'Top Gun: Maverick': Tom Cruise Creates Stunt Training Program For His Co-Stars

Tom Cruise created a stunt training program for his "Top Gun: Maverick" co-stars to ensure the aerial combat stunts look realistic.

Director John Kosinski opened up about the training program and how "Top Gun," which was released in 1986, became a turning point in Cruise's career.

"Top Gun is the movie that took Tom from a promising young actor onto the road to superstar," Kosinski told Den of Geek Tuesday. "It’s just a great story and a great friendship between Maverick and Goose [Anthony Edwards]."

The 47-year-old director explained that the "notion of the wingman was created with Top Gun and has entered the vernacular now."

He further noted that Cruise created a training program for his co-stars to prepare for the plane’s dynamic forces as many pilots pass out due to lack of blood flow.

"We spent a year working with the Navy to get approvals to put six of these IMAX-quality cameras inside the cockpit," Kosinski explicated. "Four of them were facing toward the actors and two of them were facing forward, in addition to cameras mounted all over the exteriors of the aircraft."

The director believes the realistic aerial stunts make the audiences "feel the authenticity" of the shots.

"You can feel the strain, the G-forces, the speed, something you could never capture on a soundstage, no matter how much money or visual effects you threw at it," he added. "It was a tremendous amount of effort and work, but you just can’t fake the results. I can’t wait for people to see it."

"Top Gun: Maverick" is a sequel of "Top Gun." The action-adventure is slated to release on May 27, next year. The story is penned by Peter Craig and Justin Marks. The movie also stars Val Kilmer, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell, Jon Hamm and Monica Barbaro.

Besides "Top Gun: Maverick," the 59-year-old actor will be next seen in the seventh installment of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise. While "Mission: Impossible 7" is under post-production, the actor is currently filming "Mission: Impossible 8."

The actor will also feature in "Live Die Repeat and Repeat" and "Luna Park."