Tom Cruise confirms Anne Hathaway for first Days of Thunder 2 poster

Tom Cruise confirmed Anne Hathaway will co-star in Days of Thunder 2 on Saturday, unveiling the sequel’s first poster from Daytona International Speedway and confirming a June 2, 2028, theatrical release from Paramount Pictures.

TL;DR

• Tom Cruise announced Anne Hathaway will join him in Days of Thunder 2.
• The first poster arrived Saturday, shot at Daytona International Speedway in Florida.
• Paramount Pictures has set the sequel for a June 2, 2028, theatrical release.
• Hathaway will play a NASCAR team owner and engineer opposite Cruise’s returning Cole Trickle.

First poster confirms Cruise and Hathaway together

Tom Cruise posted the first teaser poster for Days of Thunder 2 to his official social accounts on Saturday afternoon. According to Racer.com, the image was shot at Daytona International Speedway, where Cruise and Anne Hathaway were reported to be attending a NASCAR event that evening.

Tom Cruise (@TomCruise). “Days of Thunder. Summer 2028.” X, August 29, 2026, via Deadline.

The pair lean against the franchise’s familiar yellow-and-green stock car, its plate swapping the final letter of “Thunder” for a numeral two, according to Deadline.

Release date: June 2, 2028 Source: Deadline

What we know about the story and cast

Hathaway will play a NASCAR team owner and engineer, according to a Paramount media release cited by TheWrap. Cruise returns as Cole Trickle, the rookie driver he first played in the 1990 original.

Jonathan Levine is directing from a script by Will Staples. Cruise is producing alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper, who also backed the first film.

It’s Hathaway’s latest big swing after a packed 2026 that included The Devil Wears Prada 2 — a sequel we called one of her sharpest performances yet in our full review.

How UK fans can watch the original before 2028

Paramount hasn’t confirmed a separate UK release date beyond the global June 2, 2028, slot, though the studio typically opens its tentpoles day-and-date in Britain. Fans wanting to revisit Cole Trickle’s first outing don’t have to wait for 2028, though.

The 1990 Days of Thunder is streaming now on Paramount+ in the UK.

UK streaming: Paramount+, Standard tier Price: £9.99/month Source: GB News, Paramount+ UK pricing update, August 2026

Hathaway’s UK fans have more to watch before the sequel arrives, too. Amazon MGM Studios recently dropped a first trailer for her Colleen Hoover adaptation Verity, which we covered here.

Why the sequel matters now

Tom Cruise has built the past four years around legacy sequels, following Top Gun: Maverick in 2022 and the two-part Mission: Impossible finale. Pairing him with an Oscar winner like Anne Hathaway signals Paramount wants star power beyond nostalgia alone.

In a companion video posted alongside the poster, Cruise said, “You have the baby. Summer of 2028!” Hathaway is expecting her third child later this year, according to MovieWeb.

No rival studio has dated a major release for that same weekend, according to TheWrap, giving Days of Thunder 2 a clear run at the 2028 summer box office.

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Reported from publicly available interviews and verified press sources. Last reviewed August 30, 2026.