The highly anticipated sequel Top Gun: Maverick grossed $13.8million during its opening weekend in Australia.
The box office triumph comes more than two years after the film was originally slated to be released in cinemas, reports Mediaweek.
The theatrical release was pushed back due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced cinemas shut around the world.
Grand opening: The highly anticipated sequel Top Gun: Maverick, starring Tom Cruise, grossed $13.8million during its opening weekend in Australia, reports Mediaweek
Tom Cruise, 59, flies back into action as Captain Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell in the adrenaline-fuelled movie, sharing the screen with Jennifer Connelly and Miles Teller.
The story follows Maverick’s journey back to the U.S. Navy as he trains young fighter pilots and shows them the ropes.
The success of the blockbuster comes after it was revealed Tom had to be convinced by director Joseph Kosinski before signing on to do the film.
While shooting the latest Mission: Impossible movie, Joseph flew to Paris and pitched the plot to Tom in between set-ups.
Plot: Tom Cruise, 59, flies back into action as Captain Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell in the adrenaline-fuelled movie, sharing the screen with Jennifer Connelly and Miles Teller
The filmmaker told Polygon: ‘I basically had 30 minutes to pitch this film, which I didn’t realise when we were flying over.
‘But when I got there, I found that Tom really didn’t want to make another Top Gun.’
Joseph added: ‘It’s one of those moments as a director, you have one on every film, where you’re on the spot to make a case for why this movie should be made.’
Pitch: The success of the blockbuster comes after it was revealed Tom had to be convinced by director Joseph Kosinski before signing on to do the film
Paramount, alongside Joseph and Tom, wanted the film to focus on Maverick and strived for a character-driven story rather than a generic action movie.
Some fans thought it odd there was no mention of Kelly McGillis’s character, Charlie, from the original film, but Jennifer Connelly steps up decently as the love interest.
Top Gun: Maverick has scored box office records around the world with successful premiere turnouts in the U.S. and Britain.
Take my breath away: Fans thought it odd there was no mention of Kelly McGillis’s character from the original film, but Jennifer Connelly (pictured) steps up decently as the love interest
