Manny Jacinto addresses ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ cutting his lines
“Top Gun: Maverick” actor Manny Jacinto is opening up about his surprisingly brief appearance in the film that prompted uproar and disappointment among fans at the time.
“Top Gun: Maverick” actor Manny Jacinto is opening up about his surprisingly brief appearance in the film that prompted uproar and disappointment among fans at the time.
Jacinto, who currently stars in the Disney+ “Star Wars” series “The Acolyte,” addressed the way in which his “Top Gun” character, Lt. Billy “Fritz” Avalone, was reduced to a few seconds on screen with no speaking lines. In an interview with GQ released Wednesday, Jacinto said despite his months of preparation for the film, his short appearance “wasn’t shocking to me.”
“It kind of fuels you, because at the end of the day, Tom Cruise is writing stories for Tom Cruise,” Jacinto, who’s Filipino Canadian, told the outlet. “It’s up to us — Asian Americans, people of color — to be that [for ourselves]. We can’t wait for somebody else to do it. If we want bigger stories out there, we have to make them for ourselves.”
The 2022 film, the sequel to the 1986 blockbuster, follows Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, played by Cruise, as he returns to the naval flight academy to train a new class of pilots. Jacinto, whose character is among those in the class and was featured in the background of a couple scenes, said he underwent grueling flight training as well as demanding gym sessions to prepare for the role, especially since minimal CGI was used for the scenes.
The Stranger played by Manny Jacinto in "The Acolyte."Disney+ / Lucasfilm Ltd.When the film came out, Jacinto wasn’t the only one who noticed his lack of screen time. Fans took to social media to express their disappointment, with many saying the film wasted his acting chops. Jacinto told GQ the outcry was “flattering,” but he had a hunch that his role would get shrunk.
Rating: 5