Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway is facing boycott calls over “Days of Thunder 2” after a video resurfaced showing her describing abortion as a possible act of “mercy.” The clip began circulating again shortly after Hathaway was announced as Tom Cruise’s co-star in the long-awaited sequel. One post called her remarks “straight up demonic” and warned moviegoers against supporting the film.
Hathaway is set to appear alongside Cruise in the sequel to the 1990 NASCAR drama, with Cruise returning as driver Cole Trickle. Her casting immediately revived scrutiny of her outspoken support for abortion and other left-wing causes. The announcement was also followed by criticism from original “Days of Thunder” actor Randy Quaid, who called Hathaway a “leftist, woke, horrible choice” for a movie aimed at NASCAR fans.
The video came from Hathaway’s November 1st, 2022, appearance on ABC’s “The View,” several months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and returned authority over abortion laws to the states. Joy Behar prompted the discussion by mentioning an Instagram post Hathaway had published about the ruling. Hathaway defended abortion while discussing women beginning their careers.
X account Glockford Files shared the resurfaced clip alongside a direct call for moviegoers to reject the sequel. “Anne Hathaway is going to star in the upcoming Days of Thunder 2,” the post said. “Seems like a boycott is in order. This is straight up demonic.” Several users, alongside Dana Loesch, predicted the movie’s failure or voiced their plans to stay home.
In the included video, Hathaway invoked her own personal experience while arguing that abortion could be considered compassionate. She didn’t go into detail about what that personal experience involved, but told the panel, “My own personal experience with abortion, and I don’t think we talk about this enough, abortion can be another word for mercy.” Hathaway then paused before adding, “We don’t know. We don’t know.”
Hathaway claimed that the circumstances surrounding every pregnancy is different. “We know that no two pregnancies are alike, and it follows that no two lives are alike. It follows that no two conceptions are alike,” she said. Hathaway continued, “So how can we have a law? How can we have a point of view on this that says we must treat everything the same?” She concluded her argument by declaring, “When you allow for choice, you allow for flexibility, which is what we need in order to be human.”
Watch Hathaway’s comments here:
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Anne Hathaway: Killing a baby in an abortion is an act of “mercy.” pic.twitter.com/qMzJjlCcVk
— LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) September 1, 2026
During the broader 2022 discussion, Hathaway connected abortion access to the careers of young women. Referring to her character in the 2006 film “The Devil Wears Prada,” she said that “reproductive destiny matters a great deal” when a young woman is beginning her career. Hathaway added that she could no longer take “the freedom of choice” for granted following the Supreme Court’s decision.
Hathaway attempted to remove morality from the abortion debate entirely. “This is not a moral conversation about abortion,” she said. “This is a practical conversation about women’s rights, and by the way, human rights, because women’s rights are human rights.” Her description of abortion as “mercy” quickly became the central focus of the renewed backlash.
The predictions of the movie’s failure began popping up all over social media. Dana Loesch shared the clip and warned, “This doesn’t bode well for when Days of Thunder promo starts.” Another user predicted, “She is going to kill the box office for that film. What Hollywood genius made that casting decision?” Others voiced their plans to simply stay home rather than give attention to the star.
“I was excited about a sequel until I heard she was the co-star,” another user wrote. “Loved the original, but I’m going to have to give this one a hard pass, unfortunately.” A commenter beneath the Glockford Files post was even more direct, declaring, “Days of Thunder 2 is already DOA!” A release date has been set at Paramount for June 2nd, 2028.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.