Jennifer Connelly may have been the one behind the bar in Top Gun: Maverick, but her co-star, Miles Teller, recently proved his own bartending skills. The actor did so when making a recent surprise appearance at a local dive on the Michigan State University campus. Since then, his presence at the bar has gone viral across social media. And, unsurprisingly, fans are freaking out about it on TikTok.
So exactly what was the bloody-good Whiplash actor doing at Crunchy’s, a garden-variety watering hole in Grand Rapids, Michigan? That’s what TikTok users like @jess_gauthierr were wondering when they spotted the Fantastic Four alum tending bar and pouring drinks, which she documented in a clip cheekily captioned “just a typical Tuesday” and set to the tune of OneRepublic’s “I Ain’t Worried.” (That’s the song from Top Gun: Maverick that went viral thanks to Teller’s copious ab muscles):
@jess_gauthierr
♬ I Ain’t Worried (From “Top Gun Maverick”) – Sunset Anthemz
Of course, the star wasn’t picking up shifts at the local bar for nothing. He was there to promote Finnish Long Drinks, the alcoholic beverage brand that he co-owns alongside DJ Kygo and professional golfer Rickie Fowler, among others.
Per WZZM13, the Grand Rapids-based television station, the A-lister had several bar pop-ins lined up for the Michigan area this week, including the SpeakEZ Lounge on Monday and The Brown Jug in Ann Arbor on Tuesday. One TikTok user, @radraigan, got a video of Miles Teller getting his groove on at the former venue, set to the Berlin ballad “Take My Breath Away,” the love theme of the original Top Gun movie:
@radraigan
♬ Take My Breath Away (Love Theme from “Top Gun”) – Berlin
Naturally, given the movie star’s surprise appearance, the bars quickly reached in-person capacity, reported WZZM, with many Teller fans left to merely express their envy in the TikTok comments. Here are just a few who reacted to Jess Gauthier’s post:
- How does it feel to be living my dream? – Alyssa Shiplet
- I don’t drink. But for Miles Teller? I’ll gladly go to a bar😭 – Cajun_Rae
- Why am I screaming and also, why is he at crunchys, and more importantly, in Michigan…? – alivia joy
- He was at my local bar last night & I missed it 🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲 – Lynds
- The way I would absolutely melt – xobubbba
- Omg what 😍😍😍 Why can’t thing like this ever happen to me – Scarlet Rose
Top Gun: Maverick, particularly that (viral) shirtless beach footbal scene, has been a hit with college-aged fans since the 2022 film blasted into theaters. So it’s not a surprise that college towns like East Lansing and Grand Rapids would be packed with just the demographic that Miles Teller and his Long Drinks cohorts are looking to capitalize on.
It’s far from the first time that a notable actor has moonlighted as a barman in promotion of a boozy side hustle. Breaking Bad BFFs Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul served as the official bartenders at Drake’s 37th birthday last fall, pouring out their Dos Hombres Mezcal liquor brand. And for his Gran Coramino tequila brand, comedian Kevin Hart was spotted pouring shots of hooch himself for fans last fall at marketing events for the company. So, it looks like Miles Teller is in pretty good company.
Who knows if he’ll drop into a bar near you anytime soon, but you can still see him in all of his shirtless groove by streaming Tom Gun: Maverick with a Paramount+ subscription.