Do you fancy action movies with some drama and romance? Are you a fan of Tom Cruise, who is not only an action star but also an action megastar? If you do and are, you might have probably come across and watched “Top Gun: Maverick,” part of the “Top Gun” film series. It is a great movie, rated 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. In this article, we’ll dive deeper into one of the most important characters in “Top Gun: Maverick,” Penny Benjamin.
What Is ‘Top Gun: Maverick’?
For those of you who don’t know “Top Gun: Maverick,” well, this is a 2022 action drama film from the direction of Joseph Kosinski, and writing by Ehren Kruger, Christopher McQuarrie and Erin Warren Singer, from stories by Peter Craig and Justin Marks. “Top Gun: Maverick” is a sequel to the 1986 movie “Top Gun.”
Versatile Hollywood actor Tom Cruise reprises his starring role in “Top Gun: Maverick” as the naval aviator Maverick. The movie centers on Maverick, who confronts his past while training a group of much younger Top Gun graduates, which includes the son of his deceased best friend. They take on a dangerous mission.
Aside from Tom Cruise as Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, “Top Gun: Maverick” also brought together a stellar cast lineup that includes Jennifer Connelly as Penny Benjamin, Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, Val Kilmer as Adm. Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, Bashir Salahuddin as CWO4 Bernie “Hondo” Coleman, Jon Hamm as Adm. Beau “Cyclone” Simpson, and more.
Who Is Penny?
Penny Benjamin is one of the most interesting and important characters in the “Top Gun: Maverick” movie. Penny is portrayed by no other than Jennifer Connelly.
Connelly is an actress who started her career as a child model before making her acting debut in “Once Upon a Time in America,” a 1984 crime film.
Aside from “Top Gun: Maverick,” her filmography includes “Labyrinth,” “The Rocketeer,” “Far Harbor,” “A Beautiful Mind,” and “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” among many others.
Connelly has also won several awards, particularly for her role in “A Beautiful Mind,” winning Best Supporting Actress at the 2002 Academy Awards and Best Supporting Actress for Motion Picture at the 2002 Golden Globe Awards, among others.
Penny is the new love interest of Maverick, becoming his girlfriend. But that relationship did not last long, as Maverick later fell in love with Charlotte “Charlie” Blackwood.
Penny is also a single mother with a daughter, Amelia, and owns a bar nearby Naval Air Station North Island.
How Did Maverick Come To Know Penny?
That moment when Maverick meets Penny is a crucial scene to discuss because this sets the relationship between the two.
Penny used to be Maverick’s girlfriend before the guy fell in love with Charlie, another Top Gun instructor. Maverick first saw Penny at the bar she owns during Maverick’s return to Top Gun school as an instructor. Not long after, they were both able to reestablish their chemistry by casually flirting with each other and talking about their pasts.
Was Penny In ‘Top Gun’?
Though Penny was not physically in the “Top Gun” movie, the first in the series, he actually existed in it, though only mentioned in passing. She was never seen on screen in that film.
In a particular scene in “Top Gun,” Maverick’s exploits from the past are said to include “a history of high-speed passes over five air-control towers and one admiral’s daughter.” His best friend, Goose, then mutters Penny’s name under his breath, referring to her as the “admiral’s daughter.” This is later confirmed when Carole, Goose’s wife, teases Maverick about his romantic history, telling her Goose “told me all about the time you went ballistic with Penny Benjamin.”
That’s pretty much about Penny Benjamin in the “Top Gun” movies. If you haven’t watched the series, we recommend that you do.
