‘I HAD A FEAR OF FLYING’
Appearing in the long-awaited sequel to ’80s classic Top Gun was confronting for Jennifer Connelly. “When I made [Maverick]
I had only recently talked myself out of a massive fear of flying – full-on sweating, crying during turbulence – it was torture,” she admitted to Men’s Journal. “My family thought the timing was pretty funny.”
The actress worked through her phobia before the shoot started, even though her character, single mum and bar owner Penny, remained on the ground in the script.
In fact, the only time Jennifer expected to get anywhere near a plane was for a scene in which she and co-star Tom Cruise would be taxiing along a runway. Tom had other ideas.
In an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, Jennifer revealed that Tom, who returns as pilot Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell, surprised her by taking her up into the sky in a P-51 aircraft
– with him flying.
“He’s like, ‘It’s gonna be very graceful … it’s going to be nice and easy,’” she recalled.
Unexpected flights aside, Jennifer has nothing but praise for her co-star.
“I was impressed by his exuberance and his generosity,” she said.