| Cars 2 | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | John Lasseter |
| Screenplay by | Ben Queen |
| Story by |
|
| Produced by | Denise Ream |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography |
|
| Edited by | Stephen Schaffer |
| Music by | Michael Giacchino |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures[a] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 106 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $200 million[1] |
| Box office | $559.8 million[2] |
Cars 2 is a 2011 American animatedspycomedy film[3] produced byPixar Animation Studios forWalt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel toCars (2006) and the second film in theCars franchise. The film was directed byJohn Lasseter, co-directed byBrad Lewis, produced by Denise Ream, and written byBen Queen, Lasseter, Lewis, andDan Fogelman.Larry the Cable Guy,Owen Wilson,Tony Shalhoub, Guido Quaroni,Bonnie Hunt, andJohn Ratzenberger reprise their roles from the first film, withMichael Caine,Emily Mortimer,John Turturro,Eddie Izzard, joining the voice cast. In the film,Mater (Cable Guy) unintentionally gets caught up in a risky espionage mission that threatens both his andLightning McQueen's (Wilson) lives during the World Grand Prix, an international racing event showcasing a newalternative fuel called Allinol.
A sequel toCars was first announced in April 2008 with a tentative summer 2012 release date, which was later moved up to the summer of 2011.[4] Lasseter was confirmed to be returning as director, while Lewis was designated as co-director in June 2010. The film's story was conceived by Lasseter while he was traveling around the world promoting the first film.Michael Giacchino composed the film's score, with artists such asWeezer,Robbie Williams,Brad Paisley andBénabar contributing tracks for the film. This was the final Pixar film animated using its old software system, Marionette, before being officially replaced withPresto in 2012. With an estimated budget of $200 million,Cars 2 is one of themost expensive films ever made.
Cars 2 premiered at theEl Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on June 18, 2011, and was released in the United States on June 24, inDisney Digital 3D andIMAX 3D as well as traditional two-dimensional andIMAX formats. Despite mixed reviews from critics,Cars 2 was a box office success, grossing over $559 million worldwide, becoming thetenth-highest-grossing film of 2011 and the highest-grossing film of theCars trilogy. The film was nominated forBest Animated Feature Film at the69th Golden Globe Awards, but lost toThe Adventures of Tintin. A sequel,Cars 3, was released on June 16, 2017.
British spyFinn McMissile infiltrates anoil rig in the Pacific Ocean owned by criminallemon cars to rescue fellow spy Leland Turbo. He witnesses the lemons, seemingly led byGerman weapons designerProfessor Zündapp, loading anelectromagnetic pulse (EMP) emitter disguised as aTV camera onto a shipping crate. After discovering Turbo's death at the hands of the lemons, Finn is exposed and he escapes by faking his death.
After winning his fourth Piston Cup honoring the late Doc Hudson,Lightning McQueen returns toRadiator Springs to spend the off-season with his friends. Italianformula race carFrancesco Bernoulli challenges Lightning to participate in the World Grand Prix, an international three-race event created by former oil tycoonSir Miles Axlerod, who intends to promote his new environmentally friendly fuel, Allinol. Lightning and his best friendMater, along withLuigi,Guido,Fillmore, and Sarge, depart forTokyo, where the first race takes place.
At a World Grand Prix promotional event, Mater makes a scene after eatingwasabi he mistakes for ice cream and seemingly leaking oil on stage, embarrassing Lightning. While cleaning up, Mater interrupts a fight between American spy Rod "Torque" Redline, who is tasked with delivering intel to Finn, and lemons Grem and Acer. Redline plants a device on Mater, causing Finn and his associateHolley Shiftwell to believe Mater is their contact. Meanwhile, Redline is captured and killed by Zündapp, who reveals that Allinol ignites when hit with an EMP. He informs his superior, an unknown mastermind, that Redline passed on his information. Holley recruits Mater to stop Zündapp's plot, believing him to be an undercover agent.
