Tom Cruise and Jerry Bruckheimer have partnered on a follow up to the NASCAR-themed flick
- After 35 years, a Days of Thunder sequel is officially in the works.
- Jerry Bruckheimer said he and Tom Cruise are working on the project.
- Cruise would likely resume his role as an older, more experienced Cole Trickle.
Ethan Hunt recently had his eighth and Final Reckoning, but don’t expect Tom Cruise to stop playing familiar characters. Quite the opposite as the legendary actor is set to return as Cole Trickle.
If that name doesn’t ring a bell, we don’t blame you as Cruise last played the character in 1990’s Days of Thunder. The NASCAR-themed movie starred Cruise as a troubled young driver, who was taken under the wing of Harry Hogge, played by Robert Duvall. Nicole Kidman, Randy Quaid, Michael Rooker, and John C. Reilly also went along for the ride.
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While 35 years is a long time between films, Hollywood seemingly frowns on originality these days. That being said, Top Gun: Maverick was a smashing success that proved an old Cruise flick could be continued and improved decades later.
As for Days of Thunder 2, Jerry Bruckheimer – who produced the original – confirmed he and Cruise are working on a sequel in a talk with ET. Bruckheimer was tight-lipped on specifics, but told the entertainment-focused publication “We’ll have something really exciting for an audience once we pull it together.”
Bruckheimer didn’t talk details, but said there are new technologies and ways to do things. He went on to say, “Tom is a great individual who comes up with phenomenal ideas.”
While it sounds like the sequel is in the early stages of development, it’s not hard to imagine a few paths the movie could take. The most predictable would see Cruise slip into a role similar to Duvall’s and aid a young driver. Of course, this would closely echo the original as well as 2006’s Cars.
Regardless of which path the movie takes, it could improve on the original which has a lousy 38% score on Rotten Tomatoes. While that seems a bit harsh, the movie was a modest success which reportedly racked up over $87 million during its initial release. However, over the years, that number has reportedly grown to nearly $158 million.