The live-action feature
“Speed Racer
”
will start its engines to open on May 9, 2008, two weeks earlier than
previously slated. In addition to opening wide domestically, the
actioner will be released day-and-date in a majority of the
international markets. The announcement was made today by Dan Fellman,
President of Domestic Distribution, and Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, President
of International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures.
In making the announcement, Fellman stated,
“We
have been excited about
‘Speed Racer
’
since we first announced the project. We see it as a movie with
broad-based, worldwide appeal
—from adults to
teens to families
—making it the perfect film
to lead off our exciting 2008 Summer slate. We want to give
‘Speed
Racer
’ the maximum playability throughout the
season, so moving it up to the earliest possible date made the most
sense.
”
Kwan-Rubinek added,
“Opening
‘Speed
Racer
’ day-and-date with the U.S. in most
international markets will not only allow audiences to see the film
early but will maximize business before the start of the European Soccer
Championships.
”
“Speed Racer
” is
being written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, marking the
brothers
’ first writing/directing
collaboration since their groundbreaking
“Matrix
”
movies. The film is being produced by Joel Silver under his Silver
Pictures banner.
Based on the classic series created by anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida, the
big-screen
“Speed Racer
”
will follow the adventures of the young race car driver Speed in his
quest for glory in his thundering Mach 5.
“Speed Racer
” is a
Warner Bros. Pictures presentation, in association with Village Roadshow
Pictures, of a Silver Pictures Production.