During the race, three racers are ignited by the camera. Lightning places second in the race due to miscommunication with Mater, who was evading Zündapp's henchmen with Holley's instructions. Lightning confronts him at the pits, snapping at him and declaring he doesn't want his help. A guilt-ridden Mater prepares to return to Radiator Springs, but is taken by Finn, and they escape from the lemons in his jet, Siddeley. After traveling toParis to gather intel from Finn's old friend Tomber, they head to Porto Corsa,Italy, where the second race takes place. Mater infiltrates the lemons' meeting as the camera ignites more racers, causing a multi-car pile-up, while Lightning wins. Due to controversy over Allinol's safety, Axlerod lifts its requirement for use in the final race inLondon. When Lightning decides to continue using it, the lemons plan to kill him during the race. This spooks Mater into blowing his cover, causing him, Finn, and Holley to be captured and tied up insideBig Bentley, where he admits to them that he is not the spy they think he is.
As the race starts, Lightning takes the lead before passing Big Bentley, but the camera inexplicably does not ignite him. The lemons tell Mater that they planted atime bomb in Lightning's pits as a backup plan, spurring him to escape. Finn and Holley escape but realize that the lemons fitted the bomb on Mater's air filter instead. As Mater is informed of this, he flees down the track and Lightning pursues him to apologize for his outburst, while Finn apprehends Zündapp. The other lemons arrive and outnumber Finn, Holley, Mater, and Lightning, but they are rescued by the other Radiator Springs residents and Sarge's colleagues in theBritish Army. Mater and Lightning go toBuckingham Palace, where Mater exposes Axlerod as the mastermind, proven when he is forced to disable the bomb. It is revealed that the World Grand Prix was Axlerod's cover-up to turn the world against alternative fuels and profit from his ownership of the world's untouched oil reserves. Axlerod and the lemons are arrested, Mater receives an honoraryknighthood from the Queen, and he and Lightning reconcile.
Back in Radiator Springs, as Mater tells everyone about his experience, Filmore and Sarge reveal that they had swapped the Allinol with Filmore's all-natural, sustainable, organic biofuel prior to the London race, explaining the camera's ineffectiveness on Lightning. The "Radiator Springs Grand Prix" is held, featuring the World Grand Prix contenders. Finn and Holley invite Mater to go on another mission, but he declines, Holley promises Mater she'll be back for their first date. While his weapons are confiscated, Mater keeps the rockets and speeds off with Lightning as Siddeley flies into the distance.
Three voice actors of the firstCars film had died since its release, leading to changes to their characters' roles inCars 2.Joe Ranft, who voicedRed, died in an automobile accident in 2005, and therefore Red has no vocal role inCars 2.George Carlin, who voicedFillmore, died of heart failure in June 2008, so Fillmore was voiced byLloyd Sherr (who also voicesTony Trihull).Paul Newman, who voicedDoc Hudson, died of cancer in September 2008. After Newman's death, Lasseter said they would "see how the story goes with Doc Hudson."[7] Doc was eventually dropped,[8] and implied to have died a few years before the events ofCars 2.
In international versions of the film, the character Jeff Gorvette is replaced with race car drivers known in their specific countries for his dialogue scenes:[9]Mark Winterbottom as Frosty in the Australian release,[10][11]Fernando Alonso in the Spanish release,Vitaly Petrov in the Russian release,Jan Nilsson as Flash in the Swedish release,[12]Memo Rojas in the Latin American release, andSebastian Vettel as Sebastian Schnell in the German release. Gorvette still appears as a competitor for most of the film. In Brazil, Gorvette is replaced by Carla Veloso in his dialogue scenes (Carla appears in all other versions of the film, but with no lines); Carla is voiced by Brazilian singerClaudia Leitte. Sportspeople still appear, with Lewis Hamilton voicingFormula One championEmerson Fittipaldi, while Brent Mustangburger and David Hobbscap are voiced by sports announcersJosé Trajano [pt] andLuciano do Valle.[13]
Cars (2006) is the secondPixar film, afterToy Story (1995), to have a sequel as well as become a franchise.[14]John Lasseter, the director of the film, explained that as withToy Story 2 (1999) andToy Story 3 (2010),[15] Pixar would only commit to doing a sequel when they have come up with idea that is different from but also as good as or better than the original film.[16] Lasseter stated that "[...] the origins ofCars 2 came from three places": the idea of having a spy movie with cars as characters inspired by an abandoned sequence from the first film, the desire to take the original film's characters around the world in an international World Grand Prix, and the heart of the film which would address "[...] McQueen and Mater's friendship and how taking Mater out of Radiator Springs fractures their friendship […]".[17] While traveling around the world promoting the first film, Lasseter imagined the characters in different countries. He said:
