Dale Earnhardt Jr. all but confirms ‘Days of Thunder 2’ is happening

Dale Earnhardt Jr. isn’t one to deal with Hollywood rumors. So when he says something is happening, people tend to listen. And this time, it’s something NASCAR fans have been waiting on for decades.

Speaking on The Dale Jr. Download, Earnhardt Jr. made it clear he believes a sequel to Days of Thunder is not just an idea, it’s on the way: “Oh yeah, that’s happening,” he said. “I’ll be shocked if it doesn’t happen.”

That’s as definitive as it gets. The long-rumored sequel has picked up real momentum in recent months, with Paramount Pictures confirming development and reports indicating a writer has already been embedded around the sport. 

According to industry insiders, that includes visits to NASCAR races and team shops, gathering insight to shape the film’s storyline. That’s a strong sign this isn’t just talk anymore, but progress.

For Earnhardt Jr., the importance of a project like this goes beyond entertainment. It’s about exposure, something he believes NASCAR needs more of in order to grow beyond its current audience: “You’re trying to take the sport where it isn’t, and get it in front of people that don’t watch it,” Earnhardt Jr. added. “We need more of that.”

That’s the bigger picture. From drivers appearing in mainstream media to films that bring the sport into living rooms across the world, those crossover moments matter. Earnhardt Jr. pointed to past examples, from Jeff Gordon hosting Saturday Night Live to movies like Talladega Nights, as proof that NASCAR’s reach expands when it steps outside its own bubble.

Because staying inside that bubble? That’s not enough: “We can’t just do what we want to do in our little bubble and think that’s going to get us back to where we were,” Earnhardt Jr. said, referencing the sport’s peak popularity in the early 2000s.

A Days of Thunder sequel could help bridge that gap. The original film, released in 1990 and starring Tom Cruise as Cole Trickle, grossed more than $150 million worldwide and remains one of the most recognizable motorsports films ever made. Its impact still resonates today, both within NASCAR and across pop culture.

Now, the opportunity is there to do it again, with modern technology, a new generation of stars and a sport eager to reintroduce itself to a wider audience. Nothing is finalized just yet. But if Earnhardt Jr. is right? It’s not a matter of if. It’s when.