These aircraft have been confirmed by Paramount Pictures. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell’s first name was Evan in early scripts of the film. It was later changed to Pete as an homage to Pete Pettigrew, who worked on the film.A new featurette for the upcoming Top Gun: Maverick takes fans inside a grueling three-month pilot training module orchestrated by star Tom Cruise to ensure a high degree of realism for the film. Maverick is a sequel to 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, directed by the late Tony Scott.In the nearly three-minute-long video, Cruise and his co-stars talk about the rewarding experience of flying in fighter jets, and how it prepared them for the movie. Cruise, who has a reputation for being rather hands-on on his sets, said that capturing the aerial footage practically was a top priority.