‘Top Gun 3’ Is Searching for Its New Co-Pilot as a Surprising Director Shortlist Takes Shape
Paramount is officially on the hunt for someone to take the cockpit of ‘Top Gun 3’, and the names reportedly in the mix are raising plenty of eyebrows across the industry. According to The InSneider, Jon M. Chu, Joachim Rønning, and the directing duo of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are among the first candidates on an early consideration list to helm a third ‘Top Gun’ film at Paramount Pictures.
The vacancy at the top of the production comes down to a cascade of high-profile departures. Director Joseph Kosinski, who helmed ‘Maverick’, is not expected to return due to potential back-to-back shoots in 2026 and 2027, leaving the sequel as an open directing assignment. Kosinski’s recent films ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and ‘F1’ received highly positive reviews, box-office success, and a combined ten Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. Filling those shoes was never going to be straightforward.
Perhaps even more surprising than Kosinski’s exit is the reported absence of Christopher McQuarrie from the conversation. Notably absent from consideration is McQuarrie, a longtime Cruise collaborator who directed multiple ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies and contributed to ‘Maverick’. Sources say the decision appears to stem from the disappointing reception and box office performance of the recent two-part ‘Mission: Impossible’ finale, which reportedly led Cruise to hold McQuarrie responsible. McQuarrie is still believed to have contributed to Ehren Kruger’s script, but his involvement will likely end there.
The three names currently circling the project each bring distinct genre credentials to the table. Jon M. Chu is fresh off ‘Wicked’, while Joachim Rønning is attached to ‘TRON: Ares’ and previously directed ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales’, and Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah have worked on both ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’ and ‘Ms. Marvel’. Crucially, all of them represent talent that can direct a major studio project while also operating under strict creative oversight, which appears to be the lens Cruise and producer Jerry Bruckheimer are using to evaluate candidates.
What none of them share, however, is history with Tom Cruise himself. If any of the aforementioned directors land the film, it would be their first time working with Cruise, marking a notably different dynamic from the tight-knit collaborations that defined the making of ‘Top Gun: Maverick’. That film saw Cruise reprise his role alongside a mainly younger cast, earning $1.5 billion globally and helping revive movie-going after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cruise himself is reportedly somewhat hesitant about ‘Top Gun 3’, aware of how difficult it will be to surpass ‘Maverick’ both critically and commercially. At the same time, he is motivated to return. Development on the script has been ongoing, with Kruger brought in years ago and McQuarrie believed to have helped crack the story’s framework. There are a few other names in the mix beyond the trio revealed, though they remain a mystery for now.
With a franchise this iconic and a predecessor this beloved, whoever steps into the director’s chair will face one of the toughest assignments in Hollywood. Which of the reported candidates do you think has what it takes to bring ‘Top Gun 3’ in at altitude?
