Tom Cruise pranked Glen Powell by pretending his helicopter was going to crash

Tom Cruise and Glen Powell at the "Top Gun: Maverick" premiere in South Korea.

Han Myung-Gu/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures

• Glen Powell said Tom Cruise flew him to London after filming "Top Gun: Maverick" reshoots.
• Powell recalled how Cruise pranked him by pretending to crash his helicopter.
• Powell thought he was going to be "the unnamed guy" in a potential tragedy with Cruise.

Glen Powell said Tom Cruise pranked him by pretending that the helicopter he was flying was going to crash.

Powell was the breakout star of "Top Gun: Maverick" in 2022, where he played Lt. Jake "Hangman" Seresin opposite Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, and Cruise, who reprised his role from the first "Top Gun" movie as Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell.

Cruise famously has a pilot's license, and even flew some of the planes while filming "Top Gun: Maverick."

In a GQ interview published on Tuesday, Powell described how Cruise became his friend and mentor while filming "Top Gun." Powell recalled flying back to London in a helicopter with Cruise after working on reshoots at Pinewood Studios.

"Tom goes 'oh no, oh no,' and he starts dropping the helicopter over London," Powell said. "I was like, 'Am I about to be the unnamed guy that dies with Tom in a smoking hole in the middle of London?'"

While some of the "Top Gun: Maverick" cast members already had well-established careers, Powell was waiting for his to really take off. He recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he almost went broke waiting for the movie to release in theaters after it was delayed due to the pandemic.

Considering Cruise's own star power, he could have just opened doors for Powell while he waited for its release. Instead, Powell said Cruise pushed him to learn more about the industry and develop himself into a bonafide movie star.

Cruise even sent him to watch a "film school" movie he produced specifically for his friends. Powell recalled: "[Cruise] is like: 'Do we all agree that this is what a camera is? This is the difference between a film camera and a digital camera…'"

He added: "The funniest part is on flying. It was like he put together this entire flight school. So he would literally go 'OK, this is what a plane is. Here's how things fly. Here's how air pressure works.'"

At some point during their friendship, Cruise also advised Powell that audiences respond well to movies that tap into emotions and stories that everyone can relate to.

Referring to his next big blockbuster, "Twisters," Powell said: "You can look at a big disaster movie and go, 'Oh cool, the world loves disaster movies.' No, no. It's about who we are in the face of disaster, and what the human instinct is in reacting to it."

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