Tom Cruise has sent a massive wake-up call to liberal Hollywood and “woke” celebrities as his pro-America movie “Top Gun: Maverick” soars past the $1.2 billion mark at the global box office.
The “Top Gun” sequel is continuing to smash records and send a clear message to celebrities like John Cena and LeBron James, who infamously caved to China.
Cruise and his producers refused to fill the film with “woke” messaging and snubbed the Chinese Communist Party when it demanded they remove pro-Taiwan and pro-America themes.
As a result, the movie was banned in China.
Despite the China ban, the movie has been a huge hit, both domestically and globally.
The blockbuster passed $1.2B worldwide on Thursday and shows no signs of slowing down.
According to Deadline, “With these numbers, Top Gun: Maverick has become Paramount Pictures’ highest-grossing film ever globally, surpassing Transformers: Age Of Extinction.”
According to Variety: “‘Top Gun: Maverick’ took fourth place, scoring $12 million from 3,292 screens.
“In its eighth weekend of release, ticket sales fell a scant 23%. With $617 million in the bank and no signs of slowing down, ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ will soon pass ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ ($620 million) and ‘The Avengers’ ($623 million) to rank among the top 10 highest-grossing films in domestic box office history.”
The perfect summer movie has landed! See #TopGun: Maverick on the biggest screen possible – NOW PLAYING in theatres everywhere. https://t.co/67py5MSXtr pic.twitter.com/S36nJ6e6Uw
— Top Gun (@TopGunMovie) May 27, 2022
Cruise and other movie producers refused to remove Taiwan’s flag from the lead character Maverick’s famous bomber jacket.
The film was then banned from the Chinese market, causing Hong Kong film critic Ho Siu Bun to say that snubbing China to include the flag was “unprecedented.”
“Major film studios have never been shy about pandering to the Chinese market,” Ho said.
“And even if it is a simple scene, editing is very costly. So no one knows why they changed it back.”
Bill Maher also called out Hollywood and sports celebrities for taking China’s money.
Maher said:
“But the NBA has a television deal with China worth a billion-and-a-half dollars.
“So LeBron James said Morey needed to be ‘educated on the situation,’ the situation being, ‘I’ve got some shoes to sell.’
“‘Kowtow’ is a Chinese word but boy, Americans have gotten good at it.
“That’s the deal China offers American companies and celebrities: We’ll give you access to our billion-plus consumers as long as you shut up about the whole police-state-genocide thing.
“John Cena took that deal.
Bob Ley, an Emmy Award-winning host who spent decades at ESPN hosting shows like “SportsCenter,” called out James and those in the media throwing stones at the golfers.
“It’s real easy to be pissed off and angry about LIV Golf and the Saudis.
“All I ask for is philosophical and ideological consistency.
“Apply it to China consistently, LeBron. LeBron, I think, has a responsibility, and an opportunity more importantly.
“And it’s easy for people to come to the conclusion that players, at a time when social voice and equity are very much a part of sports, mores o than ever before, here’s an opportunity to make a stand.
“If you are a billionaire, you can afford to perhaps make a stand and at least become educated.
“China has as many issues as any other country, and is the outrage tempered by the popularity of the sport and the dollars at stake?
“If you wanna get in a froth about LIV Golf, and you have every right to, take a pause, take a deep breath and look at China and see, should this outrage or this introspection and this attention extend to the NBA?” he said.
Callsign: Iceberg https://t.co/y2XhxKZTZH
— Glen Powell (@glenpowell) July 13, 2022
