The original Top Gun is one of the most quotable films from the 80s. Many lines still get referenced today in other media or common colloquialisms. For example, “Negative, Ghost Rider” was said by a random character in the tower control center. In the film, Tom Cruise’s character, Maverick, wants permission to land his jet.
Ghost Rider is his jet’s callsign. “Negative, Ghost Rider,” as a broad colloquialism, is a fancy way of saying no. Assuredly one has probably said or heard that in passing before. So, the question is, does Top Gun: Maverick have just as many memorable quotes? It’s time to find out. There will be spoilers for the film along with the original Top Gun as a reference point.
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Updated May 4, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: Top Gun is a certified classic that fans love to rewatch over and over. So, when reports came out that a sequel was coming out decades after the original movie’s release, a lot of people were skeptical and wondered if this movie would do justice to the film that came before it. Thankfully, when Top Gun: Maverick came out, fans were more than glad to see that this title did justice to the immense legacy of its predecessor, while setting the stage for more films that would be just as enthralling to watch. With Tom Cruise seemingly aging backward, no one can make the argument that he’s too old to star in more Top Gun films. Maverick is a highlight in his career and features some amazing writing, including excellent quotes that fans love hearing to this day.
13 “Maybe So, Sir. But Not Today.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
The best part about Top Gun: Maverick is how it acknowledges that dogfighting is quickly becoming a thing of the past, with automated drones being more than capable of taking over the role of fighter pilots in the near future. However, despite the world telling him otherwise, Maverick is as stubborn as can be. He continues to follow his passion instead of seeking promotions to live a comfortable life.
He’s also pretty smart-mouthed, leading to a tense exchange with Admiral Cain in which the latter gives him a stern warning that his kind is dying out. Maverick acknowledges his comment, but says in as few words as possible that there’s still a place in the military for him before heading to Top Gun and educating a bunch of new recruits.
12 “Alright, I Won’t Tell You That.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
The snappy one-liners in Top Gun: Maverick are pretty clever, and do a great job of adding some levity to a movie where stakes can get really high really fast. After getting stranded with the son of his deceased best friend, Maverick and Rooster must see past their animosities to team up and escape from a scenario where their death is imminent without corrective action.
While in the fighter jet, one of the engines blows up. Rooster notices this and laments the loss, frustrated as he says, “Please don’t tell me we lost an engine.” Maverick’s retort is pretty clever and completely in line with the composed demeanor he’s known for.
11 “This Is A Nice Moment, Let’s Not Ruin It.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
Iceman and Maverick had an excellent rivalry, pushing each other to new heights as they strove to become the best of the best. Despite some bitter moments, there’s no denying that both characters form a sense of mutual respect in the original movie, with the two meeting in a poignant scene in Top Gun: Maverick.
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After a rather wholesome conversation, Iceman does what he does best and adds some levity to their serious conversation by asking Maverick who the better fighter pilot was all along. As one would expect, Tom Cruise’s delivery is as smooth as can be as he playfully writes off this question.
10 “The Navy Calls It Fighter Weapons School. The Pilots Call It Top Gun.”
Opening Narration
The name Top Gun has a pretty interesting history of its own, with one of the best pilot schools in America picking a group of esteemed pilots to take this course and make a name for themselves. This school is unofficially called Top Gun by the pilots, with a bunch of competitive pilots putting it all on the line to secure the highest rank in this course and come out with flying colors. Of course, in such a landscape, there are times when tempers flare and rivalries form… but most people would argue that this is precisely what makes Top Gun compelling as both a film and an academy.
This Top Gun quote technically isn’t a piece of spoken dialogue but is rather a part of the iconic narration that appears at the start of both films. It’s a simple yet effective way to hammer in the importance of Top Gun early on, establishing the allure of this academy and why so many fighter pilots try their hardest to get into this course.
9 “Mach 10? Let’s Give Them Mach 10.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
Top Gun: Maverick starts out with the revelation that Pete “Maverick” Mitchell hasn’t progressed past the rank of Captain through a combination of his relentless insubordination and his insistence to remain at the ground level and actually fly aircraft instead of ordering other people to do the same. His rebellious nature can be seen in the very first flight scene in the movie, where he decides to show his supervisor who’s boss by flying a prototype aircraft at Mach 10 instead of the Mach 9 that was decided beforehand.
This proves to be a success, but it is clear that Maverick’s thrill for danger and speed transcended his better judgment at this point. As a result, he tried to push this prototype even further, causing it to crash and for him to get into trouble. If not for the intervention of his friend and rival Admiral Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, he would’ve been stuck at a boring desk role for the foreseeable future.
