Tom Cruise and Paramount confirmed Days of Thunder 2 over the weekend, with Anne Hathaway joining Cruise for the long-awaited sequel to the 1990 NASCAR drama. Not everyone from the original film is on board with the decision.
Randy Quaid, who played race team owner Tim Daland in the first film, took to X on Saturday to voice his displeasure with Hathaway’s casting, arguing the role should have gone to Cruise’s former on-screen love interest instead.
“We need Nicole back. Don’t be a pussy, [Tom Cruise]. You need the original girl. It’s not personal; it’s filmmaking. Anne isn’t sexy, because and if you haven’t noticed, she’s pregnant,” he wrote.
He followed up with a second post taking aim at Hathaway’s politics and questioning whether she fits the franchise’s audience.
“Anne Hathaway is a leftist, woke, horrible choice for ‘DAYS OF THUNDER’ NASCAR audience who are MAGA. The sexy older chick for Tom in this film needs to be Nicole. That’s the casting that would sell the idea,” Quaid added.
Quaid also pointed to the rushed production of the original Days of Thunder, noting editors worked in shifts just to get the film finished in time, and suggested the sequel’s fast turnaround feels similarly chaotic.
It’s worth noting Quaid has a long track record of firing off inflammatory, headline-grabbing statements on social media, and this latest outburst fits that pattern rather than reading as a measured critique of the film’s direction.
Hathaway, who is currently pregnant with her third child, is set to play a race team owner and engineer opposite Cruise’s returning Cole Trickle. Cruise announced the sequel alongside Hathaway at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, confirming a June 2028 release date. No further plot details have been shared.
Kidman starred opposite Cruise in the original film as Dr. Claire Lewicki, and the two were married from 1990 to 2001 after meeting on set.
Days of Thunder 2 marks Cruise’s latest legacy sequel, following a similar formula to Top Gun: Maverick, which brought in Jennifer Connelly as a new love interest rather than bringing back original co-star Kelly McGillis. That film went on to gross over $1.5 billion worldwide.
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