Sony’s Gran Turismo film hits theaters in August 2023

Sony’s upcoming Gran Turismo film is apparently hitting theaters sooner than we might have expected — its scheduled for release on August 11th, 2023, according to a new report from Deadline. Neill Blomkamp is set to direct the movie, which is supposed to be based on a true story.

Seriously. Here’s the official logline (aka short summary) of the movie, per Deadline: “Based on a true story, the film is the ultimate wish fulfillment tale of a teenage Gran Turismo player whose gaming skills won a series of Nissan competitions to become an actual professional race car driver.” That means the film likely pulls from the story of someone from the GT Academy, which let Gran Turismo pros compete to join a real-life racing team sponsored by Nissan from 2008 until its last iteration in 2016. Deadline’s report doesn’t include casting details.

The movie is just one of many adaptations of PlayStation games in the works for the big and small screen. Inklings of the Gran Turismo movie first hit last month alongside news that a Horizon Zero Dawn Netflix series was in development. Will Arnett will play Sweet Tooth in the Twisted Metal show headed to Peacock. Filming on HBO’s The Last of Us show wrapped last week, though that show won’t be released this year. Sony announced a Ghost of Tsushima movie last year and is reportedly working on a God of War TV show with Amazon.

That might feel like a lot of video game adaptations, but some recent films based on gaming franchises have been big hits, which could indicate Sony’s strategy will pay off. Sega and Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 surpassed the original at the box office, while Sony struck gold with its Uncharted movie released this year despite mixed reviews (including from The Verge).