Tom Cruise is officially getting back behind the wheel for Days of Thunder 2, with Paramount moving forward on a sequel to the 1990 racing film almost four decades after the original. Cruise will reprise his role as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle, with Anne Hathaway joining him in the new film.
The sequel now has an exact theatrical release date too, with Paramount setting 2 June 2028 for the film. Jonathan Levine, whose credits include Long Shot, will direct from a screenplay by Will Staples, while Cruise is producing alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper.
When Is Days of Thunder 2 Out?
Paramount has set Days of Thunder 2 for release on 2 June 2028, almost 38 years after the original film arrived in cinemas. The sequel will be shot for IMAX and released exclusively in cinemas, including premium formats such as Dolby Cinema and 4DX. Paramount has not announced a separate UK release date at this stage, although 2 June is currently being used as the film’s official theatrical date.
Cruise teased the sequel on Saturday when he appeared alongside Hathaway at Daytona International Speedway, posing beside a lime-green NASCAR carrying a Summer 2028 release message. The fuller casting and release details followed shortly afterwards.
Who Is Anne Hathaway Playing in Days of Thunder 2?
Hathaway will play a race-team owner and engineer opposite Cruise’s Cole Trickle. Further details about her character and how she becomes involved with Cole have not yet been revealed. She joins the film after a particularly busy run of projects, with her 2026 releases including Mother Mary, The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Odyssey and The End of Oak Street. She is also returning to The Princess Diaries franchise for a third film.
During the Daytona announcement, Hathaway confirmed filming will not begin immediately, joking that she first needs to have her baby before making the movie.
Is Tom Cruise Returning as Cole Trickle?
Yes. Cruise will return as Cole Trickle, the NASCAR driver he first played in the original Days of Thunder in 1990. The first film followed Cole as he joined a new NASCAR team under retired racing legend Harry Hogge, played by Robert Duvall. Nicole Kidman, Randy Quaid and John C. Reilly also starred in the film, which was directed by Tony Scott. It is not yet known whether any other original cast members will return.
Who Is Making Days of Thunder 2?
Jonathan Levine is directing the new film from a script by Will Staples. Levine’s previous films include Long Shot and 50/50, while Cruise will produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper. Bruckheimer also produced the original film and later reunited with Cruise for Top Gun: Maverick, another sequel that returned to one of Cruise’s biggest roles decades after the original. Days of Thunder 2 will arrive 38 years after the first film, following a very similar gap to the one between Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick.
The sequel is also one of several major projects currently on Cruise’s schedule, alongside another Top Gun film and Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Digger.
What Will Days of Thunder 2 Be About?
Paramount has not revealed full plot details yet. The studio has confirmed that Cruise returns as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle and that Hathaway will play a team owner and engineer, but the story bringing the two characters together remains under wraps. With the film still almost two years away, further casting and production details are likely to emerge once filming gets underway.
For CultureCues, this is one sequel we did not necessarily expect to see nearly 40 years later, but Tom Cruise returning as Cole Trickle with Anne Hathaway alongside him has our attention, especially because we will happily watch her in just about anything. Cruise has already shown with Top Gun: Maverick that revisiting one of his older films can work very well, and putting Days of Thunder back on the big screen in IMAX feels like a fitting way to bring it back. We are very keen to see what this one looks like once those engines start.
Days of Thunder 2 will be released in cinemas on 2 June 2028.
Nikki Murray is a UK-based writer, screenwriter and founder & editor of CultureCues, covering film, television, music and pop culture. Her work focuses on storytelling and the moments shaping modern entertainment.