Tom Cruise celebrates 40th anniversary of 'Top Gun' with special surprise

Tom Cruise is celebrating 40 years of Top Gun.

On Wednesday, May 13, the Hollywood action star and award-winning actor marked the 40th anniversary of the first Top Gun film, which was released in 1986.

“I’m excited to celebrate 40 years of Top Gun with you all. It’s so much fun to see these two films back on the big screen!” Cruise, 63, wrote on Instagram.

In honour of the milestone, Top Gun and its sequel, Top Gun: Maverick are both back in theatres for one week only.

Additionally, a third Top Gun film was confirmed to be in the works last month, with Cruise reprising his role.

Directed by Tony Scott and written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., the first Top Gun film earned Cruise his breakthrough role as LT Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, A U.S. Navy aviator assigned to Top Gun. It also starred Val Kilmer as LT Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, and Kelly McGillis as Charlotte, a Top Gun instructor and Maverick’s love interest.

The film went on to become a cult classic, and its Oscar-winning soundtrack has become one of the most popular film soundtracks to date.

36 years after the first film, Cruise reprised his role in Top Gun: Maverick in 2022, stepping back into the cockpit to train a new generation of pilots. The new faces included Miles Teller’s character Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, the son of Maverick’s late friend Goose. The critically acclaimed sequel became the highest-grossing film of Cruise’s career.