China's complicated censorship policies made it so that Top Gun: Maverick never made it to the People's Republic. However, even the Chinese film industry’s attempt to release its own Top Gun now appears doomed, as Born to Fly has been pulled due to concerns about the movie’s quality.
Top Gun: Maverick had a short-lived love affair with Chinese investors, as gaming and tech juggernaut Tencent had invested around $21 million to finance the sequel before it eventually pulled out of the deal, fearing backlash from the Chinese Communist Party. In the meantime, Born to Fly (长空之王), a film closely resembling Top Gun in more ways than one, had been scheduled for an October 1 premiere, which happens to be the National Day of the People's Republic of China.
Surprisingly, this release never came, and per The Hollywood Reporter's account, the main reason might have been that Born to Fly's stunts, special effects and aerial theatrics simply paled in comparison to Top Gun: Maverick. According to some sources, that inferior quality would not have been appreciated by the Chinese film bureau, especially for a movie placing so much focus on military prowess, as it would have made China's Air Force look bad versus Tom Cruise and company. Even though the film lacks a release date, a few trailers with English subtitles are still available online.
The similarities between Born to Fly and Top Gun are pretty obvious. Not only does the Chinese movie copy a similar aesthetic from the poster, but some scenes or shots also try to emulate Joseph Kosinski's camera work, although its characterization of the Chinese Chengdu J-20 aircraft as a fourth-generation fighter instead of the fifth-gen jet that it is was probably a bad omen from the start. Born to Fly was directed by Liu Xiaoshi and stars Chinese pop sensation Wang Yibo in the lead role.
Unlike past propagandistic Chinese blockbusters like 2021’s The Battle at Lake Changjin, which was commissioned by the CCP and made a whopping US$913 million in China (only surpassed by Spider-Man: No Way Home), Born to Fly was made by well-known private Chinese studios such as Alibaba Pictures and Bona Film Group. Born to Fly's producing companies put out a statement saying the film would be delayed to improve visual effects, but it’s currently unknown when that will be or if the movie will come out at all.
China has grown more restrictive of cultural imports such as World of Warcraft over the past couple of years and banning Top Gun due to Pete Mitchell's Taiwan patch on his jacket only made the movie more popular in that country. If recreating Top Gun: Maverick's magic and practical effects was the goal, the filmmakers sure set their sights on an impossible mission.
Top Gun: Maverick is now available on Paramount Plus.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter