Tom Cruise is ready to drive into the fast lane once again after announcing he is reprising his beloved Days of Thunder role in a sequel film.
“Days of Thunder. Summer 2028,” Cruise, 64, announced via Instagram on Saturday, August 29, beside a photo of the action star posing beside pregnant Anne Hathaway in front of a neon-green race car at Daytona International Speedway.
In a follow-up upload, Cruise revealed that Hathaway, 43, will be his new costar in the film.
“I think it’s on,” he spoke into the camera in Instagram footage. “Annie? It looks ‘on’ to me, don’t you think?”
Hathaway, rocking a white cowboy hat and matching motorcycle jacket, noted that the camera did seem to be rolling.
“Hey,” she waved to the camera with a laugh. “What should we do?”
After Cruise noted that the two actors should “show ‘em,” they strolled over to the neon car.
“Now what?” he asked, to which Hathaway proclaimed that they should “make the movie.”
“I’m gonna have this baby, and then we’re gonna make this movie,” she quipped, referring to her pregnancy with her and husband Adam Shulman’s third child.
According to Cruise, it was a “good idea” for Hathaway to give birth pre-production.
“We’re coming out summer of 2028,” he added. “Don’t be late!”
Further details for the new Days of Thunder film have not yet been revealed at the time of publication. Variety reports that the movie will be shot for IMAX screens and released exclusively in theaters for formats including Dolby Cinema and 4DX.
Per the outlet, Cruise will reprise his role as racecar driver Cole Trickle opposite Hathaway’s character as a new team owner and engineer. Jonathan Levine will direct the film, which Cruise is set to produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper.
Cruise initially played Cole in director Tony Scott’s 1990 hit Days of Thunder, following a rookie NASCAR driver’s rivalry with veteran racer Rowdy Burns (Michael Rooker). After Cole and Rowdy get seriously injured in a race, they soon become fast friends. The film also starred Cary Elwes and Nicole Kidman, who began dating Cruise after portraying an onscreen couple. Cruise and Kidman, 59, got married later that year before divorcing in 2001.
“I was 22, 23 years old and I had this huge movie star husband, but it just seemed completely natural,” Kidman told British Vogue in a profile published earlier this month. “We just fell madly in love and it was that simple. I remember people saying to me, ‘OK, well this is really going to affect your career.’ I’m like, ‘I don’t care. I’m in love. I want to be married.’”
It’s not yet known whether Kidman or any other OG Days of Thunder stars will return for the sequel.
