Miles Teller has starred in movies that have experienced both peaks and valleys in critical response. Top Gun: Maverick put him alongside Tom Cruise, who may very well go down as one of the most memorable actors of this era. But on the other end is 2015’s Fantastic Four, which is considered one of the worst superhero films of all time.
Teller reflected on both movies recently with Collider, in reference to being a part of a movie that was a major box office hit. A lot of actors would likely say a superhero movie would be their most financially successful movie, but Teller is not part of that group. As he said:
I had my chance at a superhero franchise, which didn’t go well. So it was nice to be brought into [the Top Gun] world. For Tom [Cruise] to give me that opportunity, I’m very appreciative of it.
Teller was kind enough not to name-check Fantastic Four directly, which even its director, Josh Trank, gave a harsh rating years later. In light of successes like Top Gun: Maverick and the actor’s latest movie, Eternity, which currently has a 79% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s something he can joke about now.
Top Gun: Maverick wasn’t just a project Miles Teller was excited to be a part of for financial reasons, of course, but also because of Tom Cruise’s dedication to making the movie the right way. He explained what that meant and being involved with the process:
They had been asking him to make a sequel to Top Gun for 30-something years, and Tom didn’t just say, ‘Yeah, let’s do it. Let’s just ride a success.’ For Tom, it always had to be the right script, and so, playing Goose’s son and being the integral storyline of the piece, I felt really grateful for that opportunity — and that fanbase, they were very appreciative of it, as well. I love that. When it makes $1.5 billion, man, you really found a fanbase. There’s guys walking around who had original Top Gun tattoos, and now they’re taking their kids to the sequel.
I love hearing Miles Teller wax poetic about Top Gun: Maverick, to the point that it has me absolutely hyped for the upcoming “threequel,” which still hasn’t gotten a release date. That said, given how enthusiastic Teller and, apparently, Tom Cruise are about it. I don’t imagine we’ll have to wait too long to see a follow-up.
Meanwhile, I’m sure Miles Teller will have zero trouble finding work in the meantime. He’s already been cast in a major role in the upcoming biopic about Michael Jackson, as well as has plenty of projects in pre-production. If the worst moment of his film career ends up being that he never was in a successful superhero movie, that’s not the worst thing in the world.
There’s even a chance he could have that happen, what with all the actors reprising their superhero roles for Avengers: Doomsday. While Miles Teller’s Reed Richards hasn’t been rumored or confirmed for the movie, we do know that many actors from the MCU era have returned to play their characters. I know I would love to see Teller return as his character, and I can imagine others are too.
Until then, we can enjoy him in Eternity, which is in theaters right now. As someone who loves stopping by the movies during the holiday season, I think I’m going to check this one out before diving into the best Christmas movies.