I kept looking out thinking, 'What wouldMater do in this situation, you know?' I could imagine him driving around on the wrong side of the road in the UK, going around in big, giant traveling circles in Paris, on theautobahn in Germany, dealing with the motor scooters in Italy, trying to figure out road signs in Japan.[18]
Pre-production began as early as 2006, the same year the first film was released, with production designerHarley Jessup tasked with designing the film's many planned sets.[19]Brad Lewis, the producer ofRatatouille (2007), was chosen to be the director.[20] Lewis was delegated with conducting the early research of the international countries andFormula One racing, while Lasseter would become more involved as the film entered production.[19] Producer Denise Ream revealed that the first storyboard for the film, which was that of the film's opening sequence, originated from a deleted scene from the first film, storyboarded by the lateJoe Ranft in 2001.[21] Ream, who came on to the film in 2008, added that the film's official production length was three-and-a-half years, quicker than the standard five years that most Pixar films take.[22] Pixar selectedBen Queen, co-creator and executive producer of theFox television seriesDrive (2007), to write the film after discovering an original screenplay of his. Queen described the screenwriting process at Pixar as "very collaborative, very fun", and found Pixar's strategy of shifting genres on sequels to be "gutsy" and showed a real confidence in vision.[15] In April 2008, Pixar unveiled its latest animation slate, withCars 2 scheduled for a summer 2012 release.[23][24] In September 2008, the film's release date was moved up to the summer of 2011.[4] In 2009, Disney registered several domain names, hinting to audiences that the title and theme of the film would be in relation to a "World Grand Prix".[25]
In February 2010, Blue Sky Disney reported that Lasseter had been spending less time at Disney and more time at Pixar to help solve story problems onCars 2.[26] In an interview the following month, Lasseter revealed that he was not directing any films at that time.[27] However, by June 2010, it was announced that Lasseter had been designated as co-director and was ultimately revealed to have replaced Lewis as the film's official main director during that time, while Lewis became the co-director.[28]
Lasseter, who had stayed busy directing theCars Toons between the completion ofCars and his work onCars 2,[27] was excited to return to directing films and described working with a team that included many new artists as "[...] really a joy" after having focused most of his time in his chief creative officer role at Pixar and Disney since the firstCars.[17] For the last year-and-a-half of the making ofCars 2, Lasseter spent nearly all of his time working on the film but occasionally checked in as executive producer onToy Story 3 (2010),Tangled (2010), andWinnie the Pooh (2011).[19][29][30] The various teams behindCars 2 found creative solutions for accommodating Lasseter's busy schedule to allow him the time and resources to direct the film on a compressed schedule while also checking in as executive producer on the other films. One critical solution came from Lasseter's partner,Steve Jobs, with the release of theiPad.[19] Supervising technical director Apurva Shah wrote a review tool app on the iPad for Lasseter that allowed him to complete reviews via recorded voice memos for all departments including lighting, animation, effects, set design, and layout when outside the office primarily during commutes to and from work. Lasseter still attended all story meetings in person.[19] "One hour on the iPad equaled three hours in the studio," according to Lasseter, who added, "I kept in touch with everyone. I did reviews in the car."[19]
Lasseter expressed thatCars 2 was an extremely personal film for him, saying "[...] I set out to make a film that was really fun from beginning to end and really different fromCars in action and setting and characters. And yet it still had the emotion, which is the hallmark of a Pixar film."[17] For the film's first research trip that included a Formula One race, the filmmaking team attended a party at the Milan Museum of Modern Art in Italy. Lasseter recounted feeling out of place at the party wearing jeans and a Hawaiian shirt while being surrounded by models and other high-profile attendants, saying he felt like Mater and would later incorporate this idea into the film.[31] Lasseter took inspiration from the television seriesThe Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964–68) as well asThe Bourne Identity (2002),The Bourne Supremacy (2004), andThe Bourne Ultimatum (2007) for incorporating the spy genre into the world ofCars.[31] He also citedAlfred Hitchcock's filmsThe Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) andNorth by Northwest (1959) as inspiration for the main storyline as they both feature an innocent character who gets caught up in a conspiracy.[32]
