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Toy Fast and Toy Furious

Hot Wheels live-action movie now in development

By Christian Imperio Published Apr 26, 2022 2:06 pm

A live-action movie adaptation of Hot Wheels is officially making its way to the big screen.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Mattel, Inc. confirmed on Tuesday that J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot will produce a live-action film adaptation of the iconic toy racing car brand.

No further details were announced as of the moment but the studios did confirm in a joint statement that the high-throttle film will bring to life the beloved multi-generational franchise which includes some of the world’s hottest cars, monster trucks and motorcycles.

“As the global leader in car culture, Hot Wheels has been igniting the challenger spirit in auto enthusiasts for generations,” Mattel Films executive producer Robbie Brenner  said. “Fans of all ages are now in for the ride of their lives with the incredible talent of J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot joining us alongside Warner Bros. Pictures to transform Hot Wheels’ legendary IP into a thrilling story for the big screen.”

According to the NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service, the 54-year-old brand is the number one selling toy in the world, with over eight billion vehicles sold.

Spanning decades in the toy industry, the iconic car toy brand is considered as the world’s leading vehicle franchise, representing and uniting all segments of car culture for kids and kids at heart.

Since its inception, the brand has also proven its influence in automotive and pop culture with legendary design and epic performance through collaborations with global leaders in automotive, streetwear, fashion, luxury, entertainment, gaming, action sports and motorsports.

“Growing up, Hot Wheels were more than just cars, they were vehicles for our imaginations,” said Peter Dodd, vice president of Production, Warner Bros. Pictures.  “Today, we at Warner Bros. are thrilled to bring that imagination to the big screen with Robbie Brenner and the creative team at Mattel along with the ingenious minds of J.J. Abrams, Hannah Minghella and the team at Bad Robot.”

For her part, Bad Robot president of motion pictures Hannah Minghella said, “Before Hot Wheels became the global household name it is today, it was the dream of Elliot Handler, who was inventing and building toy cars at home in his Southern California garage. It’s that imagination, passion, and risk-taking spirit that we want to capture in this film.”

Vice president Kevin McKeon along with creative executive Andrew Scannell will lead the project for Mattel Films. Peter Dodd will lead the project for Warner Bros. Pictures, while Hannah Minghella and Jon Cohen will oversee for Bad Robot.

Aside from Hot Wheels, Mattel Films and Warner Bros. Pictures are also working on the upcoming movie adaptation of Barbie, with Margot Robbie serving as producer and star.

In addition to Hot Wheels, some of Mattel Films development slate includes movies based on American Girl, Barney, Magic 8 Ball, Major Matt Mason, Masters of the Universe, Polly Pocket, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, Thomas & Friends, UNO, View Master, and Wishbone. Mattel Films is also developing Christmas Balloon, based on all-new IP.

Meanwhile, Bad Robot has a wide slate of film projects in development under its Warner Bros. Discovery deal, including Superman written by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Zatanna written by Emerald Fennell and the animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ iconic children’s book Oh The Places You’ll Go with Jon Chu attached to direct.

Bad Robot is currently in post-production on the female driven thriller LOU starring Allison Janney and Jurnee Smollett for Netflix as well as working with director Matt Shakman on a new Star Trek film for Paramount.