A recent update on Top Gun: Maverick's streaming plans may have grounded any hope of seeing it at home anytime soon, but there's still reason to be optimistic that Maverick will be flying to on-demand before the year is out.
Below, we'll dive into when the Top Gun sequel might be streaming on Paramount Plus. We'll take into account recent industry trends and Paramount's previous plans to help provide a clearer picture for when 2022's biggest movie is coming home.
When is Top Gun: Maverick releasing on streaming?
Nothing official on Top Gun: Maverick coming to Paramount Plus just yet. While the likes of The Lost City and Sonic the Hedgheog 2 spin-dashed their way onto the streamer just a shade over 45 days from their theatrical release, Tom Cruise’s big-budget blockbuster is set to take the opposite approach.
According to Puck (H/T IndieWire), the film is very much locked-in to an exclusive 120-day theatrical window. That means it wouldn’t come to streaming, nor would it be available to rent or buy on digital storefronts, until that period has elapsed.
Top Gun: Maverick was released on May 27. If the 120-day window holds, it won’t stream on Paramount Plus until September 24 at the earliest. That's quite a wait, but undoubtedly worth it from the perspective of Tom Cruise and those looking to maintain the cinema experience for as long as possible. It should also be available in both the UK and Europe, given the streamer's launch in the region on June 22.
Another update, though, suggests that 120-day window could be shortened.
"The last I saw with Paramount was that the window is 120 days, but Paramount would like to go back to Tom Cruise and negotiate a shorter window in order to capture some of the home video revenue, whether that's on premium video on demand, whether it's on their streaming service Paramount Plus, yet to be determined," Hollywood insider Matthew Belloni said on his podcast, The Town with Matthew Belloni.
If that's the case, it could aim for around 90 days in August but, with the filming nearing $1 billion at the box office, there's no real incentive for Cruise to negotiate anything before 120 days.
Until then, be sure to check out our interview with Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski as he talks through Iceman and Maverick’s "emotional" reunion.
