Aspen Kennedy has joined the cast of AMC’s upcoming NASCAR drama Thunder Road, set to debut on AMC and AMC+ in 2027.
Created by John Fusco, Thunder Road follows the fictional Whitlock family across generations, a stock car racing dynasty with roots stretching back to Southern hill country and old moonshine runs. Dennis Quaid stars as racing legend Duane Whitlock, known as The Wrecking Ball, a towering figure fighting to keep his family’s blue-collar empire alive against ruthless competitors intent on tearing it down.
Joining Kennedy in the new round of casting are Josh Macqueen, Haley Dillon, and Mackenzie Porter, rounding out a cast that already includes series regulars Chase Stokes, Michael Rooker, Matt Barr, Maggie Grace, West Duchovny, and Shane McRae, along with recurring players Rooker and Devon Allman.
Here’s how the new additions fit into the world of Whitlock Racing: Kennedy will heavily recur as Bobby “Breeze” Roberts, every sponsor’s dream, easygoing and dependable both on and off the track, though beneath the surface he’s chasing an ambition to break out of the middle of the pack. Macqueen guest stars as Trey Whitlock, Duane’s youngest son, a gifted young driver making his long-awaited Cup Series debut while carrying the weight of keeping the family’s race team afloat. Dillon guest stars as Dakota Voss, the youngest Lead Race Engineer in NASCAR, who’s brought her aerospace background to modernize Farley Performance. And Porter will also heavily recur, playing Bonnie Taylor-Whitlock, an aspiring country singer with more business savvy than she lets on, helping her husband Calvin build out his taproom.
Fusco executive produces alongside showrunner Taylor Elmore, Cliff Roberts of Syndicate Entertainment, Mark L. Smith, and NASCAR Studios’ Tim Clark and John Dahl, with Gladys Cheng serving as producer. The series is produced in association with NASCAR and was greenlit at AMC in April.
The casting adds to a busy stretch for Kennedy, who first broke through on OWN’s Queen Sugar before landing a leading role in Sony Pictures’ The Forge and a recurring part on CBS’s Fire Country. He recently completed the historical drama Florida Wild, set during the 1880s cattle drive era, and stars as Joseph “Junie” Love in the faith-based film God With Us, a modern reimagining of the Nativity co-starring Ashley Olivia Fisher, Lil Rel Howery, and Rotimi, hitting select theaters November 13.
Macqueen most recently appeared in Amazon/MGM’s Motorheads and stars in Netflix’s Surviving Summer, and has wrapped work on the upcoming Netflix series The Sticks and the indie feature U.A.P.
Dillon is known for playing Dixie opposite Johnathon Schaech in Blue Ridge, with additional credits including the feature Bad Counselors and an appearance in Luke Combs’s music video for “The Kind of Love We Make.”
Porter currently recurs on Ryan Murphy’s 9-1-1: Nashville and previously appeared on Prime Video’s The Runarounds. She starred as the lead in Netflix’s Travelers and held a series regular role on AMC’s Hell on Wheels.
Let me know if there’s a specific part that’s still tripping you up, happy to reshape it further.