There was something wonderfully apt about the notion of the band Twenty One Pilots appearing on the original motion picture soundtrack for Top Gun: Maverick, a movie about a naval aviator.
So, when lead singer Tyler Joseph revealed that the electro-pop duo had been fired by Tom Cruise from the project in a massive and unexpected shakeup, fans wanted answers. Then came the real plot twist: a fan tweeted that Joseph was apparently just kidding about the incident, after someone close to the production claimed that Cruise wasn’t even aware Twenty One Pilots were attached to the project.
The internet became enthralled by the delicious drama, and followed Joseph’s lead with a series of humorously ironic social media posts under the hashtag #TYLERJOSEPH4TOPGUN. The name of the band being so wonderfully germane with the concept of an aviation movie quickly became a fountain of inspiration, and the jokes seemed to write themselves.
One user dreamed poked fun at Jospeh with a farfetched tongue-in-cheek headline.
More pseudo-breaking news followed, with another user claiming to reveal the true reason for the band’s alleged dismissal.
Some of the more creative fans have gone as far as to make dummy screen captures of conversations between Cruise and Joseph.
Top Gun: Maverick is of course the long-awaited sequel to Tony Scott’s iconic 1986 action drama, a film that effectively sealed Cruise’s A-list status, as well as ushering in an epic men’s fashion trend of crew cuts, leather bombers, and Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses.
Top Gun: Maverick is scheduled for release on May 27.
