Who? Well, quite.

Powell is probably best known for The Expendables 3 and the not-too-shappy Netflix war/anti-war movie Sand Castle starring Nicholas Hoult.

The move happens after Powell was in contention for – and lost – the part of Goose’s son, which will be played by Miles Teller.

Fans on Twitter were more than a little upset when news broke that he had been passed over for the role and Powell himself joked on Twitter after the news broke, “I’m taking down all the Tom Cruise posters in my bedroom. Maybe, I’ll leave one. Two for symmetry. Okay, the posters are staying,”

However, according to The Hollywood Reporter the testing process for Goose’s son had Powell and Teller fly to Tom Cruise’s home in Clearwater, Florida. Cruise was among producers so impressed with Powell they decided to beef up another role for him.

We also know that Jennifer Connelly is joining the cast, which also includes Val Kilmer and Cruise has already filmed some scenes in San Diego. Principle photograpnhy will resume in September.

The cast is gradually coming together, but it will be interesting to see if they intend to lure Meg Ryan back for the project. Or even Kelly McGillis for that matter.

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.”

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

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