When Top Gun: Maverick was announced, almost no one thought about what they were going to do with the story. We were focused on Tom Cruise’s return as Maverick, a capable director in Joseph Kasinski, and the kinds of planes the pilots would be flying. An interesting plot was never necessary. Top Gun was successful because of many reasons, but it was undoubtedly a film of its times, reflective of Reagan’s 1980s. Bringing that story into 2022 and making it interesting enough to warrant a sequel was challenging to say the least. Writers insisted they would not make the same movie, just with modern effects and planes. Maverick’s return could not feel like an Ethan Hunt adventure. They had to have something different.

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Fortunately, what they did wasn’t what anyone expected. Adding a dramatic element in the form of a new character who could stare Maverick in the face and challenge the guy, that was risky enough. Add a great modern actor to the equation, and you get a stronger fire that keeps burning until the end with a script that manages to pay homage to the fallen, and the ones that must go on.

Rooster and Maverick: A Conflict Fueled By the Past

     Paramount Pictures

What they actually came up with was surprisingly engaging. They found a way to maintain Maverick (Cruise) as the center of the film, but whose conflict gets fueled by the presence of Goose’s son, Rooster. At first, Maverick is the same old rascal, but things get serious once Rooster enters the picture and makes Maverick swallow his pride.

Of course, Rooster doesn’t like the guy. He’s always lived under the impression that his father’s death was somehow caused or assisted by Maverick’s shenanigans. Their hostile relationship serves as a shadow for the real conflict at hand, one that’s got “war” written all over it.

Tom Cruise is good enough of an actor to keep us hooked. But Miles Teller as Rooster steals the show completely in every single scene. He’s responsible for keeping the conflict of Maverick’s past relevant in the evolution of the story. It’s quite obvious that Maverick sees him like a son, but that father-son dynamic never becomes saccharine and cheesy in Top Gun: Maverick.

The Value of Miles Teller at His Best

You can say all you want about Miles Teller, but the reality is he’s shown skills ever since facing J.K. Simmons’ horrific counterpart in Whiplash. He’s always kept a profile that’s interesting and quite selective in regard to offers. He doesn’t take everything, because he isn’t interested in everything. There’s versatility and specificity in his work that is undeniable.

In Top Gun: Maverick, his character calls for a rousing tension between him and the lead, but the conflict was born in something we can’t see. There’s hate in the bloodline of that relationship, and Teller does his best at showing the reasons why he’s supposed to be this explosive. It could be mistaken for cockiness in regard to the comparison between him and Maverick’s attitude in the first film. But we know he just plans to face his greatest fear in the form of an image he can’t fade away from his mind. To him, Maverick is responsible, and he’s not letting go of that.

This dramatic subplot is compelling enough to connect us from the very beginning. There’s an important counterbalance to Maverick’s current style. When the film could easily make everything about him, Rooster shows up to make heads turn towards his presence in a storyline that remains crucial to the franchise.

Understanding and Respecting Legacy

What’s most important about Rooster in Top Gun: Maverick, and the way he’s written into the story, is that he isn’t necessarily positioned to take over for Maverick’s character and Tom Cruise’s role in the franchise. It could have been a cheap and lazy script decision, but they decide to take the risks and maintain Maverick as the center of the story. Some of us imagined he would get killed, and that way the storyline would have followed the formula of these kinds of ’legacy sequels.'

But no, absolutely not. Top Gun: Maverick was not only a great confirmation of Tom Cruise as the ultimate movie star. It was also a well-written movie with engaging, beautifully acted supporting characters, who had arcs which made sense (and not only as the background for a fantastic action film). Do we dare say Top Gun: Maverick was actually better than its predecessor? If so, let’s put Miles Teller as Rooster as one of the main reasons. He may be responsible enough for a third entry in the franchise.

Top Gun: Maverick is available to rent or buy on VOD.