Sony has officially raised the green flag on the production of Gran Turismo. The live-action feature film is based on the popular gaming franchise of the same name.
Sony Pictures had racing fans celebrating over the weekend as work on Neill Blomkamp's take on the big screen adaptation of the first-party Sony title is finally underway. In addition to this announcement, Sony dropped an image from the set that reveals the official logo for the film. If you look closely at the background, you can make out our official first look at the upcoming film, and we're already salivating.
It doesn't take a gear head to tell that the background shows at least four Nissan GT-Rs, the so-called "Godzilla" of the racing world, all gearing up to race at the Hungaroring in Hungary. The said race track plays host to the annual Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix. This guarantees Sony is aiming for authenticity. Interestingly enough, all four cars are pointing the wrong way around the track.
Filming is now underway on #GranTurismoMovie - based on the inspiring true story of a Gran Turismo player, Jann Mardenborough, who won a series of gaming competitions leading him to become an actual professional racecar driver. 🎬🏎 pic.twitter.com/gV13gEg2G5
— Sony Pictures (@SonyPictures) November 12, 2022
It's been rumored to the plot of the Gran Turismo movie will take inspiration from the story of Jann Mardenborough, the most successful product from Sony's GTA Academy program. After winning the competition in 2011, Mardenborough ended up becoming a professional racer. He's since taken part in races in the British GT, GP3, Toyota Racing Series, as well as the Le Mans, Super GT (both GT300 and GT500 classes) and Super Formula.
Mardenborough currently serves as the simulator driver for the Nissan e.dams Formula E team. We wouldn't be surprised if he ends up joining the Gran Turismo film in some way or form.
Sony only just started filming Gran Turismo, so don't expect to see a trailer until we're closer to its release on August 11, 2023.
In the meantime, racing fans can keep themselves busy playing Gran Turismo 7, which critics consider one of the series' best entries in years. Aside from Gran Turismo, Sony is also working on many more adaptations of its popular properties such as The Last of Us, Twisted Metal, Ghost of Tsushima, God of War, Horizon, and, quite possibly, a sequel to Uncharted.
