Ridley Scott Turned Down ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Because He “Didn’t Want To Follow” His Late Brother

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One of the best aspects of the classic “Top Gun” is the visual style of the movie, which is thanks to legendary filmmaker Tony Scott. Sadly, Scott passed away well before they made “Top Gun: Maverick.” But according to Tony Scott’s famous directing brother, Ridley, the folks behind ‘Maverick’ were interested in keeping it in the family.

Speaking in a recent interview with THR, where he talked about his career and the upcoming film, “Gladiator II,” Ridley Scott also talked about an offer he received to direct “Top Gun: Maverick.” According to the filmmaker, they approached him as a potential director of the blockbuster film, but Ridley turned it down because he didn’t want to follow his brother.

“They asked me to it and I said, ‘I don’t want to follow my brother,’” said Scott. “Tony was always interested in today. A lot of my stuff is either historic, fantasy or science fiction. Tony didn’t like fantasy — things like ‘Alien’ or ‘Blade Runner’ or ‘Legend.’”

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He’s not wrong with his quick analysis of Tony Scott’s work. In addition to “Top Gun,” the filmmaker also directed films such as “Beverly Hills Cop II,” “Days of Thunder,” “The Last Boy Scout,” “Crimson Tide,” and “True Romance.” All of those films were firmly set in the present day. As for Ridley, his films definitely tend to lean more into genre.

It does make you wonder what exactly a Ridley Scott version of “Top Gun: Maverick” would look like. The film was eventually directed by Joseph Kosinski, someone who has worked with Tom Cruise in the past. ‘Maverick’ would go on to become an absolutely massive film, earning nearly $1.5 billion at the box office.

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