'Top Gun 2' Will Feature Goose’s Son And It Sounds Like A Riot

Top Gun 2, formally known as Top Gun: Maverick, has been in the pipeline for a while and we know that Tom Cruise's Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell is going to be back in action - sadly not the case for his wingman Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw who met his demise in the original.

However, we've now learnt that one of the characters in the sequel to the 80s flyboy classic, due out on 12 July 2019, will be Goose's son, Riot - to be played by an as yet unknown actor.

Let's remind ourselves of the brilliance of the original...

Credit: Paramount Pictures

The cast detail describes Riot as a 20-something guy with 'all-American good looks' who 'rode a football scholarship to an Ivy League degree'. Yeah, we've all slept through lectures, mate.

"He distrusts Maverick and dislikes what he stands for, although they have a lot of similarities," it continues. "Eventually, comes to respect Maverick and uses his techniques."

In the original 1986 film, Goose died after hitting his head when he and Maverick were forced to eject from their F-14 in a scene that still hurts. Every. Damn. Time.

It might be that Riot holds a grudge against Maverick for watching his dad die, although the character note suggests that will change as Riot is forced to eject in enemy territory and Maverick turns up to save the day.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Tom Cruise movie if he didn't get to cop off with someone. This time Maverick's love interest will come in the form of the character Penny Benjamin, a tough mum who 'has been around pilots all her life'.

Penny will be the sister of Robby 'Caspar' Benjamin, a 50-something no-BS Texan admiral who doesn't take kindly to Maverick's selfish flying style. There'll almost certainly be some insults flying between those two, so buckle up for banter.

Riot's main love interest will come in the form of Sugar, a cool crack-shot Latina pilot, while other characters expected to be part of 2019's Top Gun class include Ryan 'Kansas' Kendrick, a laid-back Southern type; the nerdy Tim 'Otter' Fletcher; the burly Kevin 'Shotgun' Garcia; and CMC Tobin 'Rowdy' Macrae, Maverick's long-suffering plane captain.

Very-long-awaited sequels have a knack for disappointment, but it looks like Top Gun: Maverick could well be amazing. "Woo! Rock and roll," as they say.

Words: Chris Ogden