Lake Orion native flew F-18s in ‘Top Gun: Maverick’
Lt. Cmdr. Christian “Griff” Frasher didn’t appear in “Top Gun: Maverick” — with the exception of the two seconds showing the back of his head — but his flying certainly did.
The Lake Orion High School and Eastern Michigan University alumnus, 33, is one of several fighter pilots who took to the skies when filming the movie’s aerial combat footage.
“Everyone that flew for the film were all simply naval aviators demonstrating what they do for a living every day,” said Frasher. “Sure, the scenarios and storyboards weren’t exactly realistic and not an accurate depiction of true aerial combat, but it was rarely outside the scope of feasible and never unprofessional. Did we get authorization to maneuver on the edge of our comfort level and aircraft flight envelope? Sure. Did we take full advantage… to repeatedly execute a 600-mph, 100-foot lowlevel to a straight-ahead pop over a mountain while a Helinet aerial cinematography crew hovered on the other side of the ridge watching us? (Expletive) yes, we did!”
He continued: “We all flew both crewed up with actors and non-crewed (solo) for nearly every shot in the movie. We got to coordinate and plan in advance many of the shots to match them up to storyboards or the director’s intent. More so, however, we got do what naval aviation does best and creatively come up with an entirely new plan, on the spot, in the air, when the weather, sun angles, or whatever didn’t go to plan. Some of the best, most iconic shots of the movie were impromptu and just came together at the last second.”
Frasher took several actors up in his jet, including Tom Cruise (alias Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell) and Glen Powell (Lt. Jake “Hangman” Seresin).
“It’s a lot of new sights, smells, sounds, and sensations, even if you’re just along for the ride and getting comfortable in the jet was something that took repetition for all the actors,” said Frasher. “Tom was, for obvious reasons, the most comfortable, the quickest; the others took time. I doubled for Glen for the target attack practice scene. He did great but we ended up spending a decent amount of time just flying around, low to the ground, with me coaching him as to where to look and how to tilt his head and move his arm to sell the idea he was flying. He did better than most. He also puked more than anyone I’ve ever flown but always rallied immediately. He was a freaking machine!”