At this point, it’s clear that anything can be the basis for a new movie, but we’ve also learned that just about anything can inspire a good movie. We have good movies based on theme park rides, great movies based on video games, and even an amazing movie based on LEGO bricks. So the fact that a Matchbox film is on the way shouldn’t be that shocking, and honestly based on the director, it’s already looking like it could be incredible.
Extraction director Sam Hargrave has reportedly been tapped by Mattel, the current owner of Matchbox toy cars, and Skydance, who is set to produce the film. The Wrap reports that David Coggeshall, the writer behind the recent Mark Wahlberg action/comedy The Family Plan, and Jonathan Tropper, creator of the Warrior TV series, are working on the script.
There are no details of what the Matchbox movie will be, but based on the fact that the toy line is small die-cast cars and trucks, and the director of the movie is a former stuntman known for directing the Extraction action movie franchise for Netflix, we can expect that the movie is going to have lots of exciting automotive action. If it worked for The Fast & Furious there’s no reason to believe it can’t work here.
Bringing on Sam Hargrave certainly indicates the direction that a Matchbox movie is going. We can expect an action-heavy movie, likely with a lot of practical stunt work compared to CGI. The Extraction movies had some creative stunt work in their own right. Extraction 2 had a one-shot that set Chris Hemsworth on fire practically. One can imagine that sort of creativity set toward an automotive-based action movie could invent some cool stuff to watch on a movie screen.
Maybe the film will try to break the recent world record set by The Fall Guy, which created the longest canon roll in movie history. For a certain type of action movie fan, like me, that’s going to sound like a fantastic place for a movie to start, regardless of what the IP behind it all is.
Matchbox was previously a competitor of the better-known Hot Wheels until Mattel purchased the Matchbox brand, and now owns both toy car lines. A Hot Wheels movie has been in development in the past, but we haven’t heard anything on that since last summer. Hot Wheels was looking for a director of its own, it looks like Matchbox beat it to the punch. It's unclear if both a Matchbox and Hot Wheels movie are in development simultaneously, or how the two projects, based on very similar products, would be substantially different.
While a Matchbox movie may be a film with a silly title, as one expects it will need to have the word Matchbox in there somewhere to make sure the potential audiences know it’s cashing on on the IP, there’s no reason to believe that a movie inspired by toy cars can’t be excellent. It certainly has the right director.
