Tom-Cruise-in-Top-GunJerry Bruckheimer is a man of many credits and many sequels, and it’s not surprising that the status of pending sequels is frequently asked of him. Ever since the 1986 original was released to astounding success, Top Gun 2 has been on the cards.

Speaking at this year’s Produced By Conference out in California, Deadline report that Bruckheimer has said that the sequel is still in play, that they’re still hoping to make it with Tom Cruise, and that Paramount remain interested. (Of course.)

“For 30 years we’ve been trying to make a sequel and we’re not going to stop. We still want to do it with Tom [Cruise] and Paramount are still interested in making it.

“What Tom tells me is that no matter where he goes in the world, people refer to him as Maverick… It’s something he is excited about so as long as he keeps his enthusiasm hopefully we’ll get it made.”

He notes that the sequel was understandably put on hold following the death of Tony Scott last year, who helmed the original blockbuster success. But it sounds like the project is still aiming to be made, and it would be interesting to see the likes of Cruise and Val Kilmer back for more in Top Gun 2.

One of the biggest questions has naturally become about who will be in the director’s chair for the sequel.

At the conference, Bruckheimer also spoke about the status of a sequel for Gore Verbinski’s upcoming The Lone Ranger, saying that nothing has been decided yet.

“It’s always up to the audience. If the audience likes the movie then Disney will come to me and we’ll make another or it will be a one-off.”

The movie stars Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp in the leads, and all that we’ve seen suggests that it has the firepower to become one of the biggest blockbusters of the summer.

Studios have been increasingly announcing the green-lighting of sequels before the release of the original film, and I think that that works for a lot of films. But when it comes to The Lone Ranger, I can see that it’s important to wait for the audience’s reaction until Bruckheimer and co. decide whether or not to return to the world for The Lone Ranger 2. The budget alone for a sequel would no doubt be another mammoth one, and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the original fares at the box office this summer.

The Lone Ranger will be released on July 3rd in the US, with its UK release date following on 9th August.