NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon attends Hollywood royalty Tom Cruise’s latest blockbuster premier

Jeff Gordon joined the star-studded U.S. premiere of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning in New York City in support of his longtime friend, Tom Cruise. The four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion was in attendance at the Lincoln Center on May 18 with his family, celebrating Cruise's much-anticipated return to one of his most iconic roles.

Gordon and Cruise have shared a well-documented friendship for decades, with the actor even delivering a surprise introduction for Gordon during his 2015 NASCAR Hall of Fame induction. That friendship was on display again at the New York City premiere, as Gordon took to X to upload a photo with Cruise, alongside his wife Ingrid Vandebosch and their son Leo, captioned:

"Thanks for rolling out the red carpet, @TomCruise !"

Cruise kicked off the star-studded premiere with his cast, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg, Angela Bassett, and director Christopher McQuarrie, meeting fans and taking questions from the press. But it was Jeff Gordon's presence, walking the carpet alongside his family, that grabbed the motorsports community's attention.

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is already off to a flying start. Before its official U.S. release on May 23, the film had already collected over $25 million in international markets, including India, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

Angelica Vale, Tom Cruise, Yordi Rosado, and Christopher McQuarrie attend the "Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning" Mexico Red Carpet and Premiere. Source: Getty

Industry analysts are optimistic about the film's domestic box office debut, especially given the strong momentum. The return of Ethan Hunt might see the franchise's eighth installment become one of 2025's highest-grossing films.

---

Jeff Gordon and Tom Cruise to unite for A Days of Thunder revival?

Jeff Gordon during the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Source: Imagn

Jeff Gordon's appearance on the red carpet reignited speculation about the sequel to Tom Cruise's Days of Thunder. Cruise's 1990 stock car drama helped mainstream NASCAR culture for a whole new generation and has remained a long-discussed project between the two. That tease has only grown stronger in recent months.

After the 2025 Daytona 500, Jeff Gordon told the media (via Peter Stratta):

"I've absolutely talked to Tom about it, because I want him to do the project, and we (Hendrick Motorsports) want to be a part of it if it were to happen. He seems to like to tease it. We'll see what happens. If that doesn't happen, I feel pretty confident there's a project out there that will get NASCAR back on the big screen." (1:01 onwards)

The original Days of Thunder was directed by Tony Scott, featuring Cruise as the brash Cole Trickle, a fictional Cup Series driver. The film also starred Nicole Kidman and Robert Duvall and quickly became a cult favorite.

That legacy has recently been refreshed by newer projects like Netflix's NASCAR: Full Speed 2, which brought behind-the-scenes access and driver stories to streaming audiences. The growing success of such motorsports-based content has reignited conversations about NASCAR's cinematic potential, whether through a Days of Thunder sequel or another big-screen venture.