According to an insider, Tom Cruise wants to reunite with one of his famous exes for a hotly-anticipated project. Last month, Paramount announced it had greenlit the long-awaited sequel to “Days of Thunder,” with Cruise returning to the driver’s seat.
The original 1990 racing film featured his ex-wife Nicole Kidman as his love interest, and it’s where the pair first met and fell in love before tying the knot on Christmas Eve in 1990.
Now, a source is claiming that Cruise wants Kidman to join the sequel, which will also be helmed by director Jonathan Levin, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer who produced the original film, with the script coming from video game scribe Will Staples. The National Enquirer exclusively revealed Cruise’s surprising casting for the sequel.
“Days of Thunder” paired Cruise with “Top Gun” collaborator Tony Scott, who directed the film. Cruise appeared as hotheaded NASCAR driver Cole Trickle, who finds love while overcoming an injury and racing back to victory lane. The film was another success for Cruise, raking in nearly $160M worldwide.
Tom Cruise & Nicole Kidman Relationship Timeline
GettyCruise and Kidman met in 1989 on the set of “Days of Thunder” and quickly married at the end of 1990. The pair was together for over 10 years, announcing their separation in February 2001 and officially divorcing in August of that year.
During their marriage, Cruise and Kidman adopted two children Isabella “Bella” Jane Cruise, 33, and Connor Cruise, 31. Reflecting on building their family, Kidman reminisced with Variety “From the minute Tom and I were married, I wanted to have babies. And we lost a baby early on, so that was really very traumatic. And that’s when we would adopt [our daughter] Bella.”
The pair also collaborated on another project during their marriage, appearing in Stanley Kubrick’s final film, the psychological thriller “Eyes Wide Shut.” In a 2025 interview, Cruise admitted that he was actually the one who recommended Kubrick cast Kidman in the film according to Variety.
Kidman & Cruise Lean Into Nostalgia for Upcoming Projects
This isn’t the first time that Cruise is returning as a fan-favorite character. “Days of Thunder 2” follows Cruise’s successful return as Maverick in “Top Gun: Maverick” which pulled in over $1.5B worldwide in 2022 and marked Cruise’s highest-grossing film to-date. Following the success of “Top Gun: Maverick,” Paramount confirmed “Top Gun 3” in April 2026 which will star Cruise and reunite him with Bruckheimer who will helm production. But first, Cruise will star in “Digger,” which had fans going wild for his nearly unrecognizable transformation as the title character. “Digger” will premiere on October 2, 2026.
Kidman is also making the rounds for a fan-favorite follow-up, currently doing press for “Practical Magic 2.” In the film, Kidman reunites with co-star Sandra Bullock to play the Owen sisters, inviting newcomers Joey King and Maisie Williams. “Practical Magic 2” hits theaters on September 11, 2026.
