TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The jacket Tom Cruise wore in "Top Gun" is likely to become popular in Taiwan for political reasons, and at least one cinema will begin selling the potentially lucrative product.
As the sequel to “Top Gun” in 1986, the American action drama “Top Gun: Maverick” featuring Tom Cruise, premieres in Taiwan on Wednesday (May 25). According to CNA, when the trailer of the latest episode was played three years ago, a Taiwanese flag patch stitched on the pilot jacket that Cruise’s character Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell wore went missing due to censorship in China.
The jacket Cruise wore was a special edition made by American apparel manufacturer Cockpit USA as a commemoration of the US navy cruiser USS Galveston’s operation in the Far East with the 7th Fleet off Japan and Taiwan from 1963 to 1964. Therefore, on the back of the leather jacket, there are patches of Japanese, American, and Taiwanese flags, along with the United Nations’ symbol.
The report indicated that the Japanese and Taiwanese flags disappeared in the trailer released in 2019 in a Hollywood attempt to win over the Chinese market. After the test screening on Monday, Taiwanese film critic “Vinegar House” posted on Facebook that “the Taiwanese flag is back! Tom Cruise puts the classy jacket back on again!” which excited many film lovers, many of whom responded by saying they will go to cinemas to see the film.
According to Shin Kong Cinema, they will introduce the stylish flight jacket to the Taiwanese market. The leather and patches on the jacket are distressed to give it a bronzed and vintage look and the embroidered patches are exactly the same as the one in the movie.
The limited editions of the jackets are available for pre-ordering online at the price of NT$42800 (USD$1449).
