Watch all full episodes from this series here ▶ TOM CRUISE | Icons Unearthed

Before Top Gun became a defining hit of the 1980s, it was rejected by Paramount, rewritten from scratch by screenwriters who realized the script had zero conflict, and nearly derailed when a new studio head issued one non-negotiable demand: cast Tom Cruise or there's no movie.

Cruise used that leverage to negotiate a landmark deal, including a share of the film's box office gross, before stepping into a production defined by chaos — Val Kilmer showing up reluctant and difficult, Kelly McGillis nearly fired after a rough dailies screening, and first-time director Tony Scott clashing constantly with the Navy and the studio over his relentless pursuit of the perfect shot, at one point writing a personal check to get an aircraft carrier turned for better lighting. Filming turned genuinely dangerous when Cruise's parachute filled with water during an ejection sequence and Navy divers had to cut him free before he drowned, and the production was rocked by the real-life death of stunt pilot Art Scholl during a flat-spin aerial shot — a tragedy the filmmakers honored by never using the footage. Despite scathing reviews at release, Top Gun became a massive box office hit and turned 23-year-old Tom Cruise into a bona fide action star.

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