After Locking Lips With Tom Cruise In Top Gun: Maverick, Jennifer Connelly Lands Next Big Screen Role

Jennifer Connelly, well known for her roles in Labyrinth, A Beautiful Mind and He’s Just Not That Into You, has not appeared on the big screen a lot lately. Sure, many were excited about her lead role in TBS’s Snowpiercer, but it’s been a while since she’s been in a memorable movie. That is until she landed a key role in Top Gun: Maverick as Maverick’s former girlfriend, Penny. After completing her steamy scenes with Tom Cruise, it looks like Jennifer Connelly has already got her next role all lined up. 

The Hulk star is set to star in the dark comedy Bad Behaviour. According to Deadline, Jennifer Connelly will play a former child star seeking enlightenment at a retreat while trying to navigate the complicated relationship she has with her daughter. Alice Englert is the actress playing her daughter, who you may know from her roles in Beautiful Creatures and The Power of the Dog. 

Not only will Alice Englert be acting in Bad Behaviour, she's also writing the screenplay and making her directorial debut with this flick. Hopefully, this new adventure the 28-year-old up-and-coming director will be undertaking will be a successful one. Playing the retreat's spiritual leader will be Ben Whishaw, who you may remember in the lead role of Adam Kay's series This Is Going to Hurt and playing Q in the latter three Daniel Craig-led James Bond movies. Ana Scotney, Dasha Nekrasova Karan Gill and Marlon Williams help complete the cast of this New Zealand-set independent film.

The fondest experience Jennifer Connelly had being part of Top Gun: Maverick was being able to work with her leading man, Tom Cruise. She could not help but be impressed with Cruise’s hard work and commitment to the movie. While she may have been “paranoid” about knowing her lines, he got them down flat. It’s like he was born to take on the role of Maverick. What she also found “extraordinary” about the Mission: Impossible star was his generosity in everything he does and his ability to seize opportunities. It proves that if you think very fondly of your on-screen partner, it will bring out that natural chemistry audiences will see onscreen. 

Considering all of the box office landmarks that Top Gun: Maverick has hit, it will likely be easy for critics and audiences to fall in love with Jennifer Connelly all over again. This hit sequel was breaking records on its first day flying through the box office at $51.8 million, with $19.3 million from preview screenings. This action-drama film also had Cruise's best opening weekend, taking in $124 million in 4,735 theaters. While this film marked a box office record for Tom Cruise by the actor having a number one box office hit for five consecutive decades, this can also mean great things for Jennifer Connelly. 

With Top Gun: Maverick passing the $1 billion mark, this means millions of people have seen the talented Jennifer Connelly and will continue to do so as we see her career reach new heights, which now includes Bad Behaviour. If you haven’t seen this 2022 movie release yet, you can still see Top Gun: Maverick in theaters now.

Carly Levy
Entertainment Writer

Just your average South Floridian cinephile who believes the pen is mightier than the sword.