“F1,” “Top Gun: Maverick,” and the gospel of second chances

From the moment Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) steps onto the straightaway of the practice track for his Formula 1 team, APXGP, the plot stands out as familiar. Moviegoers who’ve come to see F1 likely sat in a theater two years prior, helping Top Gun: Maverick fly its way onto the list of highest-grossing movies of all time. These films have not only dominated the box office but have also struck a deep emotional chord across a wide range of demographics.

So, why do stories of comeback, redemption, and legacy resonate so powerfully?

More than a need for speed or the thrill of a high-stakes mission, the shared narrative arc of F1 and Top Gun: Maverick points us toward spiritual truths and a gospel that captures our hearts.

Proving grounds in the hot seat

After three decades out of the spotlight, Hayes’ and Pete Mitchell’s (Tom Cruise) matching iconic aviator sunglasses mirror what’s happening in their respective storylines: The sun has all but set on these two unlikely protagonists’ careers. And yet, they’ve become the only hope for a miracle.

When the floundering F1 team becomes the laughing stock of the league, APXGP’s teammates are skeptical of just what the cat (or team manager Ruben, played by Javier Bardem) dragged in. Indeed, when Hayes enters the scene, he is their 9th—nope, make that 10th—choice in filling out their struggling team.

Likewise, air boss, Cyclone (Jon Hamm), makes it clear that Maverick (Mitchell’s call sign) was not the Navy’s first choice for training the elite Top Gun graduates to embark upon the highest-stakes mission the world’s best fighter pilots have ever seen. 

The moment Hayes and Maverick squeeze themselves into their respective cockpits, the truth is exposed: their superiors have put their hopes on a wildcard. Their reckless tactics cause doubt, but their lingering skills and unconventional wisdom from years of experience fan a flicker of hope. Perhaps the prophetic headlines made about Hayes decades earlier will come true after all. And when it “comes down to the man or the woman in the box,” could Maverick prove he still has what it takes? 

A rocky past and a new “why”

Hayes and Maverick are both fighting the darkness of their past, involving horrific accidents riddled with pain and regret. Top Gun: Maverick revitalized a decades-old franchise, becoming an instant and enduring success because it plays on our human desire to see the sun rise again on the main character. Like Maverick, Hayes is haunted by the shadow of his past, yet drawn by the chance to step back into the arena—not just to prove he still can, but to rediscover why he ever wanted to in the first place.

After his teammates and some heartless journalists grill him with painstaking questions about past choices that led to his reputation as a “has-been” or “never-was,” Hayes spends the movie subtly reflecting on the question: What is it for? If it’s not about the money or the fame, what is his interest in returning to the racing spotlight really all about?

The more he’s asked, the more something begins to stir deep inside that hard shell. His older, perhaps wiser self is starting to see it’s about so much more.

Rise up

Both characters take on a sort of “wise sage” persona as they are tasked with training the next generation of leaders in their respective fields, initially against their will. In Hayes’s case, the first race we see him in is anything but graceful. Rusty after years away from the Formula 1 scene, Hayes relies on his racing instincts, and even the shrewdness he’s honed through his more recent reprehensible gambling habit, allowing him to rig up unconventional ways of helping his team to their first top-ten finish. 

At the start of the race, Hayes purposely stalls his car. The team thinks it’s an embarrassing mishap until they see it for what it actually is: a trick for allowing him to drive his formulation lap in cleaner air, starting the first official lap on warmer tires than all of his competitors.

Later in the race, when his rookie teammate, Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris), is in a better position to finish on the leaderboard, Hayes intentionally hits a sign. The accident causes debris to sprinkle the track and forcing a safety car to slow down the race while Pearce stops in pit row. We see a potential softie behind the rebellious facade.

Facing his past comes to an ultimate head when he runs to rescue Pearce, whom Hayes has determined has “much to learn,” and pulls him from the all-too-familiar wreckage.

Maverick also must face his past square in the face as one of his fighter pilot mentees happens to be the son of his best friend, Goose,” killed in combat on Maverick’s watch thirty years earlier. Will his guilt get the best of him, or will he pull through to be the man and leader his comrades, and especially “Rooster,” need him to be?

Key themes and spiritual reflections:

Movie producers cling to tropes that powerfully speak to the human condition. The collective popularity of F1 and Top Gun: Maverick reveals something about our collective longings—and that’s where the gospel meets us.

First, we all want second chances

In both box office successes, an older, written-off character gets an unlikely second chance to prove his worth. This trope plays on our hope for redemption, which mirrors the grace of the gospel: Christ gives us a second chance not based on merit, but on mercy. We are not defined by our past but by the One who redeems it.

Second, our failures don’t define us

Both stories showcase protagonists who carry the weight of regret or irrelevance—and yet, find significance. This theme echoes the biblical truth that our failures are not as they seem. In Christ, they are not the end of our story.

Third, we are drawn toward immortality

Underneath the adrenaline and action is a deep desire to leave a mark—to live beyond ourselves. Whether it’s training the next generation or making peace with the past, these characters seek legacy. This longing points to the eternity God has placed in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11)—a desire fulfilled not in earthly impact alone, but in eternal relationship with him.

True Eternal Glory

At the end of the movie, Hayes will have his moment in racing history. But as the champagne baptism engulfs him in victory lane, we feel the pull—the tension of what’s next. The cinematic effects slow down, and it grows quiet. We see the beads of liquid on Sonny’s face, and the camera spans the pit crew hugging and the crowd cheering. 

It evokes an almost anti-climactic moment when Hayes then sneaks off the scene to a quiet room by himself amid the celebration. These cinematic choices make us feel what the main character is feeling. It’s as if the wise sage speaks again: no amount of earthly glory or fame will satisfy us in that soul-deep place. 

As Christ followers, we know there is a thirst that only he can fill (Isaiah 55:1-3).

What are you living for?

“All our moments, all our waking—all the globe is a looking glass to God, and the wise keep seeking the presence of Christ in a thousand places…”

-Ann Voskamp, The Greatest Gift

About the author:

As a speaker, writer, and mom of three, Jenna Kruse helps parents with school-aged kids overcome the frustration, fatigue, and hopelessness of parenting in the digital age so they can enjoy their kids and thrive in their role of raising the next generation with the opportunity to know and love Jesus. To learn more about Jenna, visit here.