Top Gun: Maverick was released in New Zealand and Canada on May 24, 2022,[97] the United Kingdom on May 25,[98] Australia on May 26,[99][97] and the United States on May 27, with advance screenings starting the day before.[100] It was originally scheduled to be released by Paramount Pictures on July 12, 2019, but was delayed to June 26, 2020, in order to shoot several complex action sequences.[7] By March 2020, Paramount moved the film up two days early on June 24, 2020,[101] and was then moved to December 23 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic declared by the World Health Organization.[102][103] On July 23, 2020, the film was delayed again to July 2, 2021, due in part to scheduling conflicts with Cruise, as well as the recent delays of Mulan and Tenet due to the rise of COVID-19 cases,[104] and was further delayed to November 19, 2021,[105] before finalizing the May 2022 release date.[100]

The film had its world premiere at CinemaCon on April 28, 2022, followed by a global premiere hosted at the San Diego Civic Theatre in San Diego, California, on May 4, which was also streamed live through YouTube.[106][107] It also screened at the Cannes Film Festival on May 18 in an Official Selection Screening, where it received a five-minute standing ovation from the audience. The Cannes premiere included a tribute to Cruise and his career.[108][109] The following day it had a royal premiere in London’s Leicester Square with the cast meeting Prince William and Duchess of Cambridge.[110] ScreenX theaters[111] and AMC Theatres[112][113] held Early Access Event screenings at limited locations across the United States on May 24, 2022.

Home media[edit]

Netflix, Apple TV+ and HBO Max all reportedly attempted to purchase the distribution rights to the film, but Paramount refused to sell them; Bruckheimer, when asked about them and other streaming services attempting to purchase the distribution rights to the film at the film's premiere at CinemaCon, said that there was no other option and that the film had always been a big-screen destination. At the film’s premiere at Cannes, Cruise also denied that the film was going to streaming.[114][115][116] The film will be available on Paramount+, 45 days after the theatrical release.[117]