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It’s happening, officially.
On Saturday, Tom Cruise announced via Instagram that Days of Thunder will return with a sequel in summer of 2028. The announcement included Anne Hathaway, who will apparently be part of the resurrected cult classic.
Filming for the new Days of Thunder has not commenced. Cruise and Hathaway joked in the announcement they’ll go make the movie after Hathaway has her baby. Hathaway is pregnant with her third child.
What exactly the Days of Thunder sequel will be called is unclear. The NASCAR race car shown in the announcement post simply had Days of Thunder with “Summer 2028” on the side while painted in the iconic livery used in the first movie. Cole Trickle’s name was above the door on the car, which is the race car driver that Tom Cruise played in the first movie.
In July, it was reported that Cruise had signed on to the sequel with Paramount . Reportedly the production house was seeking a director for the new movie. The original Days of Thunder was directed by Tony Scott, but Scott died in 2012.
Robert Duvall also starred in the original movie, but the iconic actor died in February. But Randy Quaid, who played Tim Daland, a car dealer owner who wanted to start a NASCAR race team, is still alive and is currently 75 years old.
In 2025 NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon said he wanted to be part of the new Days of Thunder sequel, but this was before the movie or Cruise’s involvement was confirmed.
After the success of Top Gun: Maverick Cruise said he wanted to resurrect Days of Thunder and give it the same treatment. The original Days of Thunder came out after Cruise made the original Top Gun.
Mark your calendar for two years from now, Days of Thunder fans. Special tires will undoubtedly be included.
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As Director of Content and Product, Joel draws on over 15 years of newsroom experience and inability to actually stop working to help ensure The Drive shapes the future of automotive media. He’s also a World Car Award juror.
