Box Office: Gran Turismo Off to Slow Start, Could Finish First

Sony's Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story speeds into theaters this weekend, and the racing sports drama based on the PlayStation video game could score the No. 1 spot at the box office. The true-story movie made $1.4 million in Thursday previews, adding to its $22.6 million global haul for a current worldwide total of $24 million. Originally dated for two weeks earlier, Sony Pictures previewed Gran Turismo over the August 11th and August 18th weekends before opening the Neill Blomkamp-directed pic wide in 3,156 theaters Friday, August 25th.

Box office forecasts have Gran Turismo placing first with a projected $17 million opening weekend counting previews, with an expected boost from the discounted $4 tickets for all movies this National Cinema Day on Sunday, August 27th. Warner Bros.' Barbie remains the box office champion, adding another $2.285 million on Thursday to its global $1.29 billion haul; DC's Blue Beetle dropped back into second place Thursday with $1.34 million, bringing its worldwide total to $52.1 million after a week in theaters.

Sony shifted Gran Turismo off its August 11th opening at the last minute when the studio reconfigured its slate four weeks ago, dating Venom and Bad Boys 4 for summer 2024 and delaying Kraven the Hunter from this October to August 2024 and pushing Ghostbusters 4 from December to spring 2024. "The stars can't promote the film, but the audience can," a Sony spokesperson said of the two-week, fan-driven Gran Turismo previews amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors' strike barring the movie's stars, including David Harbour and Orlando Bloom, from promotion.  

Gran Turismo is based on the unbelievable true story of a team of underogs — struggling working-class gamer-turned-racer Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe), a failed former racecar driver (Harbour), and an idealistic motorsport executive (Bloom). Together, they risk it all to take on the most elite sport in the world. Sony describes Gran Turismo as "an inspiring, thrilling, and action-packed story that proves that nothing is impossible when you're fueled from within." 

"[It's] not believable," the real Mardenborough told ComicBook. "When I first bought my first car in [the video game] Gran Turismo 1 when I was 8, it was a pink Mitsubishi GT 1, if I would've spoken to that kid back then and said 'In 11 years time, you're gonna use this game Gran Turismo 5, and you're going to become a racing driver after this competition. He'd be like, 'No way.'"

Also starring Darren Barnet, Geri Halliwell Horner, and Djimon Hounsou, Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story is now playing exclusively in theaters.