Bob Floyd in Top Gun: Maverick

The quiet weapons systems officer who stole scenes in a $1.4 billion film — and introduced Pullman to the biggest audience of his life.

In Top Gun: Maverick (2022), Pullman plays Lieutenant Robert “Bob” Floyd, the weapons systems officer (WSO) paired with Phoenix. Bob is the film's gentle centre among a squadron of show-offs: dryly funny, unflappable, and — in the film's most quoted running joke — the only one whose call sign is just his name. The role did not ask for a star turn; it asked for presence, and it gave Pullman something no indie credit could: recognition from an audience of hundreds of millions.

Why it changed his career

Before Maverick, Pullman was a critics' actor. After it, he was a known face with a franchise-friendly profile — the exact combination that makes an actor plausible as a Marvel lead three years later. Casting directors do not need to explain who he is anymore, and audiences do not need to be introduced to him. That is the practical value of a beloved supporting role in a record-breaking film.