Ah, Tony Scott. He was one of the best directors in the history of film, the best of his work including "The Hunger," "Days of Thunder," and, definitely, his best yet, "Top Gun." Too bad he had to pass away August of last year.
Tony was planning to make a sequel for "Top Gun." The stink of it is it would feature UAV drones in combat and Maverick as a TOPGUN instructor/test pilot, the former concept erring from the true essence of the first movie.
Well, guess what, people? I am here to try and make things right for the fans of the movie (including myself). If I succeed on sending the word out, fine. If I don't, it's still good.
Here is my take on a possible remake/spinoff/spoof/sequel:
==THE PLOT==
It is the year 2007 (ALTERNATE UNIVERSE!). One year has passed since Saddam Hussein was overthrown from his dictatorial rule of Iraq. Now, the Americans have turned their attention towards North Korea, a communist country in the Far East that is willing to invade its southern neighbors South Korea and Japan at any given moment. To get ready for a possible threat of invasion of southern Asia, the American military mobilizes its forward-deployed Pacific forces, which includes the Navy’s best strike fighter squadron, the “Fighting Regents,” to participate in a bilateral aerial combat exercise called “Noble Dragon” with the Japanese,and South Korean Air Force pilots in a remote air base in Southern Japan. Among the pilots in the “Regents” squadron is a man named Kotaro Tsurugi, callsign “Banzai,” a young naval aviator who shot down 3 renegade Iraqi fighter pilots during the 2nd Gulf War (though never deemed an ace since he had to score at least 5; he had less than that sadly) and flew as a TOPGUN adversary tactics trainer after the conflict. Upon news of his squadron being invited to participate in “Noble Dragon,” Kotaro is then assigned to lead the squadron as he returns to his homeland for a short while and participates in the combat exercise, which hosted by a fighter wing of the Japanese Air Defense Force in Tsuiki Air Base.
==THE SUBPLOTS==
1. Kotaro and Kate have been the best of friends (almost like childhood sweethearts) for a long time as the 2 flew combat missions in the skies of Iraq (Kotaro-Pilot, Kate-RIO) and graduated from TOPGUN together before going their separate ways for a little while (with Kotaro flying as an adversary pilot for the Pacific Strike Fighter Weapons School and Kate crosstraining to become a minted naval aviator in full control of aircraft instead of just a backseat navigator). Upon arrival to Tsuiki Air Base for the "Noble Dragon" air combat exercise, the two have a lot to catch up as they reunite.
NOTE: I thought the relationship between Maverick and Charlie was monotonous for the most part. So, I added a little more background for Banzai and WildKat to show a much deeper character development as they are 2 of the major characters for the proposed sequel)
2. Kotaro has to deal with what was behind his father's death as he returns to Japan and the flashbacks he has about his combat sorties in Operation Iraqi Freedom
==Proposals for setup of the story==
* Among all 11 pilots of the "Regents" squadron, only 6 are full-fledged TOPGUN graduates and qualified to teach air combat/ground strike tactics.
They are: Skipper Hackford, Banzai, WildKat, Tex, Plug, and Mac. Banzai is also certified as an Adversary tactics emulator
*Filming locations: Tsuiki Air Base, Japan; NAS Lemoore, California; NAS Fallon, Nevada; Nellis AFB, Nevada; Pacific Ocean; NAS Key West, Florida; Yokota Air Base, Japan; Kadena Air Base, Japan; Andersen Air Force Base, Guam; MCAS Miramar, San Diego, California
*Sporting event instead of a volleyball tournament dominated by half-naked guys: a friendly kickboxing tournament or baseball game
*The hero's bar serenade song to his lady love: "Will You Still Love Me?" by Chicago, sang by our hero himself as he plays either a bass/electric guitar on stage
==THE CAST==
Jyoji Shibue/Shun Oguri - LT Kotaro "Buckaroo Banzai" Tsurugi (aka the new "Maverick")
Before anyone goes asking, "Why did you put an Asian dude as the new 'Maverick'?," I'd like to state that it would be about time to put another Asian character as the lead in yet another movie (as in the footsteps of Ken Leung in "Shanghai Kiss"). In this case, it would either be Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask/Tuxedo Kamen from the live-action "Sailor Moon" series or Detective Conan Edogawa from the live-action "Detective Conan" series.
NOTE: I also have in mind either of 2 voice actors for the American dubbing of either Shibby or Guri's voice - Yuri Lowenthal (who's already had 3 "Ace Combat" game voice-overs under his belt) or Chris Patton (Shin Kazama's voice dub in "Area 88")
Natalie Portman/Kristin Kreuk/Anne Hathaway as LT Katherine "WildKat" Wheeler (aka next-generation Charlie)
As for the protagonist's love interest, I just pictured a hot brunette. Besides possessing traits reminiscent of Kelly McGillis (that blonde girl), "WildKat" is also an aviator, dual-qualified as a pilot and backseater with a hint of rebelliousness, thereby, making her a bit of the female version of "Maverick."
For the actress, I present a possibility of choices: Padme Amidalla from "Star Wars," Chun-Li from "Street Fighter: the Legend of Chun-Li," or Selena Kyle aka Catwoman from "The Dark Knight Rises."
Josh Hutcherson as LTJG Bryan "Ski" Kowalski (aka next-gen Cougar)
Freshly new, young actor Josh Hutcherson has already hit a mark on fame by starring in the "Red Dawn" remake, "Zathura," and "Journey to the Center of the Earth." His rather young physique makes him the most suitable for the role of "Ski," aka Cougar V.2.
Zachery Ty Bryan as LT George "Blitzkrieg" Herring (aka next-gen Goose)
For a reincarnation of Goose, I picture a navigator with a heavy dose of Southern pride (i.e. heavy Texan twang in his voice). When it comes to appearance, the first thing that came in my mind is Zach T. Bryan, the eldest Taylor kid from "Home Improvement" who went on to star in movies such as "Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift."
Chris Evans as LT Michelangelo "Mike"/"Cracker" Graham (aka next-gen Iceman)
What would a "Top Gun" remake be without a spiky-haired rival that complements the tenacity of the protagonist? Sure enough, Chris aka Johnny Storm in "Fantastic Four" and Steve "Captain America" Rogers would be the man for the part.
Charlie Day as LT Darren "Plug" Henderson (aka next-gen Slider)
For Slider V.2, I picture somebody who is the 2nd oldest and one of the few mature aviators in the squadron with a heavy sense of humor. So, I picked Charlie Day of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" fame.
Josh Peck as LT Stephen "Mac" McGowan (aka next-gen Merlin)
For a substitute to Tim Robbins's character, I picked Josh Peck of "Drake and Josh" and "Red Dawn" remake fame. To be honest, I was not exactly sure at first, but I just went ahead and put him on the list.
Joel Edgerton as CDR Bradley "Bullseye" Hackford (aka next-gen Viper)
Joel has recently starred in "Warrior," "Zero Dark Thirty," and coming up, "The Great Gatsby," but what drove me to pick him for the role of a grouchy squadron commander is his part as Sam Carter, the helicopter pilot in "The Thing."
And there you have it for the remake of "Top Gun." Please feel free to give out any suggestions. Thank you.