The closet bromance between Maverick and Iceman will continue in Top Gun 2, according to The Wrap, Val Kilmer is reprising his role as LT Tom “Iceman” Kazanski in the upcoming sequel, which is called Top Gun: Maverick.

Production on sequel began last week, 32 years after the original was released in theatres, and Tom Cruise is back again in the lead role. While the original film’s director Tony Scott was initially intending to direct, the project fell into limbo after Scott’s tragic suicide.

Although the plot is being kept under wraps, it’s been previously reported that Cruise’s character would now be a flight instructor and that the film would explore a world of drone technology, fifth-generation fighters and the end of the era of dog-fighting. Joseph Kosinski, who is directing the sequel, said that his approach would be “appropriate for the times we live in.”

Paramount hasn’t even confirmed any casting beyond Cruise, so Kilmer is the first name anyone has heard of joining the production. The actor most recently had a supporting role in last year’s underwhelming crime thriller The Snowman, but has been MIA for a bit owing to health issues, so it’s nice to see some good news relating to him.

Top Gun: Maverick is set to hit theaters on July 12, 2019.

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