There are major movie franchises, and then there's Star Wars. Generations grew up with the galaxy far, far away, which is still releasing new content in theaters and for those with a Disney+ subscription. A few highly anticipated upcoming Star Wars movies are on the way, including Shawn Levy's Starfighter. Ryan Gosling is the protagonist of that project, which is why he's so bummed that he was absent the day Tom Cruise came to visit. Talk about FOMO.
Back in August, we got our first look at Gosling in Starfighter, and fans who have spent years watching the Star Wars movies in order have been patiently awaiting new information. During a recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, he spoke about the day Tom Cruise himself visited the set, lamenting:
I wasn't there! It's the one day I'm not there! I worked on that movie the whole time, right? I get one day off, and Shawn sends me a picture of him, Tom Cruise and Flynn.
Talk about a bummer. Since he's top of the call sheet, I have to assume that Gosling was called to set more than he wasn't. But unfortunately, fate was not on his side in the midst of Starfighter's production, as he wasn't there when the Mission: Impossible icon breezed through the galaxy. And he was understandably disappointed in that turn of events.
Only time will tell if Starfighter becomes one of Ryan Gosling's best movies, but anticipation for the blockbuster is high, especially thanks to its killer cast and Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy in the director's chair. Later in the same interview, the Barbie actor spoke about Cruise's grand entrance onto the set, saying:
They’re like, ‘Tom Cruise just flew his helicopter onto set.’ They were just shooting and suddenly heard a helicopter, so they had to cut. It was Tom Cruise. He lands in the middle of set, takes a camera, and just starts shooting the action scene.
Not only did Cruise get to join the set, but he actually got behind the camera and helped to shoot a scene for the Star Wars flick. This must have been a pinch-me moment for everyone involved... although Ryan Gosling was noticeably absent. He continued speaking about how his young co-star Flynn Gray got to work with the Top Gun icon, offering:
There’s a shot of him in the mud with Flynn, shooting Flynn.
In the chat with Josh Horowitz, Gosling mentioned that he was on set basically every day throughout Starfighter's principal photography. And yet he still missed the day Tom Cruise flew into the fray. He joked about this coincidence, saying:
I don’t know why he waited for the one day I wasn’t there. I'm gonna hope that was an accident.
Is there a secret Tom Cruise/ Ryan Gosling beef we don't know about? Probably not, but it's hard not to feel for the La La Land actor for missing this exciting day on set. We'll just have to see if Cruise ends up seeing the Star Wars flick.
Star Wars: Starfighter is currently set to arrive in theaters on May 28th, 2027. Since it's not part of the 2026 movie release list, fans are going to have to try and be patient. Luckily, another movie, The Mandalorian and Grogu, is arriving this year on May 22nd.
