Top Gun’s Creative Genius Elevates Captain America 4’s Epic Flight Sequences!
Danny Ramirez is an actor proficient in roles that require his character to soar through the skies. Last year, he shared the screen with Tom Cruise as Fanboy in “Top Gun: Maverick,” and more recently, in the 2025 lineup, he reappeared as Joaquin Torres, the latest Falcon, in “Captain America: Brave New World.” Interestingly, Christopher McQuarrie, who worked on the flight sequences for “Maverick,” played a part in making the aerial scenes of “Brave New World” look impressive.
During my initial discussion about “Captain America 4” being accessible for streaming via Disney+, I recalled Ramirez mentioning earlier this year that he had Tom Cruise in mind while filming the aerial scenes in the recent Marvel movie. He expanded on this thought during our chat, beginning with him stating:
During those aerial scenes, I didn’t feel pressure, but rather a sense of accountability to ensure that… when Top Gun was released, it significantly altered how people view air-to-air sequences. To suggest otherwise seems unfair, as it clearly excelled and established the benchmark for cinematic and IMAX flight scenes. Essentially, it introduced a visual vocabulary for such sequences.
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Due to the pandemic, there was a point where it was speculated that Top Gun: Maverick might be purchased by a streaming service. However, Tom Cruise and Paramount opted for a theatrical release instead, leading to the sequel grossing approximately $1.5 billion worldwide. Moreover, as Danny Ramirez mentioned, Maverick revolutionized cinematic flight scenes. In creating Captain America: Brave New World, he aimed to maintain the same level of precision and detail in the aerial sequences, despite the fact that most of the movie’s flying was done using Joaquin and Sam Wilson’s wing packs in this case.
Regarding Christopher McQuarrie, he collaborated on the script for “Top Gun: Maverick” with Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer, and is currently involved in the production of “Top Gun 3”. When it was time to design the key aerial sequence for “Captain America: Brave New World”, Danny Ramirez organized a meeting between director Julius Onah and McQuarrie. In his own words, this is how he described it:
One of our standout scenes, which we nicknamed the “Top Gun Sequence” on Celestial Island, sparked discussions between Julius Onah and Chris McQuarrie. This was because Chris played a significant role in Top Gun: Maverick as well. They shared their insights from the original Top Gun and applied them to this new world that Julius is creating, given its distinct differences. The physics remain the same, but there’s a unique twist. I refer to this as the Tom Cruise influence.
In the Celestial Island series, Sam and Joaquin found themselves in a race against time to disarm two American pilots who had been manipulated by Samuel Sterns into attacking the Japanese navy. Their actions and subsequent negotiations with the Japanese prevented a war from erupting due to the precious adamantium on the petrified Celestial Island. However, Joaquin suffered severe injuries during this mission, leading to the hospital scene in the finale of “Captain America: Brave New World.” Although I believe the flight sequence would have still been visually stunning without Christopher McQuarrie’s input, I’m pleased that Danny Ramirez managed to bring him on board as an extra layer of quality control.
You’ll find Ramirez reprising his role as Joaquin Torres when “Avengers: Doomsday” hits theaters on December 17, 2026, and I can hardly wait to watch him demonstrate his aerial acrobatics against an even more extraordinary Marvel Cinematic Universe backdrop. Meanwhile, don’t miss out on Christopher McQuarrie’s latest film, “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,” currently showing in theaters.
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2025-06-13 04:07