Top Gun: Maverick
The story involves Maverick confronting his past while training a group of younger Top Gun graduates, including the son of his deceased best friend, for a dangerous mission.
Despite a massive budget of $170.0M, Top Gun: Maverick became a massive hit, earning $1488.7M worldwide—a remarkable 776% return. This commercial performance validated the ambitious narrative scope, proving that audiences embrace unique voice even at blockbuster scale.
1 Oscar. 111 wins & 235 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Top Gun: Maverick (2022) exemplifies deliberately positioned narrative design, characteristic of Joseph Kosinski's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 11 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 5.1, the film takes an unconventional approach to traditional narrative frameworks.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Pete "Maverick" Mitchell
Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw
Penny Benjamin
Jake "Hangman" Seresin
Natasha "Phoenix" Trace
Tom "Iceman" Kazansky
Beau "Cyclone" Simpson
Bernie "Hondo" Coleman
Main Cast & Characters
Pete "Maverick" Mitchell
Played by Tom Cruise
A legendary Navy pilot called back to Top Gun to train a new generation of aviators for a dangerous mission.
Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw
Played by Miles Teller
Goose's son and a talented but cautious pilot who harbors resentment toward Maverick for pulling his Naval Academy papers years ago.
Penny Benjamin
Played by Jennifer Connelly
A bar owner and Maverick's former flame who represents the life and stability he's avoided.
Jake "Hangman" Seresin
Played by Glen Powell
An arrogant, supremely confident pilot who sees himself as the best and clashes with Rooster over tactics and ego.
Natasha "Phoenix" Trace
Played by Monica Barbaro
A skilled, level-headed pilot and one of the few women in the program who serves as a steady presence among the competitive aviators.
Tom "Iceman" Kazansky
Played by Val Kilmer
Maverick's former rival turned Admiral and lifelong friend who protects Maverick's career despite institutional resistance.
Beau "Cyclone" Simpson
Played by Jon Hamm
A by-the-book Vice Admiral who doubts Maverick's methods and wants the mission done his way.
Bernie "Hondo" Coleman
Played by Bashir Salahuddin
Maverick's longtime crew chief and loyal friend who supports him through career turbulence.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Maverick pushes the experimental Darkstar aircraft to Mach 10, defying orders to save the program. He's still the rule-breaking test pilot living in the past, chasing speed and glory rather than moving forward in life.. The analysis reveals that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 14 minutes when Admiral Cain summons Maverick to Top Gun with a near-impossible mission: train pilots to destroy an unsanctioned uranium enrichment plant. The mission has a high probability of casualties.. At 10% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 29 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 22% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to Maverick proves the mission is possible by flying it himself, going where no instructor would go. He commits fully to training these pilots and accepts his role as teacher, crossing into Act 2., moving from reaction to action.
At 59 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 45% of the runtime—arriving early, accelerating into Act IIb complications. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat Rooster confronts Maverick, revealing that Maverick pulled Rooster's application to the Naval Academy, delaying his career by four years. The truth comes out: Maverick made a promise to Rooster's dying mother. False victory (training going well) becomes false defeat (relationship shattered). Stakes raised., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 83 minutes (63% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Iceman dies. Maverick loses his last protector and the one person who believed in him unconditionally. Death is literal. Maverick faces his darkest moment: Rooster hates him, Iceman is gone, and he's alone., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 90 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 68% of the runtime. Maverick volunteers to lead the mission himself, choosing to put himself at risk rather than send the pilots into danger. He synthesizes his past experience with his new role as protector. He tells Rooster, "I'm not sending you to your death" - breaking the cycle., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Top Gun: Maverick's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs a 15-point narrative structure framework that maps key story moments. By mapping Top Gun: Maverick against these established plot points, we can identify how Joseph Kosinski utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Top Gun: Maverick within the action genre.
Joseph Kosinski's Structural Approach
Among the 4 Joseph Kosinski films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.0, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Top Gun: Maverick takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Joseph Kosinski filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional action films include The Bad Guys, Puss in Boots and Venom: The Last Dance. For more Joseph Kosinski analyses, see Only the Brave, Oblivion and TRON: Legacy.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Maverick pushes the experimental Darkstar aircraft to Mach 10, defying orders to save the program. He's still the rule-breaking test pilot living in the past, chasing speed and glory rather than moving forward in life.
Theme
Penny Benjamin tells Maverick: "The navy didn't kick you out. You wouldn't let them in." The theme of letting go of the past and allowing others to get close is established.
Worldbuilding
Maverick's world as a test pilot living alone, visiting bars, reconnecting with Penny. We see his reluctance to advance in rank, his isolation, and the weight of Goose's death still haunting him.
Disruption
Admiral Cain summons Maverick to Top Gun with a near-impossible mission: train pilots to destroy an unsanctioned uranium enrichment plant. The mission has a high probability of casualties.
Resistance
Maverick resists becoming an instructor, faces his past when he meets Rooster (Goose's son who blames him), and learns mission parameters. Warlock and Cyclone debate whether Maverick is right for this. He struggles with whether he can face Rooster.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Maverick proves the mission is possible by flying it himself, going where no instructor would go. He commits fully to training these pilots and accepts his role as teacher, crossing into Act 2.
Mirror World
Maverick deepens his relationship with Penny, who represents the future and emotional connection he's avoided. She challenges him to stop running and be present. Their romance becomes the emotional B-story that teaches him to let people in.
Premise
The training sequences deliver the promise of the premise: aerial combat, rivalry between pilots, Maverick teaching unconventional tactics. Rooster and Maverick clash repeatedly. The pilots improve but the Rooster conflict intensifies.
Midpoint
Rooster confronts Maverick, revealing that Maverick pulled Rooster's application to the Naval Academy, delaying his career by four years. The truth comes out: Maverick made a promise to Rooster's dying mother. False victory (training going well) becomes false defeat (relationship shattered). Stakes raised.
Opposition
The mission timeline moves up. An F-18 gets shot down with Maverick watching, raising fear. Maverick must choose a team leader, torn between the best pilot (Rooster) and their broken relationship. Cyclone tries to take over. Pressure intensifies as launch approaches.
Collapse
Iceman dies. Maverick loses his last protector and the one person who believed in him unconditionally. Death is literal. Maverick faces his darkest moment: Rooster hates him, Iceman is gone, and he's alone.
Crisis
Maverick reads Iceman's final letter, which tells him to let go of the past and reconcile with Rooster. He sits with the weight of loss and must decide who he will be going forward.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Maverick volunteers to lead the mission himself, choosing to put himself at risk rather than send the pilots into danger. He synthesizes his past experience with his new role as protector. He tells Rooster, "I'm not sending you to your death" - breaking the cycle.
Synthesis
The mission execution: Maverick leads the strike, destroys the target, but gets shot down. Rooster disobeys orders to save him, and they escape together in an F-14. The finale resolves both external plot (mission success) and internal arc (Rooster and Maverick reconcile through action).
Transformation
Maverick works on his P-51 Mustang with Penny and her daughter watching - no longer alone, finally allowing people into his life. Rooster joins him, and they work on the plane together. The closing image mirrors the opening but shows transformation: connection instead of isolation.