8 “You Got Some Balls, Stick Jockey.”
Admiral Cain
This is something Admiral Cain says to Maverick as Maverick is trying to break Mach 10 even further. Ed Harris was the perfect actor to cast in this small role. He can deliver a line like that like no other. Cain’s whole plan is to scrap Maverick’s stealth jet program.
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He doesn’t want to endanger any more men during air fights. That’s a noble goal in pursuit of a robotic future but Maverick is having none of that in Top Gun: Maverick.
7 “Earth.”
The Kid At The Diner
Maverick pushes his boundaries too far as he did in Top Gun, and crash lands his experimental jet far off base. Where is never explained in Top Gun: Maverick. Because the Gs were so intense in that prototype jet, Maverick practically had to wear a spacesuit just to survive the force.
That’s why everyone stops dead in their tracks when Maverick walks into a local diner, stunned and thirsty. He asks where he is and a random little kid responds with, “Earth.” In this little kid’s head, Maverick is from space.
6 “See You In The Afterlife, Bagman.”
Robert ‘Bob’ Floyd
Bob is the only officer in Top Gun: Maverick that doesn’t get a callsign. This is played off as a joke when Hangman asks him what his callsign is. “Bob” is his response.
He’s made fun of in that awkward moment but Bob gets the upper hand later on in training. Hangman’s whole thing is that he leaves allies out to dry. Bob and Phoenix go down hypothetically in training because of Hangman. When Maverick is about to close in on Hangman next, he pleads for help from Bob and Phoenix. As they are dead, Bob had that great Bagman line in response. It’s always great when smug characters in films get their comeuppance.
5 “It’s Time To Let Go.”
Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky
Val Kilmer has very few lines in Top Gun: Maverick. For viewers confused, it’s not because he was too busy to shoot more scenes. Kilmer had throat cancer, leaving him unable to speak for long which is why he has primarily retired from acting.
That’s why he communicates through text mostly throughout this sequel. Whether he voiced this line or not is unimportant. It’s still a powerful moment wherein Iceman is trying to help Maverick get over the death of Goose. Maverick’s response, “I don’t know how” is just as powerful.
4 “It’s The Only One I Got.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
Maverick says this line a few times throughout Top Gun: Maverick. The best one in the movie is when Maverick is about to head out on the final mission. Hondo is worried that Maverick is going out on a suicide run. He can see it on his face which is why Hondo is so concerned.
Maverick reassuring Hondo with that line may not have been enough at the moment. However, when Maverick returns with Rooster at the end, it seems like all is forgiven. Tom Cruise does his best throughout the film to convey a lot of emotion through his small facial ticks. He’s a pro at it.
3 “You Told Me Not To Think.”
Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw
This is another line that is repeated throughout Top Gun: Maverick. Maverick says this to Rooster and his other students while training them back at the Naval Academy. He wants his students to get over their fears, especially Rooster.
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Rooster does indeed get over his hang-ups. He even goes against orders to save Maverick’s life on the final mission and crashes. At first, Maverick is mad at Rooster for coming back until Rooster throws that line back in Maverick’s face about not thinking. It’s one of those “got him” moments that was both funny and touching.
2 “No Idea What They’re Saying.”
Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell
The last 45 minutes of Top Gun: Maverick is action-packed with plenty of high-intensity fights. There are also a lot of great jokes like when Rooster and Maverick start working together as a duo. Once they get the old F-14 jet on the enemy base up and running, they escape seemingly undetected.
Two enemy jets eventually catch up to them and start hand signaling to Rooster and Maverick. When Rooster asks what they are saying, Maverick smiles and admits he has no idea what is going on. It’s another one of those perfect Tom Cruise moments. It’s hard not to smile when he’s smiling.
1 “It’s Not The Plane, It’s The Pilot.”
Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw
Rooster once again has to get Maverick out of his head. In an F-14, Maverick knows that they are technically outgunned by the enemy jets. Logically, the duo should be finished. However, Rooster reminds Maverick that pilots make all the difference, even in inferior machines.
This is another thing that Maverick says to multiple people throughout Top Gun: Maverick. After he hears those words again, Maverick snaps out of his stupor and delivers one heck of an action-packed counterattack.
Top Gun: Maverick
- Release Date
- May 27, 2022
- Director
- Joseph Kosinski
- Runtime
- 130 minutes
