Lightning feels a little blue in ‘Cars 3’
New look reflects his journey as Cruz’s mentor
Caution: Mild spoilers ahead
Every car needs a new paint job now and then, even Lightning McQueen.
Since the first Cars movie in 2006, the hotshot of Pixar’s animated franchise has had a red exterior, yellow lightning bolt and familiar No. 95 that are as synonymous with the racer as his “Ka-chow!” catchphrase.
But in the epilogue of Cars 3 (in theaters now), Lightning (voiced by Owen Wilson) speeds around wearing a new coat of blue.
While it’s akin to Darth Vader sporting bright green armor instead of his usual black, there’s good reason for Lightning ’s makeover: After having helped new racer Cruz Ramirez (Cristela Alonzo) win the Florida 500 — she’s the one wearing Lightning ’s usual No. 95 on the way to the finish line — he rolls up with “Fabulous Lightning McQueen” emblazoned on his side as a color-coordinated tribute to his Cars mentor Doc Hudson (Paul New- man), aka the “Fabulous Hudson Hornet.” (Cruz also pays homage to Doc, wearing No. 51 as she races Lightning for fun before the credits roll.)
In the final act of Cars 3, Lightning realizes “he’s experiencing what Doc experienced when he became Lightning McQueen’s crew chief and mentor,” says executive producer John Lasseter, who directed the first two Cars films. But Lightning ’s bound to change his color scheme back. “He just does it to have fun,” Lasseter says. “For a short time, he’s going to get (Cruz) going, but he’ll continue racing.”
Lightning is deeply affected when he learns that teaching McQueen was the best thing in Doc’s life, says Cars 3 director Brian Fee. “I think of Doc and McQueen as a father and son, and being able to transfer that over to McQueen and Cruz, it felt like it was going full circle. Life will never be the same for (Lightning) now. He has a new lease on life.”
Lightning goes through quite a few looks in Cars 3, Fee says. “He spends a lot of time in the movie trying to be somebody he’s not.”
He begins the movie with a slightly different logo for his longtime sponsor Rust-eze, is in gray primer after a crash, coats himself in mud and competes in a demolition derby as “Chester Whipplefilter” and gets decked out in a high-tech vinyl wrap that he later tears away. “It’s symbolism of him getting back to who he is,” says Lasseter.
And if the “Fabulous” look sells a few extra new Lightning diecast cars? Even better, says Fee.
“We always think, ‘This is going to make a great toy,’ because we love the toys!” the director says. “We take that as a compliment, that kids love ( Cars) enough that they want to keep reliving it.”