Originally, the World Grand Prix was going to feature five races, including a 24-hour Le Mans-style endurance race in Paris, France and a rally race in Black Forest, Germany in addition to the races in Tokyo, Japan, the fictional city of Porto Corsa, Italy and London, England that ended up in the final film. Lasseter said the race had gotten too big and the film too long, so they trimmed the event down to three races. The races in Black Forest and Paris were dropped completely, and the scene in Paris was restructured to instead have Mater, Finn and Holley stop by to consult with an informant.[33] For Italy, Ream explained that the Pixar teams decided to create a fictional town instead of recreate an existing one due to Lasseter's love of many different real towns in Italy and the desire to create a brand new Italian city that people would want to visit.[34]
Ream noted the challenge of finding the tone in a spy story for an audience that included families, saying, "That was a large part of what we ended up doing, trying to get the spy story correct and clear, so everyone could understand it. That was really tricky".[22] Story supervisor Nathan Stanton commented that among the story's biggest challenges were the scope and the heart. The passing of Paul Newman's character from the first film, Doc Hudson, was one such challenge as the original intention was for the character to come back for the sequel. Pixar ultimately chose not to recast Doc Hudson and instead imply that he had died sometime before the events ofCars 2. The story team also considered Doc's passing as an emotional plot point similar to the loss of a father figure that McQueen and Mater would deal with, but the team ultimately felt that angle didn't work and simply focused on Mater and McQueen's friendship as the emotional core.[35] Stanton added that the complexity of the story was difficult to convey, and there was not much heart in the project for a long time. The team continued to rework the story with each screening to find the right balance of showing McQueen and Mater's friendship, the World Grand Prix, and the conspiracy involving Miles Axlerod.[35]
Cars 2 was the first film Lasseter directed without the involvement of his close friend and collaborator, Joe Ranft, co-director and co-writer of the firstCars who died in 2005.[36] Ranft was a story supervisor on each of Lasseter's first four directorial efforts:Toy Story,A Bug's Life,Toy Story 2, andCars.[37] In addition, he provided minor voice roles in each of Pixar's first seven films which included Lasseter's films as well asMonsters, Inc.,Finding Nemo, andThe Incredibles.[38] Despite his absence, Ranft continued to serve as inspiration for Lasseter during the making of the film and in crafting Mater's arc. On working in Ranft's absence, Lasseter commented:
"It was rough[...]Joe was such an important part of my life. You know, like my best friend. My right hand man, my true wingman[...]You know I thought of Joe all through this. Because, you know Joe is Mater. He’s all overCars 2".[39]
Cars 2 had 118 unique sets, double that of most Pixar films up to that point apart from the 80 to 90 sets used forThe Incredibles.[19] The film called for many new techniques that the studio had not encountered before or to the level of this film. As such, Lasseter described the film as technologically ten times more complex than any previous Pixar film.[40]
Sets supervisor John Halstead emphasized that thecarification process necessary for this film was carefully handled so as to not be heavy-handed, saying "We try to add the car features in a way that sits quietly. If you’re looking for it, you will notice it, but we don’t want to detract from the characters."[19] The driving system used on the firstCars was refined to allow the animators to have the cars perform sharper turns when racing. Because the film would feature different race tracks that were each unique to their respective countries, the layout artists and sets department collaborated to create appropriate blocking paths for the cars and then tackle the challenge of setting up interesting camera angle shots during the races. Each sequence typically took four to six weeks to complete.[19] The international story called for the inclusion of numerous new kinds of cars and other vehicles. In creating the new vehicles, the automotive designers followed Lasseter's edict of "truth to materials".[19] Upon studying the first film, the filmmakers greatly reduced the number of controls used on characters in the sequel after finding that a substantial amount of them were never used in the first film.[40] The team developed new techniques for creating fully 3D cities using a software program called Procedural, Inc. and a new procedural approach for creating various types of vegetation.[19] The team also implemented a new system developed by Jerry Tessendorf into their previous system that was used to create the water inFinding Nemo to now create more realistic water and ocean surfaces for the opening sequence.[19] Additionally, the teams made low-level routine edits to the shader code used for Radiator Springs in the first film to make it compatible with the lighting in this film.[19]
