Paramount has found its driver for a “Days of Thunder” sequel. Jonathan Levine is in talks to direct “Days of Thunder 2,” with Tom Cruise attached to star and produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer, who also produced the 1990 original, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Levine’s deal is still being negotiated, but the studio is already treating the sequel as Cruise’s next production once it closes. The talks were also confirmed around the same time Tuesday by Deadline.
The choice of Levine reflects how much confidence Paramount has in him following “Mr. Irrelevant,” the sports drama he directed for the studio starring David Corenswet, which has reportedly tested extremely well with audiences ahead of its Christmas Day wide release. Story details for “Days of Thunder 2” are being kept quiet, though the script comes from Will Staples, a video-game writer whose credits include “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” and a co-writing credit on the Michael B. Jordan film “Without Remorse.”
Talk of a sequel has circulated since late 2024, when Cruise was reported to be in early negotiations with Paramount, according to Variety, motivated in part by how successfully he’d revived “Top Gun” with “Maverick.” The original wasn’t a major hit by Cruise’s standards, earning $157.9 million globally against a $60 million budget and drawing mixed reviews at the time, per Wikipedia, though it’s picked up a devoted following since. Cruise himself was reportedly still just “thinking and talking about” the idea as recently as last year, according to Boss Hunting.
That changed by mid-2025. NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon, a longtime friend of Cruise’s, told an audience the actor had confirmed to him directly that the sequel was “definitely happening,” according to World of Reel.
The 1990 film, directed by the late Tony Scott, starred Cruise as hotshot NASCAR rookie Cole Trickle, with Robert Duvall as his veteran crew chief and Nicole Kidman as his love interest, alongside Randy Quaid and Cary Elwes. It also kicked off Cruise and Kidman’s real-life relationship — the two met on set and married the same year the film opened, later co-starring in “Far and Away” and “Eyes Wide Shut” before divorcing in 2001, per Giant Freakin Robot.
Levine brings an unusually varied résumé to the project, having moved between horror (“All the Boys Love Mandy Lane”), Sundance dramedy (“The Wackness”), cancer drama (“50/50”), zombie romance (“Warm Bodies”), and Seth Rogen comedies (“The Night Before,” “Long Shot”). He most recently directed episodes of Hulu’s “Nine Perfect Strangers,” which also starred Kidman. No release date has been set for “Days of Thunder 2.”
