Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise have been duking it out at the box office in recent weeks, with passion projects that have yielded wildly different results. Both have long solidified their status as two of Hollywood’s most bankable stars, their parallel careers marked by prestige films and blockbusters. Tracking their filmographies, neither really has a leg over the other in terms of overall success. However, their recent gambles are noteworthy — after trouncing Digger in theaters, Pitt’s Heart of the Beast has now officially outpaced another Cruise-led vehicle.
Heart of the Beast is quietly having a great run, performing exceptionally well even after four weeks in theaters. It’s the textbook definition of an organic sleeper hit; despite earning a modest $20 million domestically on opening, it held its own against breakout hits Resident Evil and the Avengers: Endgame re-release, registering a respectable 45.7% drop on its second weekend. Bolstered by an A- CinemaScore, critical acclaim, and an overwhelming 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, Heart of the Beast has now earned $171 million globally, overtaking Cruise’s action classic, Days of Thunder.
Tom Cruise Rode the Wave of ‘Top Gun’s Success with ‘Days of Thunder’
Released as a summer tentpole in 1990, Days of Thunder was marketed as “Top Gun on wheels,” banking on Cruise’s previous career milestone. The high-octane NASCAR drama took the top spot at the US box office at launch, grossing $15 million on debut, followed by an impressively low 30.9% drop on its second weekend. It ultimately grossed $157 million worldwide after seven weeks in theaters, and despite mixed reception from audiences and critics, it was a modest hit, earning more than twice its $60 million budget.
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Days of Thunder‘s box office prospects mirrored Heart of the Beast‘s in retrospect, considering the latter’s $82 million production spend. The scale of the films varies significantly, however; directed by David Ayer, Pitt’s survival drama is essentially a stripped-down two-hander, while Days of Thunder boasted a stacked cast led by Cruise and starring Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Nicole Kidman, John C. Reilly, Cary Elwes, and Michael Rooker; the film also had Hollywood’s top creatives backing it, helmed by Top Gun director Tony Scott, scored by Hans Zimmer, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer.
|
Heart of the Beast |
Days of Thunder |
|
|
Opening Weekend Gross |
$20 million |
$15 million |
|
Second-Week Drop Rate |
45.7% |
30.9% |
|
Global Gross |
$171 million |
$157 million |
|
Production Budget |
$82 million |
$60 million |
|
Rotten Tomatoes Score (Critics) |
84% |
95% |
|
Rotten Tomatoes Score (Audiences) |
38% |
60% |
Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt’s Reunion Sparks ‘F1’ and ‘Days of Thunder’ Crossover Rumors
Cruise and Pitt recently dispelled a long-standing rumor about their professional rivalry, which stemmed from behind-the-scenes tension during their only collaborative effort, Interview with a Vampire. The duo reunited in June 2025 at the London premiere of Pitt’s own racing drama, F1, which went on to gross an incredible $634 million worldwide to secure its spot as the highest-grossing film of his career. That reunion sparked rumors of an impending F1 and Days of Thunder crossover, with Bruckheimer adding fuel to the fire by expressing enthusiasm about the prospect. F1 director Joseph Kosinski also pitched a premise for the sequel, which remains one of Hollywood’s unrealized “what-if” projects.
Meanwhile, Cruise is going all-in with Days of Thunder 2, which is slated for release in June 2028, 38 years after the original. The film made headway toward the big screen with its first casting update, but unfortunately, Pitt will not be part of the ensemble.