According to directing animator Victor Navone, roughly 50% of the film was animated in the span of ten weeks. Navone said that while the schedule was very challenging, the collaboration between all animators boosted morale and noted that Lasseter coming on to direct the film gave the show more focus and energy.[41]
In November 2010, the film's synopsis was announced, revealing the espionage racing storyline, along with a first look image and official poster.[42][43][44] The same month,Owen Wilson,Larry the Cable Guy,Michael Caine,Emily Mortimer,Jason Isaacs,Joe Mantegna,Peter Jacobson,Bonnie Hunt,Tony Shalhoub,Cheech Marin, andThomas Kretschmann were confirmed as the voice talent featured in the film.[45] From November 2010 until May 2011, Disney released information about the remaining voice cast, includingJenifer Lewis,Katherine Helmond,Michael Wallis,Darrell Waltrip,Franco Nero,Vanessa Redgrave,Bruce Campbell,Sig Hansen, Michel Michelis,Jeff Gordon,Lewis Hamilton,Brent Musburger,David Hobbs,John Turturro, andEddie Izzard.[46]
| Cars 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by Various Artists | ||||
| Released | June 14, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Soundtrack | |||
| Length | 63:24 | |||
| Label | Walt Disney | |||
| Michael Giacchino chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Pixar film soundtrack chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Filmtracks | |
The soundtrack for the film was released on both CD and digital download on June 14, 2011.Cars 2 is the fourth Pixar film to be scored byMichael Giacchino, afterThe Incredibles,Ratatouille andUp.[47] It was also the first and only Pixar film directed by John Lasseter not to be scored byRandy Newman, who scored the first and third films of theCars franchise.
All music is composed byMichael Giacchino, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Might Think" (Cover ofThe Cars) | Ric Ocasek | Weezer | 3:07 |
| 2. | "Collision of Worlds" |
| 3:36 | |
| 3. | "Mon Cœur Fait Vroum (My Heart Goes Vroom)" |
| Bénabar | 2:49 |
| 4. | "Nobody's Fool" | Paisley | Paisley | 4:17 |
| 5. | "Polyrhythm" | Yasutaka Nakata | Perfume | 4:09 |
| 6. | "Turbo Transmission" | 0:52 | ||
| 7. | "It's Finn McMissile!" | 5:54 | ||
| 8. | "Mater the Waiter" | 0:43 | ||
| 9. | "Radiator Reunion" | 1:40 | ||
| 10. | "Cranking Up the Heat" | 1:59 | ||
| 11. | "Towkyo Takeout" | 5:40 | ||
| 12. | "Tarmac the Magnificent" | 3:27 | ||
| 13. | "Whose Engine Is This?" | 1:22 | ||
| 14. | "History's Biggest Loser Cars" | 2:26 | ||
| 15. | "Mater of Disguise" | 0:48 | ||
| 16. | "Porto Corsa" | 2:55 | ||
| 17. | "The Lemon Pledge" | 2:13 | ||
| 18. | "Mater's Getaway" | 0:59 | ||
| 19. | "Mater Warns McQueen" | 1:31 | ||
| 20. | "Going to the Backup Plan" | 2:24 | ||
| 21. | "Mater's the Bomb" | 3:17 | ||
| 22. | "Blunder and Lightning" | 2:17 | ||
| 23. | "The Other Shoot" | 1:03 | ||
| 24. | "Axlerod Exposed" | 2:22 | ||
| 25. | "The Radiator Springs Grand Prix" | 1:30 | ||
| 26. | "The Turbomater" | 0:50 | ||
| Total length: | 63:22 | |||
During the summer of 2008, John Lasseter announced thatCars 2 would be pushed forward and released in the summer of 2011, one year earlier than its original 2012 release date.[48] The US release date was later confirmed to be June 24, 2011, with a UK release date set for July 22, 2011.[49] The world premiere of the film took place at theEl Capitan Theatre in Hollywood on June 18, 2011.[50]Cars 2 was released in 4,115 theaters in the USA and Canada,[51] setting a record-high for a G-rated film[52] and for Pixar. The latter was surpassed byBrave (4,164 theaters).[53] The film was presented inDisney Digital 3D andIMAX 3D, as well as traditional two-dimensional andIMAX formats.[54]
In March 2011, Jake Mandeville-Anthony, a U.K. screenwriter,sued Disney and Pixar allegingcopyright infringement andbreach of implied contract. In his complaint he alleged thatCars andCars 2 are based in part on work that he had submitted in the early 1990s and he sought aninjunction to stop the release ofCars 2 and requestedactual orstatutory damages. On May 13, 2011, Disney responded to the lawsuit, denying "each and every one of Plaintiff's legal claims concerning the purported copyright infringement and substantial similarity of the parties' respective works."[55] On July 27, 2011, the lawsuit was dismissed by a district court judge who, in her ruling, wrote that the "Defendants have sufficiently shown that the Parties' respective works are not substantially similar in their protectable elements as a matter of law".[56]
The film was preceded by a short film titledHawaiian Vacation, directed byGary Rydstrom and starring the characters of theToy Story franchise.
