After 'Top Gun: Maverick,' Cruise Bets on NASCAR Nostalgia for His Next Revival

Tom Cruise is putting the pedal to the metal once again, this time trading fighter jets for stock cars. After months of cryptic hints, the Hollywood star has reportedly confirmed that Days of Thunder 2 is officially in motion. The news came not via a press release or red carpet announcement, but rather through NASCAR icon Jeff Gordon, who revealed that Cruise had personally told him over the weekend: "We’re doing it. We’re doing Days of Thunder 2."

The original 1990 film, directed by the late Tony Scott, paired high-octane racing with melodrama and romance, earning modest box office success but little critical praise. It wasn’t exactly a cultural juggernaut — unless, perhaps, you live for the smell of burning rubber. Still, if Top Gun: Maverick taught us anything, it’s that Cruise has a remarkable knack for reviving underdog franchises and turning nostalgia into box office gold. Lightning, as they say, might just strike twice.

According to reports, the sequel is currently in development with a script in the works and a director yet to be chosen. Jerry Bruckheimer, who also produced Top Gun, is back on board, and the project was originally pitched as a streaming series for Paramount+ — an idea Cruise swiftly shut down in favour of a full-fledged cinematic return.

With a surge of racing films speeding toward cinemas — including Joseph Kosinski’s F1 project starring Brad Pitt — Cruise's return to the NASCAR circuit seems perfectly timed. And for fans of Cole Trickle and Rowdy Burns, the idea of rekindling their high-speed rivalry on the big screen might just be the comeback no one saw coming — but plenty will race to see.