‘Days of Thunder 2’: Jonathan Levine in Talks to Direct Tom Cruise in Paramount’s Racing Sequel (Exclusive)

The engines are ready to roar again. Paramount is finally putting the pedal to the floor on a sequel to Days of Thunder, giving the keys to Jonathan Levine to sit in the driver’s seat as director of the Tom Cruise vehicle. Cruise is on board to star in the follow-up to his 1990 racing drama and is producing with Jerry Bruckheimer, one of the producers of the original. The feature is intended to be Cruise’s next production. Paramount’s tapping of Levine, whose deal is in the midst of negotiations, is a strong vote of confidence in Mr. Irrelevant, its upcoming sports drama that Levine helmed. That movie, which stars David Corenswet and has a prime Christmas Day wide release, has been hitting stratospheric highs during test screenings earlier this spring. Days of Thunder was a reteaming of Cr