Full Throttle: Tom Cruise and Anne Hathaway Race Into a New “Days of Thunder”

Tom Cruise is ready to reenter the cockpit, only this time it’s in a NASCAR race car. Cruise is returning to the role of Cole Trickle in a Days of Thunder sequel, and this time, Anne Hathaway will be joining him.

Paramount has revealed an image of Cruise and Hathaway standing in front of a yellow NASCAR racer with Days of Thunder, Summer 2008 painted on the door. This means the sequel will roll out nearly 40 years after Tony Scott’s original 1990 film. Jonathan Levine will direct the new film, with a script by Will Staples, and it will be shot for IMAX screens.

Here’s the official synopsis from Paramount: Tom Cruise will return as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle and will be joined by Anne Hathaway, who is set to play a team owner and engineer in the upcoming follow-up to the groundbreaking 1990 film that revolutionized cinema. Cruise will star and produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper. Jonathan Levine is set to direct from a script by Will Staples.

Tony Scott’s original film found Cruise’s Cole Trickle joining a new NASCAR team, led by racing legend Harry Hogge (Robert Duvall). At the time, Trickle was an open-wheel racer with little stock-car experience, but under Hogge’s guidance, and after some serious early struggles and injuries, and a feisty rivalry with fellow driver Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes), Trickle manages to race to victory at the Daytona 500. The cast also included Nicole Kidman as Dr. Claire Lewicki, a neurosurgeon who treats Trickle, Randy Quaid as Tim Daland, the team owner, and Michael Rooker as Rowdy Burns, another on-track rival.

Hathaway hardly needs an introduction. Her 2026 slate alone could make a career—she’s been in Mother Mary, The Devil Wears Prada 2, the world-beating The Odyssey, and the end-of-summer hoot The End of Oak Street. She’s closing out the year with the Coleen Hoover adaptation Verity and recently wrapped a military drama co-starring Adam Driver titled Alone at Dawn. 

Cruise has already crushed a return to a beloved role with his 2022 juggernaut Top Gun: Maverick. Next, he’ll star in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Digger.

Featured image: Tom Cruise and Anne Hathaway in a first-look image of “Days of Thunder” sequel. Courtesy Paramount Pictures.