“When you make a movie, people can interpret it in any way they want and see something in it that the filmmakers had no idea they were tapping. So we’re surprised every time we hear something talked about, or written about, the films that we make that have no real context for the filmmakers or what the filmmakers wanted to do. And yet there’s a relevance to them, because people believe it. Tony [director Tony Scott] and Quentin [Tarantino] were very good friends. In fact, Quentin came in and helped Tony and myself on Crimson Tide. He came in and wrote a couple of scenes for us. So there was a great camaraderie and respect between Quentin and Tony. Coming from Quentin, it’s always a compliment.”—Top Gun producer Jerry Bruckheimer, addressing the film’s long reputation as a homoerotic classic. Various commentators, including critic Pauline Kael and writer/director Quentin Tarantino, have commented on the homoerotic undercurrents within the movie over the years, with Tarantino even joking that it’s one of the gayest movies ever.
In Quotes
The producer of ‘Top Gun’ knows you think the movie is super gay, and that is OK
Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...
We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?
Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated
Fahd
Seems to me somewhat homophobic or at least homoindifferent that Bruckheimer labels it as surprising and “no idea” that people find homoerotic undercurrents in Top Gun. Who’s he trying to kid?
Troyfight
…”In the commentary on the physical releases of Top Gun, director Tony Scott says he found inspiration in a book of black and white photographs by gay photographer Bruce Weber. Scott was taken by the haircuts and style of Weber’s models, as well as the “intent of their eyes,” and showed the book to Paramount execs to give them an indication of his aspired aesthetic. “Everyone was scared because it was infamous in terms of the gay community, this book,” said Scott, who died in 2012. “That’s where all these haircuts came from and this hard-edged military look”” [from the themuse.jezebel]
Kieran
Any time a man takes off his shirt and goes bare chested its supposedly “homoerotic” today. Men should be able to go bare chested without it being seen as gay.
Mort
Men merely taking off their shirts isn’t necessarily homoerotic. Fetishistic images of hard muscle and sweat, on the other hand…