When it came to Glen Powell’s portrayal in “Top Gun: Maverick,” Tom Cruise had some crucial advise for him: act like a jerk.
Powell, who portrayed the conceited Navy pilot Jake “Hangman” Seresin in the film, disclosed that his co-star advised him to stop worrying about being loved.
“Sometimes it is possible to slip into the trap of seeking approval on camera. And in a movie like this, where you know there will be many eyes on it, you don’t want to be Draco Malfoy,” Powell, 34, said Hudson, 43, as part of Variety’s Actors on Actors series.
“However, Tom gave me the following advice: ‘In order for the finale to work, you must fully commit to it. Everyone else in the film doubts their own abilities. You are the only man who does not question it. Therefore, if you apologize in any way, the movie will not succeed. Lean into the douchebaggery of the situation,’ he said.
In “Top Gun: Maverick,” Glen Powell portrayed the egotistical Navy pilot Jake “Hangman” Seresin.
Gary Garfield
Powell quipped that he appears to be typecast as a jerk.
“I am consistently cast as a jerk. Even the scene I had with [Oliver Hudson, Kate’s brother] in ‘Scream Queens’ in which I was a jerk,” he joked.
The “Hidden Figures” actor, who first auditioned for the role of Miles Teller’s Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, said that Cruise, 60, persuaded him to take on yet another Navy aviation film this year.
Tom Cruise and Glen Powell attend the Korea Red Carpet for “Top Gun: Maverick” on June 19, 2022 at Lotte World in Seoul, South Korea.
Powell co-starred in “Devotion,” a film based on the true story of Jesse Leroy Brown (Jonathan Majors), the Navy’s first Black aviator, in addition to “Top Gun.”
“When I was passed up for the Rooster part, I said Tom, ‘Hey, I don’t have this part, but I’ve been producing a naval aviation film. Perhaps that is precisely what I will do,’” the actor recalled. “He persuaded me that there is space for two. “I’m ecstatic that everything I learnt on ‘Top Gun’ was incorporated into ‘Devotion.’”
During filming of the blockbuster sequel to “Top Gun,” the renowned actor also provided Powell with other assistance.
Powell openly thanked Cruise on Instagram following his first solo flight for the gift of flying lessons he received from Cruise in 2020.
“Tom gave me an iPad for Christmas with my flight school downloaded and paid for. And yesterday, after several months of flying, studying, and examinations… “I am genuine,” he wrote at the time.
»Tom Cruise instructed Glen Powell to accept the “douchebaggery” of “Top Gun: Maverick.”«