Tom Cruise will return as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle in a sequel to Days of Thunder, with Anne Hathaway joining the Paramount Pictures project as a team owner and engineer.
Cruise announced the project Saturday at Daytona International Speedway, shortly before NASCAR’s regular-season finale.
The film is scheduled for release June 2, 2028, and will be filmed for IMAX, with planned availability in Dolby Cinema, 4DX and other premium large-screen formats.
Jonathan Levine will direct the sequel from a screenplay by Will Staples. Cruise will also produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper.
Plot details remain limited, but Hathaway’s character is expected to have both ownership and engineering responsibilities within the racing team.
The new film follows the 1990 original, directed by Tony Scott and written by Robert Towne. Cruise played Trickle as a talented but hot-headed rookie entering NASCAR and confronting challenges on and off the track.
The movie earned $82.6 million domestically and $157.9 million worldwide. Although Days of Thunder received a mixed critical response when released, its reputation changed within NASCAR circles.
The film became a cult favorite among racing fans, with crew chief Harry Hogge’s “Rubbin’, son, is racin’” remaining one of its best-known lines.
The original movie helped introduce stock-car racing to a broader mainstream audience.
Its story was loosely based on the career of late NASCAR driver Tim Richmond, while four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon has previously supported the idea of bringing Cruise back as Cole Trickle.
Cruise and Gordon have developed a friendship over the years, including Cruise’s appearance at the 2015 NASCAR banquet honoring Gordon’s retirement.
The sequel marks a return to a racing character Cruise first portrayed more than three decades ago.
