Tom Cruise wants to compete in a real race for Days of Thunder 2, but NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell questions the feasibility of the ambitious plan.
O’Donnell revealed Tom Cruise’s request while discussing the making of the movie at the “Tuned In” event hosted by Front Office Sports.
“I was shocked. We have an ARCA racing series, which is kind of our national touring series, Tom wanted to go race in one of those,” O’Donnell said. “I’m not sure that’s going to happen, but he wants it to be as authentic as it can be.
“We’ll still see how the storylines play out, but that’s all kind of playing out right now. I will tell you we’re producing probably over 80 race cars that are going to be part of this.”
Days of Thunder 2 will reportedly be a direct sequel to Tom Cruise’s 1990 racing film which centered on fictional NASCAR driver Cole Trickle. Jerry Bruckheimer, who produced the original film, will reportedly return to produce the sequel. Anne Hathaway will also star in the film, despite Randy Quaid’s objections.
‘Days of Thunder 2’ will put a lot more eyeballs on NASCAR racing
“I think if you look at the first one, it showcased what NASCAR was at the time,” O’Donnell continued. “And so, in talking to Tom Cruise when he was at Daytona, it’s all about where we are today and going forward. It’s embracing, you know, instead of a car being put together back in the garage, it’s embracing the technology, everything that goes into the sport.
“And Tom’s message to us was ‘I’m going to be putting you in front of an entirely new audience, and you need to be ready.’ There’s some things that we’ll work together on. Do people understand the points system, how does the Chase work, how long are your races. All these things to make sure if a new fan comes out to the racetrack understands. For us, this is a whole new open door to bring in new fans.”
Forget the film. If Steve O’Donnell really wants to bring in new fans to the sport, he needs to let Tom Cruise actually compete in an ARCA race. It would certainly set a viewership record for that racing series, and it might even set a record for racing viewership overall.