Speed Racer (2008)

Speed Racer is a 2008 American sports action comedy film written and directed by the Wachowskis, based on the 1966 manga series by Tatsuo Yoshida. The film stars Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, John Goodman, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, Roger Allam, Benno Fürmann, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rain, and Richard Roundtree. The plot revolves around Speed Racer, an 18-year-old automobile racer who follows his apparently deceased brother's career, choosing to remain loyal to his family and their company, Racer Motors, which causes difficulties after he refuses a contract that E.P. Arnold Royalton, owner of Royalton Industries, offers him.

A live-action Speed Racer film had been in development hell since 1992. In 2006, producer Joel Silver and the Wachowskis began production on the film. Speed Racer was shot in and around Potsdam and Berlin from June to August 2007.

Speed Racer premiered on April 26, 2008, at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, and was released in the United States on May 9, by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was a box office failure, grossing $94 million against a $120 million budget. In later years, the film would garner a strong cult following among filmmakers and audiences. It was nominated in three categories at the Teen Choice Awards.