The film was released byWalt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on DVD,Blu-ray,Blu-ray 3D, anddigital download on November 1, 2011. This release was produced in four different physical packages: a 1-disc DVD, a 2-disc combo pack (DVD and Blu-ray), a 5-disc combo pack (DVD, Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, and Digital Copy), and an 11-disc three movie collector's set, which featuresCars,Cars 2, andCars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales. The film was also released as a Movie Download edition in both standard and high definition.[57]
The Movie Download release includes four bonus features:Cars Toons "Air Mater", theToy Story Toon "Hawaiian Vacation", "World Tour Interactive Feature", and "Bringing Cars 2 to the World". The 1-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack releases include the shorts "Air Mater" and "Hawaiian Vacation", plus theDirector John Lasseter Commentary. The 5-disc combo pack includes all of the same bonus features as the 1-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack versions, in addition to "World Tour Interactive Feature" and "Sneak Peek: The Nuts and Bolts of Cars Land." The 11-disc three movie collection comes packaged withCars (DVD, Blu-ray, and Digital Copy),Cars 2 (DVD, Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, and Digital Copy), andMater's Tall Tales (DVD, Blu-ray, and Digital Copy).[57]
Cars 2 sold a total of 1,983,374 DVD units during its opening week,[58] generating $31.24 million and claiming first place.[59] It also finished on the top spot on the Blu-ray chart during its first week, selling 1.76 million units and generating $44.57 million. Its Blu-ray share of home media was 47 percent, indicating an unexpectedly major shift of sales from DVD to Blu-ray.[60] Blu-ray 3D contributed to this, accounting for 17% of total disc sales.[61] On September 10, 2019,Cars 2 was released on4K Ultra HD Blu-ray.[62][63]
Cars 2 grossed $191.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $370.7 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $562.1 million.[2] Worldwide on its opening weekend it grossed $109 million, marking the largest opening weekend for a 2011 animated title.[64] Overall,Cars 2 became the seventh-biggest Pixar film in worldwide box office among the fourteen released, and was thetenth-highest-grossing film of 2011.[65]
Cars 2 made $25.7 million on its debut Friday (June 24, 2011), marking the second-largest opening day for aPixar film, at the time, afterToy Story 3's $41.1 million. During this time, though, it was the third least-attended opening day for a Pixar film, only ahead ofUp andRatatouille.[66] It also scored the sixth largest opening day for an animated feature.[67] On its opening weekend as a whole,Cars 2 debuted at No.1 ahead ofGreen Lantern andBad Teacher with $66.1 million,[51] marking the largest opening weekend for a 2011 animated feature, the seventh largest opening forPixar,[68] the eighth largest among films released in June,[69] and the fourth largest for a G-rated film.[70] In its second weekend, however, the film was overtaken byTransformers: Dark of the Moon, dropping 60.3% and grossing $26.2 million.[71]
Outside North America, it grossed $42.9 million during its first weekend from 3,129 theaters in 18 countries, topping the box office.[72] It performed especially well in Russia where it grossed $9.42 million,[73] marking the best opening weekend for a Disney or Pixar animated feature and surpassing the entire runs ofCars andToy Story 3.[74] InMexico, it made $8.24 million during its first weekend,[75] while inBrazil, it topped the box office with $5.19 million ($7.08 million with previews).[76] It also premiered at No.1 with $5.16 million in Australia,[77] where it debuted simultaneously withKung Fu Panda 2 and out-grossed it.[72] It is the highest-grossing film of 2011 inLithuania ($477,117),[78]Argentina ($12 million).[79] It is the highest-grossing animated film of 2011 inEstonia ($442,707),[80]Finland ($3.2 million),[81]Norway ($5.8 million).[82]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 40% of 216 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The website's consensus reads: "Cars 2 is as visually appealing as any other Pixar production, but all that dazzle can't disguise the rusty storytelling under the hood."[83] It is the lowest-rated Pixar film on the site to date and the only one to earn a "rotten" certification.[84][85] Another review aggregator,Metacritic, which assigns aweighted average score to reviews from mainstream critics, gave the film an average score of 57 out of 100, based on 38 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[86] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[87]
