Sony Pictures has announced that production on its upcoming all-star racing movie Gran Turismo has officially begun in Hungary. The announcement comes with the release of its first set photo, teasing the shooting of the film’s thrilling racing sequences.
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The film adaptation is directed by Neill Blomkamp from a screenplay written by co-executive producer Jason Hall and Zach Baylin. It stars David Harbour, Archie Madekwe, Orlando Bloom, Darren Barnet, Djimon Hounsou, Geri Halliwell-Horner, Daniel Puig, Josha Stradowski, and German actor Thomas Kretschmann.
Gran Turismo is expected to follow the story of a teenager with racing aspirations as they enter a series of Nissan competitions en route to becoming an actual professional race car driver — a true story that the film is based on. Production is set to begin next week in Europe.
It is produced by Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan, Doug Belgrad, and Dana Brunetti, with game creator Kazunori Yamauchi executive producing. The film is currently slated for an August 11, 2023, theatrical release.
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Originally released in 1997, the Gran Turismo franchise has gone on to become one of the most popular racing video game properties ever, known for its meticulous level of detail and realism. Gran Turismo 7 is the latest game in the franchise, releasing on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 in March of this year. The game received high scores from the reviewing press and impressed fans with its attention to detail and its expansive gameplay options. It was criticized for the grind needed to get its vehicles, but Polyphony Digital has slowly been addressing those concerns.