Top Gun: Maverick director reveals the special relationship that the late Val Kilmer and Tom Cruise shared 

Val Kilmer shared a special bond with his Top Gun co-star, Tom Cruise. The 1986 film brought the Maverick-Iceman rivalry to the screen, which became iconic because of Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer's memorable performances. Thirty-six years later, the two stars reunited on the screen in Top Gun: Maverick. Amid its adrenaline-fueled scenes, the two stars shared an emotional moment that became one of its highlights.

Much like the audiences, this moment was special to the Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski. So, in 2022, after the film's release, Kosinki reflected on his experience of crafting this scene.

"That’s one of those memories I’ll never forget, where you’ve got this actor in Val, someone who I admired through his whole career, and having him play one of his most iconic characters reuniting with one of Tom’s most iconic characters onscreen for the first time in 36 years."

Kosinski revealed this during his appearance on The Hollywood Reporter's Behind the Scenes podcast.

"Just to see how much respect they had for each other as actors and to see a friendship that has evolved over 36 years. They’re just two actors at the top of their game doing this really beautiful scene for the film that’s so important."

Kosinki's sequel hit theaters almost a year after the release of Val, a biographical documentary about Val Kilmer. It chronicled his life in Hollywood and his eventual, painful struggle with throat cancer.

On April 1, 2025, the star succumbed to pneumonia, which led to his tragic death.

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Top Gun: Maverick Director Reveals his working experience with Val Kilmer

Top Gun: Maverick offered the audience another chance to witness the Maverick-Iceman camaraderie on screen. When asked about shooting their reunion with Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer, Joseph Kosinski said,

"It was just a very emotional day on set. … It’s not often you get to do a scene with that much kind of emotional weight in a summer tentpole film."

According to box office reports, the first Top Gun was the highest-grossing film of 1986, and the sequel was the second-highest grossing of 2022. While the action scenes deserve praise, the rivalry makes up a significant part of their appeal. Kosinski reflected on the same.

"My favorite part of that [reunion] scene is the button at the end, that sense of competition is always there. Despite them being friends, there’s still that one-upmanship that exists between, I think, all these pilots, and I also think between Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer. I think that competition is what kind of made their relationship in the first film feel so electric and real, in that there was a bit of a rivalry there as young actors. So just that moment at the end, that hug and that bit of humor to me is kind of what really makes the scene work."