Hollywood A-Lister Joins Highly Anticipated NASCAR TV Show

NASCAR’s latest project, “Thunder Road”, in collaboration with AMC, is underway. The latest Hollywood star to join the cast is Dennis Quaid.

 The Parent Trap fame will be taking on the lead role of Duane Whitlock, who is described as a NASCAR legend. According to The Deadline, the character is described as “a towering figure who built a racing empire from a legacy of moonshine runs and dirt tracks… and refuses to let it die.”

‘Thunder Road’ is described as “a multi-generational saga of the Whitlock family, whose legacy in stock car racing is as deep as the family’s ties to the southern hill country roots that shaped them.”

The show is a nod to the moonshine runners who basically started NASCAR.  Deadline, who first reported the news of Quaid getting cast, stated that the fans will get a peak into how it all started and not just the modern form of the sport.

John Fusco, the veteran screenwriter, is the executive producer alongside Cliff Roberts, who also produced Netflix’s Untamed, Mark L. Smith from The Revenant, and Twisters. Fusco is also teaming up with NASCAR insiders like Tim Clark and John Dahl.

Fusco describes the show as ‘Succession with stock cars’. NASCAR has had movies such as the 1990 film starring Tom Cruise, ‘Days of Thunder’, or ‘Cars’, but this will be the first TV show dedicated to telling the history of the sport. Production of the

Films and documentaries surrounding NASCAR.

With the upcoming TV series, it is not the first time NASCAR has set foot into the entertainment industry. 

They recently debuted a docuseries called ‘RISING’ on YouTube featuring the rising stars of NASCAR. It revolves around Carson Hocevar, Jesse Love, and Rajah Caruth. The series will present a behind-the-scenes look at the driver’s campaigns for the viewers.

They also recently premiered their third season of  “Full Speed: Daytona 500” on Prime Video. The documentary gives a peek inside the Daytona 500. The story revolves around four drivers: Kyle Busch, Connor Zilisch, Brad Keselowski, and Noah Gragson, and their families. 

With many motorsports having their own movies or Netflix series, it was time for NASCAR to bring its sport to the big screen and expand its fanbase.