The long-awaited film is in theaters May 27.
It's almost time to return to the skies in Top Gun: Maverick! The long-awaited follow-up film shared a brand-new trailer on Tuesday, giving fans a look at Tom Cruise's return to his iconic role as Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell -- and this time, he's a teacher.
But he's not calling himself that. "Good morning, aviators," Maverick tells his group of TOPGUN graduates, who are training for a specialized mission. "This is your captain speaking."
Van Kilmer also returns in the film, as Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, alongside franchise newcomers Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell and Miles Teller. It is Teller's character "Rooster" who offers another callback to the original film, as he plays the son of Maverick’s late friend Nick Bradshaw -- or as fans knew him, "Goose."
"My dad believed in you," Rooster tells Maverick in the trailer. "I'm not gonna make the same mistake."
ET spoke with producer Jerry Bruckheimer last year, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the original Top Gun, and the iconic filmmaker raved about seeing Cruise return to his beloved role in Maverick.
"He's just got the magic," Bruckheimer marveled of the A-lister. "You know what's so great about Tom? He's the hardest working guy. He's an amazing student who loves cinema, loves telling stories, does the stunts himself. He is the hardest working actor I've ever worked with. And maybe the hardest working individual I've ever worked with."
Cruise also used his flying expertise to make sure Top Gun: Maverick was as realistic as possible. This included getting his new co-stars up to speed on flight training, and used to the g-forces of an F-18.
"Tom kept saying this over and over again: 'This has to be perfect we really have to work really really hard to make this the best it can be,'" Bruckheimer shared. "It took us 35 years to show how good we are."
See more in the video below. Top Gun: Maverick is in theaters May 27.
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