2025 is the year of movie sequels with 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.

While major 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 the highly-anticipated Joseph Kosinski film F1 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 the box-office record for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning didn’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 like Days of Thunder. He revolutionized cinema with the best stunts in the Mission: Impossible movies. 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 in Top Gun, and many of his older films get overshadowed by his more recent big-budget Hollywood productions. For instance, despite featuring some of Tom Cruise’s most extreme stunts outside the Mission: Impossible franchise, Days of Thunder remains 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 Thunder has 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 in Days of Thunder is 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 pᴀssing minute. The sheer amount of adrenaline that flows through viewers’ veins while watching Days of Thunder should earn it a better reputation.

It is simply impossible to watch Days of Thunder and not get excited for Cole Trickle and his team. Even audience members with no interest in car racing will find themselves trying to understand the 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, including Top Gun: Maverick, which saved movie theaters after the COVID-19 pandemic threatened to put many of them out of business. Tom Cruise’s Days of Thunder 2 is an exciting prospect due to the success and quality of Top Gun: Maverick, as a sequel has the potential to improve.

While Days of Thunder isn’t as electrifying as Top Gun, which is a memorable 1980s movie ᴀssociated 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 sH๏τ 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 reᴀssess his atтιтude towards racing, teammates, and others in his life. Days of Thunder‘s sequel could flesh out the world more and fix the glaring flaws.

Moreover, Days of Thunder remains underrated in Tom Cruise’s filmography, and it deserves a sequel that could introduce 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 a Days of Thunder sequel.

Since The Final Reckoning is likely Tom Cruise’s last Mission: Impossible movie, that frees up space in his schedule to work on a Days of Thunder sequel. Christopher McQuarrie has been a prolific director of Mission: Impossible movies 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 the best NASCAR movies dating 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.

James Mangold’s Ford V Ferrari, which was nominated 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.

The box-office success of F1 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 to Days 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 an unpopular opinion about a famous movie, but TRON: Legacy isn’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 with F1 The Movie, which might 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 pᴀssed his biggest test as a director with flying colors when he proved that the nearly four-decades-old Top Gun always deserved a sequel. Top Gun: Maverick is an action movie that far exceeded expectations by reviving the thrill of the original and updating it just enough to make it feel like a legacy sequel full of heart.

Hans Zimmer being a frequent collaborator of Kosinski, Top Gun: Maverick and TRON: Legacy proving the director’s ability to revive older IPs, and F1 The Movie having the best racing cinematography in years, proves Kosinski is the ideal director to helm a Days of Thunder sequel. He’s even expressed interest in a Cole Trickle and Sonny Hayes crossover (via GQ).

Why A Days Of Thunder/F1 Crossover Could Work

Their Worlds Exist In Close Proximity

Days of Thunder ends with Tom Cruise’s Cole Trickle winning the Daytona 500. Meanwhile, F1 The Movie starts 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.

An F1 The Movie prequel and a Days of Thunder sequel 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 in Interview with the Vampire, a horror 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 Thunder will be as old next year as Top Gun was when Top Gun: Maverick was released. While a timeline is yet to be announced, Tom Cruise has confirmed that a sequel to Days of Thunder is in development. He’s interested in both Top Gun 3 and Days of Thunder 2.

The promising news from Tom Cruise further proves the potential for a Days of Thunder sequel. While the actor is a fan of cinema and has taken many risks in his career, he wouldn’t be pᴀssionate about a sequel if he didn’t think the film deserves one. Fans of Days of Thunder can eagerly look forward to a sequel announcement.