The kingdom of the first film was directed by the late Tony Scott.

Ridley Scott he was asked to pilot its sequel Top Gunbut he refused for a sentimental reason.

The Gladiator the director revealed this in a recent conversation with The Hollywood Reporterafter being asked about Top Gun: Maverick and whether it was “weird” to watch the director’s sequel Joseph Kosinski. (Kosinski succeeded Scott’s late brother Tony Scottwho directed the first action-adventure film in 1986.)

Related: Now entering the arena: Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal reveal themselves Gladiator II

“No,” it wasn’t weird, Scott said. “They asked me to (direct) and I said, ‘I don’t want to follow my brother.’ Tony was always interested in today. A lot of my stuff is either historical, fantasy, or sci-fi Foreign or Blade Runner or Legend.”

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly’s free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, movie reviews and more.

Tony Scott, who also directed such classics as True romance and man on fire died in August 2012 by suicide at the age of 68. Scott’s extensive interview with THR he even ended on an emotional note after the press asked if there was anything else he wanted to add to the conversation. “I miss my brother,” Scott said.

Top Gun, a box office success and the highest-grossing film of its year, presented Tom Cruiseto Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a fighter pilot at the Top Gun Naval Fighter Weapons School. Cruise reprized the role for the sequel, which sees him training a new generation of pilots and confronting the ghosts of his past. Val Kilmer also returned as Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, playing alongside franchise rookies Miles Teller and Glen Powell.

Related: Ridley Scott clarifies comments about Gladiator III plans: “Have we caught him yet? not really’

The sequel paid tribute to the late Scott in a memorial dedication, while the credits rolled at the end of the film. And yet Maverick was also a massive box office success, apparently Ridley Scott was a harsh critic of it. Director Fede Álvarez, who revived Scott’s Foreign franchise with Alien: Romulusshared Scott’s reaction to Maverick at last year’s DGA Latino Summit as he talked about the vexing process of sending it Foreign film the director.

“I wanted them to see it before anyone else,” Álvarez said. “And everyone told me that Ridley is really tough. . . I asked him about the new one Top Gun and he’s like “meh”. I say, “What are you talking about?” And he said, “My brother’s was original and this one is like eh.” He really respected him, but you could see how tough he was. So I said, “There’s no way I’m going to win this one.”