Dear Gossips,
Guess what’s opening, or re-opening, in theatres this Friday? Top Gun: Maverick is back for a two-week run. It’s holiday season and Paramount is saying that this film “truly epitomises the magic of the moviegoing experience” and that they’re doing this so that fans can “once again enjoy this cinematic spectacle as it was meant to be seen”.
As we all know, Tom Cruise insisted on holding Top Gun: Maverick for two years, refusing to allow it to be streamed, and his determination paid off. Maverick is Paramount’s top-grossing movie of all time, and the biggest movie of 2022. This is the movie that people went out to see, multiple times for some – that was messaging through the summer when Maverick was doing non-stop big business at theatres and it is still the message as Paramount makes a case for Maverick to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture.
How could the Academy ignore the movie that “truly epitomises the magic of the moviegoing experience”? The “moviegoing experience” is supposedly what the Oscar Academy is all about. Top Gun: Maverick returning to theatres is happening at the exact time that so many voters from so many award shows are putting in their selections for nomination. It’s a strategic move, part of Paramount’s campaign to secure that nomination. Interestingly enough, they’re doing it without a lot of public participation from the person most closely associated with this picture: Tom Cruise.
Tom may be working the campaign trail behind the scenes but out here on these campaign streets, he’s been a phantom. It’s the right move so far – this way he doesn’t seem too thirsty for it. Because, as we know, Tom never does things half-ass, he only operates on one gear, and there’s more than enough for him to bring in that signature intensity…if they need it. Seems like they don’t think they need him, at least not yet.
But if Top Gun: Maverick really does go deep into award season, he’ll have to emerge eventually. It’s just a matter of when and where. What happens if Maverick is nominated for a Golden Globe?
Brendan Fraser has already said that should he be nominated for a Globe, he would not attend given his history with the organisation and that he’s yet to receive an apology after the former head of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association sexually harassed him. But remember, when the Globes were called out for their f-ckery nearly two years ago, Tom sent back his statues, so he may just choose to stand in solidarity with Brendan and stick to his repudiation of the Globes and not show up.
The Globes are happening on January 10, 2023, a Tuesday as opposed to when they usually take place, on a Sunday. That’s five days before the Critics’ Choice Awards which have taken that Sunday spot. So curious to see what attendance will be like. A few months ago, word around the industry was that publicists were split over whether or not to send talent. But the fact that the Oscar races are so tight this year might be in the Globes’ favour. The Oscar nomination voting period starts just two days after the Globes and contenders may be advised to show as much face as they can.
Yours in gossip,
Lainey