Apparently there was some behind-the-scenes drama over who got what gig on the “Top Gun: Maverick” soundtrack, at least according to Twenty-One Pilots lead frontman Tyler Joseph.
Joseph told Los Angeles-based rock radio station KROQ (via Indiewire) that the band had begun discussing the possibility of writing a new song for the movie, but then things abruptly went sideways when Cruise decided to change things up.
(If you need a minute to open Spotify and make sure you’ve ever actually heard a Twenty-One Pilots song, please take that time now.)
“I was working with the music placement person for the new ‘Top Gun’ on writing a new song for them, and then I believe Tom Cruise came in and just fired everyone,” Joseph told KROQ. “You’ve seen that new ‘Top Gun’ thing that he’s got? The trailer has been out for, like, three years, so there’s been a few overhauls, and I was a part of that, so, they moved on.” (It’s unclear how Cruise “fired everyone” if they hadn’t even officially boarded the project; there was nothing on the docket and they hadn’t even written a song.)
“It was actually pretty soon after they brought me in to show me parts of the movie and what they were looking for and stuff,” Joseph said. “Then I got word that there was like a wholesale swap.”
According to Indiewire, the swap was moving Twenty-One Pilots out and Lady Gaga in. But the likelier place for the Twenty-One Pilots song is a spirited, team-building game of touch football on the beach, which is now accompanied by a new (and insidiously catchy) OneRepublic song. Gaga’s involvement in “Top Gun: Maverick” likely predates the discussions Twenty-One Pilots were having with the production; she actually has a composer credit because the melody of her song “Hold My Hand” is woven throughout the score by Hans Zimmer and Harold Faltmeyer.
It is true that Cruise is notoriously hands-on with his soundtracks. “Mission: Impossible 2” music exec Mitchell Leib said that he had to fly to Australia, where the John Woo-directed sequel was filming, in order to play Cruise cuts for the eventual-bestselling soundtrack, including the Metallica song “I Disappear,” and explain to him the nu-metal vibe of the album.
“Top Gun: Maverick” takes to the skies on May 27. You can listen to the Lady Gaga song on various streaming platforms now and the OneRepublic song Friday.