Glen Powellis good, very good inTop Gun: Maverick.Powell’s character, Lt. Jake Seresin, who goes by the call sign Hangman, may not have quite as much screen time as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) or Miles Teller’s Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, but Hangman goes through a meaningful character arc, which results in him playing “savior” at the end of the film. And withTop Gun 3in the works, Hangman is expected to take flight again. However, this time around, Powell is much more comfortable given his experience with movies likeTop Gun,DevotionandThe Blue Angelsnow under his belt. Powell said in an interview withScreen Rant:
“I will say that when we madeTop Gun Maverick, that was a new shiny world for me.And nowI feel that it’s still filled with brilliance.It’s still shiny to me, but it’s also a group of people I call my family.So, I can go into this movie in a different way.Maybe just the fact that itfeels a little bit more lived in and a little more comfortablefor all of us will be really wonderful.”
Top Gun: Maverick
Tom Cruise returns as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, and keeps pushing the envelope as a seasoned aviator for the Navy in this sequel to the original Top Gun film.
After playing Hangman inTop Gun: Maverick(2022), Powell portrayed the role of Lt. Tom Hudner in the biographical war dramaDevotionlater that same year. And he recently served as a producer on the new IMAX documentaryThe Blue Angels,which opened in theaters just last weekend. Powell said in the same interview:
“There are a lot of very smart brains on [Top Gun 3] that really do not need my brain involved at all.They’re going to put a wonderful story together.But I will say thatafter making Top Gun and making Devotion, you really feel a sense of community in this Navy.When I look at my texts in the morning, the fact that a lot of ‘em are call signs is very cool,and the fact that I still call these pilots my friends is really wonderful.”
‘I’m Sure There Is a Jet Waiting for Me Sometime in the Future’
There are arguably plenty of reasons thatTop Gun: Mavericksurpasses the original film,and one is the performance of Glen Powell as the Iceman-esque aviator Hangman. Jake Seresin is set up as one of the program’s elite pilots and as a cocky, self-absorbed sort. But when Maverick (Cruise) and Rooster’s (Teller) lives are on the line, it’s the loyalty-driven Hangman who can’t sit idly by and ends up saving the duo.
And withTop Gun 3in the works, which will undoubtedly follow the further adventures of Pete Mitchell’s Maverick, it’s a safe bet moviegoers will see Seresin flying the friendly skies once more. And Powell is “sure” there’s a place set for him at the film’s family table in the “future.” Powell said in an interview withVarietyback in January:
“People looked at me like I knew what was going on.There is going to be some fun stuff being announced soon… but it was confidential to me.I talk to [Joseph] Kosinski, Cruise and Jerry [Bruckheimer] all the time.There is stuff happening and it sounds very exciting.I don’t know when I’ll be going back…I’m sure there is a jet waiting for me sometime in the future."
Robert Rodriguez Proudly Recalls 14-Year-Old Glen Powell’s Ambitions: ‘I’m Going All the Way’
Glen Powell’s career spans over 20 years, and Robert Rodriguez recounts the actor’s confidence and talent when he cast him in Spy Kids 3D.
Powell’s latest big-screen project came with him working behind the camera as a producer onThe Blue AngelsIMAX documentary, which made $1.4 million last weekend in just 227 theaters (perBox Office Mojo). And Powell was in the news recently for making the Texas Film Hall of Fame, at which hisprankster parents hilariously trolled the actor.
Check out Powell inHit Man,which opens in select cinemas on May 24 and drops June 7 onNetflix.
