Kelly McGillis wasn’t the first to be chosen for the role of Charlie. Originally, the director sought out Ally Sheedy but she turned it down. She didn’t think that the film would do well at all. She even said in an interview “Who wants to see Tom Cruise flying around in an airplane?”
Obviously, she couldn’t have been farther from the truth in her beliefs after seeing that the movie became a huge commercial success that immortalized the film’s characters and helped launch the careers of those involved in the project. After the film was released, Sheedy regretted her decision deeply and vowed to never again judge a role by herself.
Tom Cruise Saved Ray Bans
In 1929, US Army Air Corps Colonel John A. Macready approached John Bausch and Henry Lomb, Rochester-based medical equipment manufacturers, with his idea. He wanted to create aviation sunglasses that would reduce the distraction for pilots caused by the intense blue and white hues of the sky. He was concerned with how pilots' goggles would fog up at high altitudes in the sky. The first glasses known as 'Anti-Glare' were created in 1936. They had plastic frames and green lenses that could cut out the glare without obscuring vision.
In 1937, the design was improved with a metal frame and patented as the Ray-Ban Aviator, because the glasses "banned" sun rays and were designed for pilots. The sunglasses were popular at the beginning, but by the 70s and 80s, they diminished in popularity to the more popular disco-style sunglasses. After Tom Cruise wore a pair of Aviators in Top Gun, their sales rose by 40%. They once again were popular and have since been a huge name in sunglasses.
$10,000 an Hour
The shots while on the aircraft came with quite the hefty price tag to film. While aboard the USS Enterprise, there were several different types of aircraft including F-14 squadrons, VF-114 Aardvarks, and VF-213 Black Lions. However, all of these planes didn't come cheaply. Every hour of flight time with an F-14 costs Paramount $10,000. But, this was only a small part of what it cost to make the film. All in all, the film cost $15 million to produce, which today is the equivalent of $32 million. Considering the film's eventual revenue, that's quite the budget and totally worth the $10,000 per hour of flight time.
Because of the big investments that Paramount needed to make for "Top Gun", the US Government was reportedly interested in helping to subsidize the production costs. “The Pentagon worked hand-in-hand with the filmmakers reportedly charging Paramount Pictures just $1.8 million for the use of its warplanes and aircraft carriers,” The Washington Post wrote.
Producers Thought There Was ‘Too Much Flying’
Considering that the film was about the "Top Gun" program, it was obvious that a lot of the filming would take place inside fighter jets. Although this would be obvious to assume, it was one of the biggest complaints received from Paramount’s producers.
The producers were told by Paramount Studios that there was “Too much flying” in the film. The studios demanded some more time on the ground and a love scene was filmed in delay. Leave it to Hollywood to demand that a movie about fighter jets has too much flying.
Mixed Reviews
While "Top Gun" was a huge success and is now considered to be a classic film, this wasn't always the case. After it was first released, it got mixed reviews from both critics and audiences. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film only has a 54% although the audience gave it 83%.
Critic Roger Ebert gave the film 2.5 out of 4 stars and said “Movies like "Top Gun" are hard to review because the good parts are so good and the bad parts are so relentless. The dogfights are the best since Clint Eastwood’s electrifying ariel scenes in "Firefox". But look out for the scenes where the people talk to one another.”