It’s been an especially great summer for Miles Teller, as the actor reclaimed his heartthrob status as a mustachioed, aviator-wearing pilot in Top Gun: Maverick, the No. 1 movie of 2022 thus far. As Teller becomes a key character in the “Danger Zone” of Paramount’s successful action flick, we reminded him Maverick isn’t the only movie Kenny Loggins has soundtracked, and he wasn’t shy about declaring himself to be in the Loggins “fan club.”
When CinemaBlend sat down with Miles Teller for Top Gun: Maverick, our own Sean O’Connell pointed out to the actor he was also in the Footloose remake back in 2011, where the Kenny Loggins tune was spun for a version sung by Blake Shelton. Teller said this about the funny connection between two of his films:
I’m just the Kenny Loggins fan club, man. I’m gonna go see Loggins and Messina at The Bowl. I’m a huge fan. I’m just revisiting movies from the ’80s. Every little bit, that’s what I’m gonna do.
As Teller told us, he’s all in on Kenny Loggins. At the time, he was already planning to see the singer in concert at the Hollywood Bowl in a show he’s doing with Jim Messina, which is taking place next month. It sounds like Teller is a real fan of the singer behind “Danger Zone” in Top Gun and many other soundtracks and pieces of music.
While Kenny Loggins’ work in Top Gun is among the most iconic movie songs today, Loggins recently reflected on having a lot of competition to get on the soundtrack to the classic. When he and a ton of artists were invited to see the film though, he became attached to Top Gun‘s volleyball scene and decided to use “Playing With The Boys” as his way in. It led to him becoming the singer on “Danger Zone.”
Loggins’ memorable Top Gun song was featured in Maverick along with Lady Gaga’s exclusive track for the film, “Hold my Hand,” which has a double meaning within the movie. The singer is certainly a legend, and Miles Teller is a massive fan of not only Kenny Loggins, but ‘80s music. While his other dip into ‘80s pop culture, Footloose, was not nearly as big as Top Gun: Maverick, it was overall enjoyed by the masses and made over double its production budget.
Although Miles Teller and the rest of the Maverick cast had to wait two more years for the movie to hit theaters than they expected, Maverick‘s success has been well worth it. Along with the movie pleasing audiences (and blowing them away with its stunts), it has been a huge commercial hit and one of few studio movies to really bring audiences back to movie theaters in droves. Plus, there’s definitely more people joining the Kenny Loggins fan club!