50 Fun Facts About Days of Thunder

Which studio released Days of Thunder in June 1990?

Simpson and Bruckheimer had a long relationship with the studio going back to Flashdance and Top Gun.

Who directed the film?

Scott, Cruise, Simpson and Bruckheimer had made Top Gun together four years earlier, and critics noticed the resemblance.

Robert Duvall plays Cole's crew chief. What is his name?

He was patterned on Harry Hyde, the real Hendrick crew chief of the 1980s.

Who plays the reigning champion who becomes Cole's rival and then his friend?

Rowdy drives the No. 51 Exxon Chevrolet and was patterned on the Intimidator himself.

Nicole Kidman's character Dr. Claire Lewicki has what medical specialty?

Cruise and Kidman met on the film and married in December 1990.

What number is Cole Trickle's City Chevrolet?

City Chevrolet was the real dealership in Charlotte owned by the team owner Daland is based on; Cole later drives a No. 51 car.

Which soft drink sponsors the car Cole drives late in the film?

A year later Mello Yello really did sponsor Kyle Petty's No. 42 Pontiac with the movie paint scheme.

Cole Trickle's character was primarily patterned on which real driver?

Richmond, nicknamed 'Hollywood', died of AIDS complications in 1989; his surname is a nod to Dick Trickle.

Team owner Tim Daland, played by Randy Quaid, was based on which NASCAR owner?

His team supplied the cars, and Cruise's dinner with him in 1987 sparked the whole idea.

Cary Elwes plays Russ Wheeler, who drives the No. 18 car sponsored by which fast-food chain?

Wheeler was patterned on Rusty Wallace, who cameos as himself and later reviewed the film for the AP.

Fred Dalton Thompson plays NASCAR president Big John, based on which real figure?

The scene where he orders the rivals to dinner mirrors a real Bill France Jr. meeting with Earnhardt and Geoff Bodine.

Before NASCAR, Cole was a champion in what series?

That is why he struggles with the heavier stock cars and doesn't understand the crew's jargon at first.

At which track does Cole win his first race, using a slingshot from the outside line?

Harry's rigorous training pays off there after crashes and blown engines at Bristol, Dover and Rockingham.

Cole and Rowdy are both seriously hurt in a crash at which race?

Cole recovers in Daytona Beach, which is how he meets Dr. Lewicki.

How do Cole and Rowdy settle their differences after Big John's warning?

The scene loosely references 1950s stars Joe Weatherly and Curtis Turner trashing rental cars.

Why does Rowdy ask Cole to drive his car in the Daytona 500?

A broken blood vessel means the operation, and Rowdy needs the car to run so his sponsor pays for the year.

What does Harry find in the oil pan hours before the Daytona 500?

It means the engine is failing, and Daland comes through with a replacement despite having fired them both.

How does Cole beat Russ on the last lap of the Daytona 500?

Russ expects the outside slingshot; Cole fakes it and dives inside instead.

What incident cost Harry his previous NASCAR job a year before the film opens?

Buddy's son Buck, played by John C. Reilly, becomes Cole's car chief.

Which of these real drivers did NOT appear as himself in the film?

Harry Gant also cameos, ESPN's Dr. Jerry Punch appears, and Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett play radio announcers.

Producer Don Simpson cameos as a driver named Aldo Benedetti, patterned on whom?

The first name comes from Mario's twin brother Aldo.

Which Oscar-winning character actress made her film debut as Harry's timekeeper?

She went on to win three Emmys for Justified and The Americans.

Who wrote the screenplay?

The Chinatown writer scrapped two purpose-built barns he didn't like, adding to the cost.

The star pitched the idea after testing a stock car at Daytona in 1987 with which actor?

They drove Hendrick Busch Grand National cars alongside Darrell Waltrip and Geoff Bodine.

What was the film's original budget, before it nearly doubled?

Filming finished three months late and post-production was squeezed into five weeks instead of five months.

What shot did the filmmakers reportedly forget to capture until after shooting had wrapped?

Simpson and Bruckheimer had spent $400,000 turning a hotel storefront into a private neon-signed gym.

