Lord of the Rings star Orlando Bloom joins Gran Turismo movie

Last week, the first Gran Turismo movie casting details were revealed, with Stranger Things star David Harbour and young British actor Archie Madekwe starring in the video game adaptation of the popular racing game franchise. And now the biggest movie star yet has joined the cast.

Lord of the Rings star Orlando Bloom joins Gran Turismo movie

According to Hollywood Reporter, Orlando Bloom is set to star in the Gran Turismo movie alongside David Harbour. Inspired by a true story, the movie adaptation will tell the story of a teenager who enters an esports competition to become a professional racing driver for Nissan.

Madekwe will play the teenage driver, while Harbour will play a retired racing driver who teache him to drive.

Bloom, on the other hand, will play a “hungry marketing exec who is selling the sport of motor racing.”

The plot is expected to be a retelling of 2011 GT Academy winner Jann Mardenborough’s journey from Gran Turismo gamer to real-life racing driver.

After winning the 2011 GT Academy, Mardenborough went on to race at Le Mans in the LMP2 class, finishing third in 2013. It’s a perfect story for a Hollywood movie adaptation, though Bloom’s character might be fictional to dramatise the story.

Bloom is best known for starring in The Lord of the Rings trilogy as Legolas, as well as his starring role in the Pirates of the Caribbean series as Will Turner.

Release date

Directed by Neill Blomkamp, the director of District 9, Chappie, and Elysium, Gran Turismo is racing into theatres on 11 August 2023. The script is being written by Jason Hall, who wrote the script for American Sniper and will also serve as Executive Producer alongside Gran Turismo series creator Kazunori Yamauchi.

According to Hollywood Reporter, shooting for the Gran Turismo movie starts this week in Europe, so it’s going to be a while until we get to see a trailer.