New Top Gun: Maverick Footage Is The Rooster Performance You Didn't Know You Needed
"Top Gun: Maverick" is the gift that just keeps on giving. Not only is the film Tom Cruise's highest-grossing project domestically (via Deadline), but the unapologetically patriotic movie also broke the record for most tickets sold during Memorial Day weekend, bringing in a respectable $156 million. The sequel's financial success is all the more justified considering how well received the film has been. Viewers across the world are clearly responding positively to the second "Top Gun" outing, with "Maverick" holding strong at an audience score of 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. And as readers can tell by the film's box office receipts, those happy viewers showed up in droves.
Nearly four decades in the making, "Maverick" managed to one-up the original film through breathtaking action sequences, a killer third act, and an improved storyline. Particular kudos must be given to Miles Teller, who plays Rooster, the son of the late Goose (Anthony Edwards), a character in the original film — in its review of the sequel, /Film called Teller's work some of his best to date.
While the future of the "Top Gun" franchise is unclear, Teller has expressed interest in developing a second sequel that focuses on his character. And though Paramount Pictures may be keeping tight-lipped on that front, the studio has released never-before-seen footage of the hotshot pilot that will have "Top Gun" fans jumping with joy.
Rooster puts on a show with his full Great Balls of Fire performance
In "Top Gun: Maverick," after Maverick (Tom Cruise) arrives at the naval base, he heads to the local watering hole for a drink. There, he sees the next generation of fighter pilots and Navy personnel interacting with one another, including Rooster, who sits down at the piano to perform Jerry Lee Lewis' "Great Balls of Fire."
Fans of the original "Top Gun" will recognize this scene as a nod to when Goose and Maverick playfully sing the song, with a young Rooster gleefully watching, but in "Maverick," Rooster's rendition of the track serves as a moment for Cruise's war hero to reminisce about the past. While the brief but heavy scene was crucial to Maverick's character arc, with the focus mostly on him processing his emotions and relationship with Goose, some might have been disappointed that the camera didn't focus on Rooster's infectious performance instead.
Thanks to the new footage, however, audiences can finally see Rooster and the rest of the patrons at the bar singing the song, with no sign of Maverick wallowing in his regret. Instead, Rooster can be seen ending his performance with a dance as everyone chants his name.