Turbo (2013 film)

Turbo
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDavid Soren
Screenplay by
Story byDavid Soren
Produced byLisa Stewart
Starring
CinematographyChris Stover
Edited byJames Ryan[1]
Music byHenry Jackman
Production
company
Distributed by20th Century Fox[2]
Release dates
  • May 20, 2013 (2013-05-20) (CineEurope)[3]
  • July 17, 2013 (2013-07-17) (United States)
Running time
96 minutes[1][4]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$127-135 million[5][6]
Box office$282.6 million[7]

Turbo is a 2013 American animated sports comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The film was directed by David Soren (in his feature directorial debut) from a screenplay he co-wrote with Darren Lemke and Robert Siegel.[8] It stars Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Michael Peña, Luis Guzmán, Snoop Dogg, Maya Rudolph, Michelle Rodriguez, Jeff Bennett, Samuel L. Jackson and Bill Hader.[8] Set in Los Angeles, the film follows an ordinary garden snail Theo/Turbo (Reynolds) who pursues his dream of winning the Indy 500 after a freak accident gives him superspeed.

Soren came up with the idea for the film. He conceptualized The Fast and the Furious (2001) with snails and won the competition. DreamWorks Animation bought the idea, and let it "simmer" for more than five years. After Soren and his family moved into a new home with a backyard infested with snails, he pushed for the idea and "got it back on the fast track." For the racing side of the film, Soren was inspired by his six-year-old son's fascination with race cars.

Turbo premiered at the CineEurope on May 20, 2013, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 17, 2013.[9] It received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its animation, humor, and voice acting, but criticism for its lack of originality. This was the first film to not use the News Corporation byline in the 20th Century Fox logo since News Corporation was split into two separate companies: News Corp and 21st Century Fox in 2013. Despite earning $282.5 million on a $127 million budget, the film underperformed at the box office, prompting the studio to take a $15.6 million write-down on behalf of the film. A television series based on the film, titled Turbo Fast, with only Ken Jeong and Michael Patrick Bell reprising their roles, was put into production a year before the film's release,[10] and it first aired on Netflix on December 24, 2013.[11]

The film was dedicated to character effects animator Nicholas Sanger Hoppe, who died from complications relating to his brain cancer-positive diagnosis before the film was released.

  1. ^ a b Debruge, Peter (July 10, 2013). "Film Review: 'Turbo'". Variety. Archived from the original on July 12, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
  2. ^ Finke, Nikki (August 20, 2012). "EXCLUSIVE: DreamWorks Animation To Fox For New 5-Year Distribution Deal; UPDATE: Paying Fees Of 8% Theatrical And 6% Digital". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 21, 2012.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference THRCineEurope was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "TURBO (U)". British Board of Film Classification. July 12, 2013. Archived from the original on July 13, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  5. ^ Schwartzel, Erich (July 31, 2013). "DreamWorks Animation Earnings: A Good Showing". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on August 31, 2015. Retrieved August 31, 2015. DreamWorks' final production budget for "Turbo" was $127 million. A previous version of this article put the budget at $135 million.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference VarietyDiversification was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Turbo (2013)". Box Office Mojo. February 8, 2013. Archived from the original on October 7, 2014. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  8. ^ a b "Dreamworks Animation is Off to the Races with High-Octane Cast for Turbo In 2013". DreamWorks Animation. February 24, 2012. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Variety was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Zahed, Ramin (December 19, 2013). "'Turbo FAST' Poised to Win the Race on Netflix". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on December 25, 2013. Retrieved December 24, 2013.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference PRNewswireSeries was invoked but never defined (see the help page).