film by the actor that has earned more than $100 million in the first three days of release. Prior to this, 2005’s ‘War of the Worlds’, which raked in more than $64 million in its debut weekend, gave the actor his biggest domestic opening. Meanwhile, in 2018, ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ debuted with $61.2 million. Surprisingly, none of his other movies have managed to earn more than $60 million in their opening weekends.

The veteran actor thanked everyone who saw the movie on social media and gave it a record-breaking opening. He wrote, “Thank you to everyone who saw #TopGun: Maverick and helped make it a historic opening weekend.”

Helmed by Joseph Kosinski, the sequel takes place 33 years after the events of the original movie. The celebrated officer, Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Cruise), has purposely not taken promotions so that he can keep flying. However, things change when his long-time friend, Tom “Iceman” Kazansky (Val Kilmer), gives him the task of training new ‘Top Gun’ recruits for a dangerous mission. The movie sees Maverick teaching these young pilots how to do the unthinkable and also, trying to prove to Rooster (Miles Teller), son of Maverick’s best friend Goose, that he didn’t have anything to do with his father’s death.

The cast also includes Jennifer Connelly, Monica Barbaro, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Charles Parnell, Danny Ramirez, Lewis Pullman, Jay Ellis, and Greg Tarzan Davis in pivotal roles.

The movie was destined to be a blockbuster hit because of the glaring reviews it received before the theatrical release. The critics were shown the entire film at this year’s CinemaCon and the reactions were extraordinary, which made viewers really excited about the film.

In our review of the movie, we wrote that “Top Gun: Maverick” is a thrilling ride filled with nostalgia. It is a marvel of a film that comes only once in ten or twenty years. Meanwhile, the final act of the movie will take your breath away.

‘Top Gun: Maverick’ currently holds a rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes and received a rare “A+” CinemaScore.