There are a lot of upcoming films and television projects that we’ve kept our eyes on lately, all being adaptations of video games. Sony has been throwing everything they have at this kind of multi-media expansion with “The Last of Us,” “Twisted Metal,” and “Days Gone” all set to be either series or films. Also among these is “Gran Turismo,” Sony’s premiere driving simulation game, with “District 9″ director Neill Blomkamp behind the wheel.
While the film’s lead may seem like a bit of an odd casting choice, one could say that uh, “Stranger Things” have happened!
“Hellboy” star David Harbour will lead the cast of this hopefully interesting take on the successful gaming franchise. Harbour will be playing a retired race car driver who takes on the role of a mentor to an up and coming young driver. If that doesn’t sound very “Gran Turismo” like, it is actually inspired by a true story.
In 2011, Jann Mardenborough won the GT Academy championship. This allowed him the opportunity to transition into actual racing circuits, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Toyota Racing Series, and European Formula Three championships. So as far-fetched as it may seem, the detail and dedication the team puts into their games CAN apparently equip people with the rudimentary skills needed to understand professional driving. Given the advancements in technology that allow for more realistic physics in games as well as more realistic driving controllers, this is not entirely surprising.
Also not entirely surprising Harbour would be involved in a video game adaptation. While we can’t say if he’s a “Gran Turismo” fan, but we do know the actor is a HUGE “Diablo 2” player; as evidenced from his Twitter account.
Sometimes movies based on games falter heavily because they are too reliant on trying to adapt a narrative that really only works for a game. Some experiences and stories are best left to the medium they were originally created for. With something that has no plot, like Gran Turismo, writers and directors have a lot more agency to be free with their story telling. There’s a distinct chance that as unlikely as it may seem, we could end up with a decent film out of this!
“Gran Turismo” is currently slated to hit screens on August 11th, 2023.
