The Top Gun cast contains some of the biggest stars of the 1980s, including a few who remain on the A-list many decades later. The Tony Scott-helmed action drama revolves around LT Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a renegade fighter pilot who butts heads with his instructors at the titular U.S. Navy program. Maverick is surrounded by his fellow pilots, his instructors, and the military bureaucrats who try and fail to keep him in line. The Top Gun cast includes contemporary icons like Kelly McGillis and world-renowned movie stars whose fame has lasted, like Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer.
While it received mixed reviews upon its initial release, Top Gun struck a chord with audiences and became a huge box office smash. Top Gun was the biggest box office hit of 1986 and has since been reappraised as an action movie classic, even being selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. A big part of Top Gun’s crowd-pleasing appeal is the committed work of its actors. From its major stars to its scene-stealing supporting players, the Top Gun cast has remained iconic and revered in the decades that followed.
Tom Cruise As LT Pete “Maverick” Mitchell
Tom Cruise leads the Top Gun cast as LT Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, the roguish, charismatic U.S. Navy pilot at the center of the movie. Cruise later reprised the role in the sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. Cruise got his breakout with the classic 1980s comedy Risky Business and went on to impress critics with his dramatic abilities in The Color of Money, Rain Man, and Born on the Fourth of July. The latter earned Cruise an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He is best known for starring as IMF agent Ethan Hunt in the long-running Mission: Impossible franchise.
Kelly McGillis As Charlie Blackwood
Maverick’s love interest, Top Gun instructor Charlie Blackwood, is played by Kelly McGillis. Outsider her role in the Top Gun cast, the actress is best known for playing Rachel Lapp, the Amish widow who hides Harrison Ford’s Detective John Book when he’s targeted by crooked cops in the acclaimed thriller Witness, which earned her Golden Globe and BAFTA Film Award nominations. She also played Kathryn Murphy, the attorney who helps Jodie Foster’s Sarah Tobias prosecute her attackers in The Accused. Later in her career, McGillis took roles in horror films like Stake Land, The Innkeepers, and We Are What We Are.
Anthony Edwards As LTJG Nick “Goose” Bradshaw
Anthony Edwards appears in the Top Gun cast as LTJG Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, Maverick’s radar intercept officer and best friend. Edwards is most renowned for playing the now-deceased Dr. Mark Greene in ER, which earned him a Golden Globe, six SAG Awards, and four consecutive Emmy nominations. He also played Inspector William Armstrong in Zodiac and the recurring role of Mike Monroe in Northern Exposure. In 2022, Edwards appeared in two of the year’s most widely praised limited series; he played Alan Reed in Inventing Anna and Bruce Dunlevie in WeCrashed.
Val Kilmer As LT Tom “Iceman” Kazansky
Top Gun student LT Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, Maverick’s rival and later his wingman, is played by Val Kilmer. The actor reprised the role for a brief but poignant cameo appearance in Top Gun: Maverick. Kilmer has starred in a wide variety of movies, from the absurdist spoof Top Secret! to the action-packed neo-noir epic Heat to the fantasy adventure Willow. He earned widespread acclaim for his portrayal of Jim Morrison in the music biopic The Doors. He took over as Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever after Michael Keaton quit the Batman role, and he played Doc Holliday opposite Kurt Russell’s Wyatt Earp in Tombstone.
Tom Skerritt As CDR Mike “Viper” Metcalf
Tom Skerritt appears in the Top Gun cast as CDR Mike “Viper” Metcalf, Maverick’s commanding officer and instructor at Top Gun. Viper served alongside Maverick’s father, Duke Mitchell, in the Vietnam War. Skerritt was already an established star before taking the role of Viper in Top Gun. He’d played Duke Forrest in Robert Altman’s original movie version of M*A*S*H, and Dallas, the captain of the doomed space freighter Nostromo, in Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror masterpiece Alien. He went on to play Drum Eatenton in Herbert Ross’s tearjerking adaptation of Steel Magnolias.
Meg Ryan As Carole Bradshaw
Carole Bradshaw, Goose’s loving wife and mother of his son, Bradley, is played by Meg Ryan. The actress got her start on the soap opera As the World Turns before appearing in Top Gun. She rose to fame with her leading role opposite Billy Crystal in the seminal romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally, for which she scored a Golden Globe nomination. She starred alongside her Top Gun co-star Val Kilmer in The Doors and opposite Hugh Jackman in Kate & Leopold. She also famously teamed up with frequent collaborators Tom Hanks and Nora Ephron for the classic romcoms Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail.
Top Gun Supporting Cast & Characters
Michael Ironside as LCDR Rick “Jester” Heatherly: LCDR Rick “Jester” Heatherly, a Naval aviator and Top Gun instructor, is played by Michael Ironside. The actor is best known for playing villainous roles like Darryl Revok in Scanners and Agent Richter in Total Recall. But he has also played sympathetic roles, like Jester in Top Gun and teacher-turned-squad leader Jean Rasczak in Starship Troopers.
James Tolkan as CDR Tom “Stinger” Jardian: The commander of the USS Enterprise Carrier Air Group, CDR Tom “Stinger” Jardian, is played by James Tolkan. The actor is most famous for his roles as Marty McFly’s authoritarian teacher Mr. Strickland and his Western-era ancestor Marshal Strickland in the Back to the Future trilogy.
John Stockwell as LT Bill “Cougar” Cortell: John Stockwell appears in the Top Gun cast as LT Bill “Cougar” Cortell, Maverick’s former wingman. Stockwell previously played Arnie’s best friend, Dennis Guilder, in the Stephen King adaptation Christine. He later became a director with such films as the teen drama Crazy/Beautiful and the action thriller Into the Blue.
Tim Robbins as LTJG Sam “Merlin” Wells: LTJG Sam “Merlin” Wells, Cougar’s radar intercept officer — and later Maverick’s during the climactic set-piece — is played by Tim Robbins. The actor went on to become a star in his own right, playing lead roles like Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption and Dave Boyle in Mystic River, which earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Clarence Gilyard as LTJG Marcus “Sundown” Williams: LTJG Marcus “Sundown” Williams, Chipper’s radar intercept officer — and later Maverick’s near the end of training — is played by Clarence Gilyard in Top Gun. Gilyard also played private investigator Conrad McMasters in Matlock, Walker’s partner Jimmy Trivette in Walker, Texas Ranger, and Hans Gruber’s computer expert Theo in Die Hard.