Which Ray-Ban model was worn by Tom Cruise in 'Top Gun'?

Tom Cruise wore Ray-Ban Aviators as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in Top Gun.

The 1986 film connected the Aviator’s existing military associations with a new Hollywood image: the confident, rebellious naval pilot. Cruise’s character wears the teardrop-shaped sunglasses with a flight suit and other pilot gear, helping turn a practical aviation design into one of the defining style symbols of the decade.

Aviators had already been associated with military pilots and public figures for decades. Bausch & Lomb’s early designs were developed for aviation, introduced commercially in the 1930s and later marketed under the Ray-Ban name. Their large lenses, thin metal frames and double bridge made them visually distinctive on screen.

The usual mix-up involves another Tom Cruise film. In Risky Business, Cruise famously wore Ray-Ban Wayfarers, not Aviators. Ray-Ban’s Shooter and Clubmaster are also separate models, while the Top Gun image is specifically tied to the Aviator. The association became so strong that Cruise’s Maverick look influenced sunglasses fashion well beyond the film’s 1986 release.