Anne Hathaway Joins Cruise in days of thunder Sequel
Tom Cruise and Anne Hathaway will lead a follow-up to days of thunder, with Paramount setting a June 2, 2028 theatrical and IMAX release. Cruise returns as…
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Tom Cruise will return to days of thunder with Anne Hathaway, and Paramount Pictures has set the sequel for theatrical and IMAX release on June 2, 2028. The studio unveiled the project on Saturday, August 29, at Daytona International Speedway, where Cruise also appeared before NASCAR’s regular-season finale.
The film gives Cruise his first onscreen pairing with Hathaway. Cruise, 64, is set to reprise Cole Trickle, the NASCAR driver he played in the 1990 original. Hathaway, 43, will portray a race team owner and engineer, according to People.
days of thunder sequel lands at Daytona
Cruise and Hathaway announced the sequel in an Instagram video recorded at Daytona International Speedway. Cruise also posted a promotional photo showing the two actors beside a green stock car.
The timing mattered. Fans at Daytona got the reveal hours before the Cup Series’ regular-season finale. Cruise then waved the green flag on the project and joined the pre-race drivers’ meeting, where he spoke about the racing world and the people around it.
“It’s not just about racing,” Cruise told the packed room that included NASCAR executives, fans, corporate sponsors and military personnel. “It’s about the community and the people here. There’s something very special about racers and the whole community. It’s a culture, and I was very proud to be able to reflect that in the first 'Days of Thunder,' and I am honored to share it with the world. ...”
He added: “That’s basically what we’re going to really go for with this one. Give the audience that opportunity to understand what it is as a team, as a community, what it is for NASCAR, and the speed, the excitement and all that danger and stuff.”
Jonathan Levine, whose credits include 50/50, Warm Bodies and Long Shot, will direct from a screenplay by Will Staples. Cruise will produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper.
What Paramount is keeping quiet
Paramount has not released plot details. The studio also has not said whether any other actors from the original film will return.
The secrecy leaves the focus on the casting and the release date, both of which give the project clear commercial weight. Cruise and Bruckheimer previously teamed up for Top Gun: Maverick, a sequel that arrived 36 years after the original and became a major box-office hit.
That movie earned $1.496 billion worldwide and received six Academy Award nominations, including best picture. It won the Oscar for best sound.
The original Days of Thunder, directed by the late Tony Scott, debuted in 1990 with Cruise as a talented but reckless driver entering NASCAR’s competitive circuit. The film’s cast included Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Michael Rooker, Cary Elwes and John C. Reilly. Nicole Kidman, who married Cruise later that year, played neurosurgeon Dr. Claire Lewicki.
Paramount said the first film earned $157.9 million worldwide against a reported $60 million production budget. The sequel now carries the biggest fact of all: a summer 2028 release, with Cruise and Hathaway set to share the screen for the first time.
