Sony is racing out with its adaptation of the PlayStation video game franchise “Gran Turismo.”
The studio has set an August 11, 2023, release date for the “Gran Turismo” movie and has locked in “District 9” filmmaker Neill Blomkamp to direct the film.
A logline has also been released for the film, which is surprisingly based on a true story. The film follows the ultimate wish fulfillment tale of a teenage “Gran Turismo” player whose gaming skills won a series of Nissan competitions that led him to become an actual professional racecar driver. Though specific plot and character details are still being kept under wraps.
Jason Hall wrote the screenplay, and PlayStation Productions’ Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan are producing the film alongside Doug Belgrad and Dana Brunetti.
Sony and PlayStation are working on several other films and series inspired by their video game franchises, including projects based on “Ghosts of Tsushima,” “Horizon Zero Dawn” and “God of War” that are all in early, early stages of development. And the studio had some success early this year with the release of “Uncharted.”
The “Gran Turismo” franchise is a hyper-realistic simulation of automotive racing, and the video games all feature real-world vehicles and are designed to meticulously emulate the appearance and performance of the actual cars. The franchise dates all the way back to the original PlayStation 1 with the first release arriving in 1997, and it has continued with releases to this day on the PlayStation 5, with “GT 7” releasing in March and has over time become the highest selling PlayStation franchise, selling 85 million units worldwide.
The games have also become popular on the esports circuit and have spawned events and the GT Academy to help develop drivers and players around the world.