"The originalCars was not greeted with exceptional warmth," saidThe New York Times, "but the sequel generated Pixar's first truly negative response."[88] Critics generally criticized the focus on Mater and felt the film lacked warmth and charm, while also feeling the film was made as an exercise in target marketing and was too violent to be given aG rating.[89][90][91][92] Reviewing the film forThe Wall Street Journal,Joe Morgenstern wrote, "This frenzied sequel seldom gets beyond mediocrity."[93]Entertainment Weekly criticOwen Gleiberman said, "Cars 2 is a movie so stuffed with "fun" that it went right off the rails. What on earth was the gifted director-mogul John Lasseter thinking – that he wanted kids to come out of this movie was [sic] more ADD?"[94] AlthoughLeonard Maltin onIndieWire claimed that he had "such high regard for Pixar and its creative team led by John Lasseter" he said he found the plot "confusing" and felt that Mater's voice was annoying, saying that he'd "rather listen to chalk on a blackboard than spend nearly two hours with Tow Mater."[95]
Conversely,Peter Travers ofRolling Stone gave the film 3½ stars out of four, and said that "the sequel is a tire-burning burst of action and fun with a beating heart under its hood." He also praised its "fluid script" and called it a "winner".[96]Roger Ebert was the most effusive of the more positive reviews, praising Lasseter's channeling of childhood playtime for the film's spirit and writing, "At a time when some 'grown-up' action films are relentlessly shallow and stupid, here is a movie with such complexity that even the cars sometimes have to pause and explain it to themselves."[97] Justin Chang ofVariety commented, "The rare sequel that not only improves on but retroactively justifies its predecessor."[98] Ticket buyers also gave the film an A− in exit polls, on par with other Pixar titles.[88]
A central vein of many negative reviews was the theory thatthe Walt Disney Company forcedCars 2 into production at Pixar out of greed in order todrive merchandising sales.[93][99] Lasseter vehemently denied these claims, which he attributed to "people who don't know the facts, rushing to judge."[88] Some theorized that the vitriol was less about the film but more about Pixar's broadened focus to sequels.The New York Times reported that although one negatively reviewed film would not be enough to scratch the studio, "the commentary did dent morale at the studio, which until then had enjoyed an unbroken and perhaps unprecedented run of critical acclaim."[88]
Cars 2 marks the first Pixar film not to be nominated for anOscar.[100] It is also the first Pixar film not nominated forBest Animated Feature since its introduction in 2001.[101]
A video game based on the film was developed byAvalanche Software and published byDisney Interactive Studios for thePlayStation 3,Xbox 360,Wii,PC andNintendo DS on June 21, 2011.[121] The PlayStation 3 version of the game was reported to be compatible with stereoscopic3D gameplay.[122] ANintendo 3DS version was released on November 1, 2011,[123] and aPSP version was released on November 8, 2011.[124]
An app based on the film was released oniTunes for a dollar on June 23, 2011. The Lite version was released for free that same day. The object of the game was to complete each race, unlock new levels, and get a high score. As of June 28, 2011, the app had hit No. 1 on the App Store.[125] The game was retired on August 29, 2014.[126]AV.Smile version was also released.
A sequel, titledCars 3, was released on June 16, 2017.[127] Directed byBrian Fee, the film focuses on Lightning McQueen, now a veteran racer, who after being overshadowed by a new wave of rookies, gets help from a younger car, Cruz Ramirez, to instruct him for the increasingly high-tech world and defeat new rival Jackson Storm.[128]
An animated feature film spin-off titledPlanes, produced byDisneyToon Studios,[129] was released on August 9, 2013.[130] A sequel toPlanes, titledPlanes: Fire & Rescue, was released on July 18, 2014.[131]
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