Anne Hathaway is set to star alongside Tom Cruise in Days of Thunder 2, the long-awaited sequel to the 1990 NASCAR racing film, with Paramount Pictures scheduling the movie for release on June 2, 2028.

Cruise confirmed Hathaway’s casting on social media with a photograph of the pair posing beside a NASCAR race car in Daytona.

The sequel will see Cruise reprise his role as Cole Trickle, the determined and hot-headed stock car driver he portrayed in the original film.

Hathaway is expected to portray a team owner and engineer, although Paramount has yet to disclose extensive details about her character or the sequel’s storyline.

The project is being developed as Cruise’s next major film following the appointment of Jonathan Levine as director. The movie is also planned for an IMAX release and will be presented in Dolby Cinema, 4DX and other premium large-format cinemas.

Cruise will produce the sequel alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper, while Will Staples is credited with writing the screenplay.

The original Days of Thunder, directed by Tony Scott, was released in 1990 and centred on Trickle’s entry into the competitive world of NASCAR as he attempted to establish himself among the sport’s elite drivers.

Cruise conceived the story, with Robert Towne writing the screenplay and Don Simpson and Bruckheimer serving as producers. The cast also featured Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes, Caroline Williams and Michael Rooker.

The film grossed approximately $82.6 million in the United States and $157.9 million worldwide.

The original movie also marked Cruise’s first film appearance with Nicole Kidman. The pair later married and reunited on screen in Far and Away and Eyes Wide Shut.

For Hathaway, the project adds another high-profile production to an already busy slate. The actress has recently appeared in The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Odyssey and The End of Oak Street.

She is also attached to star in Verity, which is scheduled for release in October.

More than three decades after the original Days of Thunder, Cruise is now set to return to the NASCAR world as Cole Trickle, with Hathaway joining the cast of the highly anticipated sequel.