Anne Hathaway will star opposite Tom Cruise in the Days of Thunder sequel, Paramount Pictures announced this week. The studio has set the film for release on June 2, 2028. That sends Cruise and Hathaway to the track almost 40 years after Tony Scott’s original NASCAR drama hit theaters.
The sequel is the first major franchise project Cruise takes on since winding down the Mission: Impossible series. He is also attached to another Top Gun film and appears this year in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s drama Digger. Jonathan Levine, who directed Long Shot and Mr. Irrelevant, will direct the new film, with Cruise producing alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper. Bruckheimer also produced the 1990 original, continuing a partnership with Cruise that started with Top Gun four years earlier. Paramount has not announced the rest of the cast, and filming locations have not been disclosed.
What the Days of Thunder sequel means for Cruise and Hathaway
Cruise will reprise his role as driver Cole Trickle, the character he played in the 1990 original. Plot details remain scarce, but Hathaway is set to play a racecar team owner and engineer opposite him. The role puts her on the business and technical side of the sport rather than behind the wheel. Paramount will shoot the film for IMAX screens. The studio plans an exclusive theatrical release, including Dolby Cinema and 4DX formats.
In the first Days of Thunder, Trickle gets recruited to a NASCAR team by a retired racing legend played by Robert Duvall. That 1990 film also starred Nicole Kidman, Randy Quaid and John C. Reilly. Cruise shared a promotional image on Saturday celebrating Hathaway’s casting, posing with her on a NASCAR track ahead of production. The image gave fans their first look at the pairing since the sequel was confirmed, though Paramount has not released a synopsis or additional stills.
Hathaway’s packed 2026 slate
Hathaway has already released four films in 2026: Mother Mary, The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Odyssey and The End of Oak Street. She will close out the year with the Colleen Hoover adaptation Verity. She has also wrapped the Adam Driver military drama Alone at Dawn. She is currently at work on a third Princess Diaries film, the franchise that first made her a star nearly a quarter century ago. Hathaway is represented by CAA, Entertainment 360 and Apex Public Relations.
For Cruise, the project is a return to legacy sequels after years centered on the Mission: Impossible franchise. His upcoming slate spans the new Top Gun film, Digger and now Days of Thunder. It mixes original prestige drama with returns to the roles that built his career. The 2028 date puts the racing sequel roughly two years out, giving Levine and the cast time to prepare the production.