Tom Cruise is officially getting back behind the wheel as Cole Trickle.
Paramount Pictures is moving forward with a long-awaited Days of Thunder sequel, with Cruise reprising his role as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle and Anne Hathaway joining him as a race team owner and engineer.
The new film will race into theaters June 2, 2028, nearly 38 years after Cruise first climbed behind the wheel in Tony Scott’s 1990 racing movie.
Cruise and Hathaway helped make the announcement Saturday from Daytona International Speedway, where the pair appeared alongside a green-and-yellow No. 46 stock car carrying the Days of Thunder branding ahead of NASCAR’s regular-season finale.
Tom Cruise Returns As Cole Trickle
Cruise will once again play Cole Trickle, the talented but inexperienced stock-car driver at the center of the original Days of Thunder.
Plot details for the sequel remain under wraps, but Hathaway’s character provides the first significant clue about the direction of the new story.
The Oscar winner will play a race team owner and engineer, putting her directly inside the competitive racing world alongside Cruise’s returning driver. It will mark the first time Cruise and Hathaway have starred together in a film.
Cruise teased the movie’s return with a simple message accompanying the announcement:
“Days of Thunder. Summer 2028.”
In a video with Hathaway at Daytona, Cruise confirmed the 2028 arrival while Hathaway joked that she first needed to have her baby before they could make the movie.
Jonathan Levine Will Direct The Days Of Thunder Sequel
Jonathan Levine (Long Shot, 50/50, Warm Bodies) will direct the new Days of Thunder from a screenplay by Will Staples.
Cruise will also produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper. Bruckheimer produced the original film with the late Don Simpson.
The movie is being made for IMAX and will receive an exclusive theatrical release that includes premium formats such as Dolby Cinema and 4DX.
Production is expected to take place ahead of the movie’s summer 2028 release, although Paramount hasn’t announced an official filming start date.
Days Of Thunder Returns Nearly Four Decades Later
Released in 1990, the original Days of Thunder followed Cole as he attempted to establish himself in NASCAR after being recruited to drive for a new racing team.
The movie was directed by Tony Scott and also starred Robert Duvall, Nicole Kidman, Michael Rooker, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes and John C. Reilly.
While it wasn’t initially among Cruise’s most acclaimed movies, Days of Thunder developed a significant following over the decades, particularly among NASCAR fans. The film earned approximately $157 million worldwide during its original theatrical run.
Cole Trickle was loosely inspired by late NASCAR driver Tim Richmond, while the movie helped introduce stock-car racing to a much broader mainstream audience.
Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon has also publicly advocated for Cruise to return to Days of Thunder over the years. Cruise and Gordon have maintained a friendship, although there’s currently no confirmation that Gordon or Hendrick Motorsports will participate in the sequel.
Can Days Of Thunder Repeat The Top Gun: Maverick Formula?
It’s difficult to miss the similarities.
Cruise and Bruckheimer already demonstrated what can happen when they revisit one of Cruise’s Tony Scott movies decades later.
Top Gun: Maverick arrived 36 years after Top Gun and turned the return of Pete “Maverick” Mitchell into one of Cruise’s biggest theatrical successes.
Days of Thunder now gets its opportunity 38 years after the original.
There is also plenty that’s changed since Cole Trickle last raced.
The NASCAR of 2028 will bear little resemblance to the sport depicted in 1990. The cars, technology, teams, business and racing landscape have all evolved dramatically, giving the filmmakers an opportunity to do considerably more than simply recreate the original movie.
Exactly where Cole fits into that modern racing world remains the biggest unanswered question.
Hathaway’s role as a team owner and engineer could be an important part of that answer.
Is The Sequel Actually Called Days Of Thunder 2?
Interestingly, not yet.
Although the movie is naturally being referred to as Days of Thunder 2, Paramount’s announcement identifies the new film simply as Days of Thunder.
The promotional car revealed at Daytona similarly carries the words “Days of Thunder — Summer 2028” rather than a numbered sequel title.
That could change before release, but for now it’s safer to refer to the project editorially as the Days of Thunder sequelrather than treating Days of Thunder 2 as its confirmed official title.
What is official is much more important:
Cole Trickle is coming back.
Days of Thunder opens exclusively in theaters June 2, 2028 from Paramount Pictures.
Yes. Paramount has officially announced a new Days of Thunder film, with Tom Cruise returning as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle and Anne Hathaway joining the cast.
The new Days of Thunder movie is scheduled to open exclusively in theaters on June 2, 2028.
Anne Hathaway will play a race team owner and engineer opposite Tom Cruise’s Cole Trickle. Paramount has not yet revealed her character’s name or whether she has a connection to anyone from the original movie.
Jeff Gordon has not been confirmed as part of the movie. Gordon has previously discussed the sequel with Tom Cruise and expressed interest in having Hendrick Motorsports involved, but no official role has been announced.
Not yet. Days of Thunder 2 is a natural shorthand for the sequel, but Paramount has not announced that as the movie’s official title. Current promotional material simply uses Days of Thunder.
Thomas Miller is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Seat42F, covering television, movies and streaming entertainment. He launched Seat42F in 2007 and has spent nearly two decades covering the entertainment industry.
