2025 is the year of movie sequelswith many franchises returning after years of dormancy or continuing as expected. The Hollywood market is largely dominated by remakes, reboots, live-action adaptations of animated movies, and sequels already. However, many anticipated sequels of 2025 promised and have delivered the kind of creativity that is often missing from big-budget productions.
Whilemajor movie franchises are continuing and returning in 2025, some of the biggest releases of the year are new and independent productions. Among them, of course, is thehighly-anticipated Joseph Kosinski filmF1 The Movie, which sees Brad Pitt as a race car driver take to Formula 1. It’s a high octane big-budget production that earns its hype.
The other major movie star returning with a new film, the last in his most famous franchise, is Tom Cruise. While thebox-office record forMission: Impossible – The Final Reckoningdidn’t occur, it was still a major sensation. This opens up the conversation about a possible sequel to one of Cruise’s most underrated films.
Days Of Thunder Remains Tom Cruise’s Most Underrated Action Movie
Cole Trickle Is A Memorable Protagonist
CrNo one has had a bigger impact on the action genre in recent years than Tom Cruise and it goes all the way back to films likeDays of Thunder. He revolutionized cinema with thebest stunts in theMission: Impossiblemovies. Cruise has come to be known for his daredevilry, which has become his brand over the years.
However, Tom Cruise has been an influential actor since the ’80s, ever since his breakthrough as an action star inTop Gun, and many of his older films get overshadowed by his more recent big-budget Hollywood productions. For instance, despite featuring some ofTom Cruise’s most extreme stunts outside theMission: Impossiblefranchise,Days of Thunderremains underrated.
Tom Cruise’s Cole Trickle is his typical late ’80s, early ’90s character. He is abrasive, impatient, and a talented but risky choice for his employers.Days of Thunderhas its flaws, especially the story structure that neatly resolves itself without much real confrontation. However, Cruise is fantastic in the film,both as an actor and an action star.
The car racing choreography inDays of Thunderis fantastic, leaving the viewer on the edge of their seat as cars swerve in and out of view, and Tom Cruise’s maneuvers become riskier with every passing minute. The sheer amount of adrenaline that flows through viewers' veins while watchingDays of Thundershould earn it a better reputation.
It is simply impossible to watchDays of Thunderand not get excited for Cole Trickle and his team.Even audience members with no interest in car racing will find themselves trying to understandthe few technical discussions in the movie, because they’re inevitably rooting for Cruise’s character. While other aspects aren’t as memorable, the thrilling races are unforgettable.
Tom Cruise’s Days Of Thunder Deserves A Sequel
His Sequels Rarely Disappoint
Tom Cruise has starred in many iconic sequels, includingTop Gun: Maverick, which saved movie theaters after the COVID-19 pandemic threatened to put many of them out of business.Tom Cruise’sDays of Thunder 2is an excitingprospect due to the success and quality ofTop Gun: Maverick, as a sequel has the potential to improve.
Top GunandDays of Thunderearned similar amounts at the box-office, although their Rotten Tomatoes critics scores are 59% and 38% respectively.
WhileDays of Thunderisn’t as electrifying asTop Gun, which is amemorable 1980s movie associated with a song, and it has less compelling characters and a more forgettable score, the former is a thrilling ride. The NASCAR races are perfectly shot to elevate the already exciting and adrenaline-fueled nature of car racing for viewers of the movie.
Cole Trickle is the kind of abrasive hero who recent films would no longer celebrate, but a sequel would allow for an exploration of how a changing world makes him change his ways and reassess his attitude towards racing, teammates, and others in his life.Days of Thunder’s sequel could flesh out the world more and fix the glaring flaws.
Cruise’s recent performances strike an even better balance between dramatic acting and death-defying stuntwork.
Moreover,Days of Thunderremains underrated in Tom Cruise’s filmography, and it deserves a sequel that couldintroduce Cole Trickle and the rush of watching him compete in NASCAR races to a new generation. Cruise’s recent performances strike an even better balance between dramatic acting and death-defying stuntwork, and now is the ideal time for aDays of Thundersequel.
SinceThe Final Reckoningis likely Tom Cruise’s lastMission: Impossiblemovie, that frees up space in his schedule to work on aDays of Thundersequel. Christopher McQuarrie has been a prolific director ofMission: Impossiblemovies since taking over in 2015, but Cruise now has more time for other projects after bidding farewell to his most defining work.
