Steven Spielberg Thinks Tom Cruise And Top Gun: Maverick May Have ‘Saved’ Theatrical Releases
On Monday, February 13, the Academy Awards hosted a luncheon for its 2023 nominees. It was a pretty typical set up with all the faces you would expect — but then something happened no one saw coming. Steven Spielberg approached “Top Gun: Maverick” star Tom Cruise, who had previously worked with the legendary director on “Minority Report” and “War of the Worlds,” and told him that his movie “saved” the theatrical release model.
In a video from the event that ended up going viral online, Spielberg told Cruise, “You saved Hollywood’s ass, and you might have saved theatrical distribution. Seriously, ‘Maverick’ might have saved the entire theatrical industry.” Cruise seemed to take the comment humbly and shook his head in response.
To be fair, Spielberg does have somewhat of a point about this. Whether or not you like “Top Gun: Maverick,” there’s no denying the power the film had during its release cycle. Something cinephiles and other folks who love movies and the industry have a tendency to forget is that the coastal areas of the U.S. — New York and Los Angeles, mostly — are full of folks who think of film as an art form and appreciate movies that strive to explore how film can be art. It’s the folks in the central U.S. (i.e. folks who are less likely to connect with such “arthouse” films) that are more likely to be all in for an epic Hollywood blockbuster like “Maverick.”
Here’s the thing: “Maverick” took both of these groups by storm.
Steven Spielberg Thinks Tom Cruise And Top Gun: Maverick May Have ‘Saved’ Theatrical Releases
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