Roughly how much of the budget went to the film's star?

Some budget was cut when Cruise lost the Oscar for Born on the Fourth of July.

Which team provided the Chevrolet Lumina stock cars used in the film?

Greg Sacks, Bobby Hamilton, Tommy Ellis and Hut Stricklin drove them in real races at Phoenix and Daytona to get footage.

Who composed the score, his first for a Jerry Bruckheimer production?

Zimmer said the whole reason he took the job was a subterfuge to work with guitarist Jeff Beck.

Which Whitesnake singer performed the theme 'The Last Note of Freedom' at the star's request?

He recorded it on a day off from the Slip of the Tongue tour; Billy Idol co-wrote the lyrics.

Who sang 'Show Me Heaven', the soundtrack's biggest hit?

The former Lone Justice singer rewrote the lyrics she found 'appalling' before agreeing to record it.

How many weeks did 'Show Me Heaven' spend at number one in the UK?

It was Britain's sixth-best-selling single of 1990 and topped Norway's chart for ten weeks.

Which Guns N' Roses cover appeared on the soundtrack a year before Use Your Illusion II?

The soundtrack mix has different spoken-word responses from the album version.

Which Elton John song from the soundtrack was released as a single in October 1990?

Chicago's 'Hearts in Trouble' and Cher's 'Trail of Broken Hearts' were also on the album.

What was the film's only Academy Award nomination?

Rotten Tomatoes has it at 38 percent, but audiences gave it an A CinemaScore.

Roughly how much did Days of Thunder gross worldwide?

It opened on a Wednesday, June 27, 1990, and took $21.5 million in its first five days.

Which director called Days of Thunder 'the movie Grand Prix and Le Mans should have been'?

Critic Stephen Metcalf argued it was the director's most important film for how its excesses changed producer power in Hollywood.

Which 1991 Simpsons episode took its title from the film?

Talladega Nights also nods to it when Ricky Bobby screams 'Help me, Tom Cruise!'

Which company published the 1990 video game adaptation for the NES, PC and Amiga?

Argonaut Software led the development; a Game Boy version followed in 1992.

In the 2011 Days of Thunder game, which film character coaches the player's rookie driver?

Piranha Games made it for the film's 20th anniversary; the PS3 version carried real NASCAR drivers like Tony Stewart.

Which real incident inspired the scene where Cole cannot pit because the crew is eating ice cream?

Harry Hyde was the crew chief and Benny Parsons the driver that day.

In November 2024 a Days of Thunder sequel was reported alongside a sequel to which film?

Jonathan Levine was in talks to direct from a Will Staples script, with filming at that time targeted for early 2027.

How much did Simpson and Bruckheimer spend converting a Daytona hotel storefront into a private gym?

It came with a neon 'Days of Thunder' sign; Simpson also kept a closet of Donna Karan dresses for women found on the beach.

How long did post-production take because filming ran late but the release date did not move?

Such a film would normally take about five months; shooting finished in early May, three months behind schedule.

Which stand-in driver qualified fifth and led a lap at Phoenix in a film car before his engine blew?

Sacks drove one in the Busch Clash, and Hamilton and Ellis ran unscored entries in the 1990 Daytona 500.

Which NASCAR legend disliked how the film pushed the stereotype of drivers as brawling rednecks?

Rusty Wallace, initially sceptical, later called it 'the best racing movie I've ever seen' in an AP review.

The rental-car race scene loosely referenced which pair of 1950s NASCAR stars?

Both were known to rent cars, race them and crash them with abandon.

Which driver's No. 42 Pontiac carried the film's Mello Yello paint scheme for real from 1991 to 1994?

Kyle Larson revived the look for the 2015 Southern 500 throwback weekend at Darlington.

What grade did CinemaScore audiences give the film, despite its 38% Rotten Tomatoes rating?

Metacritic scored it 60; the Monthly Film Bulletin said it 'goes around in circles getting nowhere' like a stock car.

The 'drive to dinner together' scene echoed a real meeting Bill France Jr. held between which two drivers?

Earnhardt Jr. and Richard Childress have said the film drew on the Earnhardt-Bodine rivalry.