Who is The Director of Days of Thunder 2?
What’s Happening? After years of speculation about a sequel to Days of Thunder, the project finally appears to be moving into…
After years of agonizing wait, NASCAR fans may finally get to see Tom Cruise’s character Cole Trickle fire up his No. 46 Chevrolet once again.
Recent reports claim that Paramount has reportedly found its director in Jonathan Levine, while Cruise is expected to reprise his iconic role as the fearless NASCAR driver and once again produce the film alongside Jerry Bruckheimer.
Although much of the attention has centered on Cruise’s return and the sequel’s behind-the-scenes progress, another key piece of the puzzle has quietly fallen into place.
The screenplay has been entrusted to a writer who reportedly has already been spending time around NASCAR, visiting race shops and meeting with teams/drivers as he researches the modern landscape he’ll bring to the big screen.
What’s Happening? After years of speculation about a sequel to Days of Thunder, the project finally appears to be moving into…
The reported screenwriter for Days of Thunder 2 is Will Staples, a Hollywood writer whose name surfaced earlier this year after multiple reports linked him to the project.
According to previous reporting from Adam Stern of Sports Business Journal, Staples attended several NASCAR events, including the Daytona 500 and the championship weekend at Phoenix Raceway, while also visiting race shops around Charlotte to better understand the modern dynamics of stock car racing.
Although Paramount has yet to reveal any story details, Staples’ research suggests the production wants the sequel to capture today’s NASCAR landscape rather than simply recreate the 1990 original.
While Staples may not be a household name among moviegoers, he has built a strong base across both film and video games. His biggest film credit is co-writing the 2021 action thriller Without Remorse, which stars Michael B. Jordan and is based on Tom Clancy’s novel.
He also served as an uncredited script contributor on Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, and most recently wrote Way of the Warrior Kid, the Chris Pratt-led drama adaptation scheduled for release in 2026.
His television credits include writing episodes of Shooter and The Right Stuff, while also serving as a consulting producer on Shooter and the popular spy thriller series Jack Ryan.
Outside Hollywood, Staples has extensive experience in the gaming industry. He wrote for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Need for Speed Rivals, and Lair, contributing to some of the biggest action and racing franchises in video games.
Though he is not yet officially confirmed as the writer of Days of Thunder 2, if he is, Staples will now take on one of his highest-profile projects to date.
The original Days of Thunder, released in 1990, was penned by legendary Hollywood screenwriter Robert Towne, with the story credited to Towne and Tom Cruise.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest screenwriters of his generation, Towne won the Academy Award for the Jack Nicholson starrer neo-noir Chinatown, a screenplay that remains one of the most celebrated in cinema history.
Beyond Chinatown, Towne built an impressive resume with films such as The Last Detail, Shampoo, The Firm, and the first two Mission: Impossible movies. He also enjoyed a long creative partnership with Cruise, making Days of Thunder one of several projects the two collaborated on throughout the 1990s.
What’s Happening? One of the more intriguing storylines in motorsports right now blends the worlds of racing and Hollywood, as rumors…
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