Days of Thunder 2 Is A Natural Choice After The Recent Success Of Racing Movies
The Genre Has Found Traction In Recent Years
Racing movies have always been a fascinating subgenre of action cinema, with some of thebest NASCAR moviesdating back to the ’60s and ’80s. However, there has been a significant surge in racing movies in the last couple of decades that have performed well at the box office and with the critics as well.
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Joseph Kosinski
James Mangold’sFord V Ferrari, which wasnominated for the Best Picture Academy Award in 2020, is arguably the greatest racing film ever made that is not a documentary. It is the peak of racing cinema in recent years, and proves that films about racing, whether based on real events or entirely fictional, are currently popular.
Thebox-office success ofF1 The Movie, which came out last week, proves that high-octane race films that don’t spend much time on character development or worldbuilding beyond the minimum necessary to make the racing compelling also find their audiences today. This makes a sequel toDays of Thunder, whose only memorable part is the racing, a natural choice.
Top Gun: Maverick & F1 Prove Joseph Kosinski Is The Perfect Director For Days Of Thunder 2
He Has A Proven Track Record
This may be anunpopular opinion about a famous movie, butTRON: Legacyisn’t as bad as most people remember it to be. The movie, which is Joseph Kosinski’s directorial debut, clearly proves his ability to film high-speed action and turn vehicular motion into a spectacle. The electric soundtrack by Daft Punk further elevates the thrill of the sequences.
Kosinski also proves his expertise in vehicular cinematography withF1 The Movie, whichmight revolutionize how races are filmed and edited. The camera angles and the timing of the cuts make viewers watch in anticipation as the cars run past each other on their way to the finish line. The style perfectly complements Hans Zimmer’s incredible background score.
Moreover, Kosinski passed his biggest test as a director with flying colors when he proved that the nearly four-decades-oldTop Gunalways deserved a sequel.Top Gun: Maverickis anaction movie that far exceeded expectationsby reviving the thrill of the original and updating it just enough to make it feel like a legacy sequel full of heart.
He’s even expressed interest in a Cole Trickle and Sonny Hayes crossover.
Hans Zimmer being a frequent collaborator of Kosinski,Top Gun: MaverickandTRON: Legacyproving the director’s ability to revive older IPs, andF1 The Moviehaving the best racing cinematography in years, proves Kosinski is the ideal director to helm aDays of Thundersequel. He’s even expressed interest in a Cole Trickle and Sonny Hayes crossover (viaGQ).
Why A Days Of Thunder/F1 Crossover Could Work
Their Worlds Exist In Close Proximity
Days of Thunderends with Tom Cruise’s Cole Trickle winning the Daytona 500. Meanwhile,F1 The Moviestarts with Brad Pitt’s Sonny Hayes winning the Daytona 24 race. He doesn’t express interest in continuing as an F1 racer at the film’s end, but even if he does,there’s a part of his life when he was competing in NASCAR races.
Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt have raced each other before, albeit off-screen, during breaks from filmingInterview With the Vampire, when they’d go go-karting.
AnF1 The Movieprequel and aDays of Thundersequel could feature a Sonny Hayes/Cole Trickle crossover. Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, despite their star power and similar career timelines, have only shared the screen once inInterview with the Vampire, ahorror movie with an incredible ensemble cast. A crossover would allow fans to see them together again.
What We Know About Plans For Days Of Thunder 2
Tom Cruise Has Confirmed It
Days of Thunderwill beas old next year asTop Gunwas whenTop Gun: Maverickwas released. While a timeline is yet to be announced, Tom Cruise has confirmed that a sequel toDays of Thunderis in development. He’s interested in bothTop Gun 3andDays of Thunder 2.
The promising news from Tom Cruise further proves the potential for aDays of Thundersequel. While the actor is a fan of cinema and has taken many risks in his career, he wouldn’t be passionate about a sequel if he didn’t think the film deserves one. Fans ofDays of Thundercan eagerly look forward to a sequel announcement.
Days of Thunder
Days of Thunder, directed by Tony Scott, stars Tom Cruise as Cole Trickle, a young and talented race car driver entering the high-stakes world of NASCAR. The 1990 film follows Trickle’s journey as he forms a pivotal partnership with legendary crew chief Harry Hogge, portrayed by Robert Duvall. Together, they navigate the competitive circuit, facing fierce rivalries and personal challenges in their pursuit of victory.
