Star Archie Madekwe is joined in the cast by some very famous faces from the likes of Stranger Things, The Lord of the Rings and… er, the Spice Girls.
So far, 2023 has seen a fair few video game adaptations on both the small and big screens, from HBO’s widely acclaimed The Last of Us series to the massive box office success of The Super Marios Bros Movie.
And now, a new film has arrived in cinemas based on the motorsports game – or racing simulator – Gran Turismo.
As has been highly publicised, the movie is not necessarily an adaptation of the game itself, but rather a retelling of the story of Jann Mardenborough – a young man who became a professional racer after excelling at Gran Turismo and winning a spot at the exclusive GT Academy.
Mardenborough is played in the film by See star Archie Madekwe, who is joined in the cast by some very famous faces from the likes of Stranger Things, The Lord of the Rings and… er, the Spice Girls.
Read on for everything you need to know about the cast, including who they’re playing and where you might have seen them before.
Archie Madekwe plays Jann Mardenborough
Who is Jann Mardenborough? A young Gran Turismo player who is an expert at the game and is aspiring to become a professional racer.
What else has Archie Madekwe been in? Madekwe is best known for his role as Kofun in the Apple TV+ dystopian drama See, while he also had roles in Ari Aster’s 2019 horror hit Midsommar and the sci-fi flick Voyagers. He appears in the Netflix film Heart of Stone – which is released on the same day as Gran Turismo – and will star in Emerald Fennell’s upcoming film Saltburn.
David Harbour plays Jack Salter
Who is Jack Salter? Jann’s trainer and a former racer, who is initially sceptical about the idea of the GT Academy.
What else has David Harbour been in? Harbour is instantly recognisable as Chief Hopper from Stranger Things, while he has appeared in a vast array of films including War of the Worlds, Quantum of Solace, Revolutionary Road, Black Mass, Suicide Squad, Hellboy, Black Widow and Violent Night.
Orlando Bloom plays Danny Moore
Who is Danny Moore? A motorsport marketing executive at Nissan, based on the real GT Academy founder Darren Cox.
What else has Orlando Bloom been in? Bloom was one of the most high-profile actors in the world in the early ’00s thanks to major roles as Legolas in The Lord of the Rings and Will Turner in The Pirates of the Caribbean films. More recent roles include The Outpost, Needle in a Timestack and the TV series Carnival Row.
Darren Barnet plays Matty Davis
Who is Matty Davis? A top driver who is Jann’s rival at GT Academy.
What else has Darren Barnet been in? Barnet is known for his role as Paxton in the Netflix comedy series Never Have I Ever, while previous film credits include American Pie Presents: Girls’ Rules and Love Hard.
Djimon Hounsou plays Steve Mardenborough
Who is Steve Mardenborough? Jann’s father and a former professional footballer, who warns Jann against playing Gran Turismo all the time.
What else has Djimon Hounsou been in? Hounsou has twice been Oscar-nominated – for his supporting roles in Blood Diamond and In America – while he has starred in a number of other well-known films including Amistad, Gladiator, Constantine, Furious 7, A Quiet Place Part II and The King’s Man. Meanwhile, he has appeared in both the MCU and the DCEU – as Korath the Pursuer in the former and as both the Fisherman King and Wizard Shazam in the latter.
Geri Halliwell plays Lesley Mardenborough
Who is Lesley Mardenborough? Jann’s mother who is supportive but worried about her son.
What else has Geri Halliwell been in? Halliwell is, of course, best known as Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls, and this is her most high-profile acting role to date, although she did also appear in the 2009 film Crank: High Voltage. She is a big motorsports fan and is married to the current Team Principal of the Red Bull Formula One team, Christian Horner.
Takehiro Hira plays Kazunori Yamauchi
Who is Kazunori Yamauchi? The creator of Gran Turismo.
What else has Takehiro Hira been in? Japanese star Hira may be recognisable to UK audiences as the lead star of the 2019 BBC Two drama Giri/Haji, while film roles have included Lost Girls & Love Hotels and Snake Eyes.
Josha Stradowski plays Nicholas Capa
Who is Nicholas Capa? A racer who clashes with Jann after he joins the professional circuit.
What else has Josha Stradowski been in? Stradowski plays the role of Rand al’Thor on Prime Video’s sci-fi series The Wheel of Time, and also had a lead role in the Dutch show High Flyers.
Daniel Puig plays Cai Mardenborough
Who is Cai Mardenborough? Jann’s brother.
What else has Daniel Puig been in? Puig doesn’t have too many screen credits to his name yet – but has been seen in episodes of The CW series Naomi.
Maeve Courtier-Lilley plays Audrey
Who is Audrey? Jann’s love interest.
What else has Maeve Courtier-Lilley been in? Courtier-Lilley’s most high-profile role before Gran Turismo was as Luna in the CW fantasy series The Outpost.
The cast also includes: Thomas Kretschmann (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny), Richard Cambridge (Golden Years), Emelia Hartford (A Hollywood Christmas), Pepe Barroso (High Seas), Sang Heon Lee (XO Kitty), Max Mundt (How To Sell Drugs Online (Fast)), Mariano González (Once), Harki Bhambra (Our Girl), Lindsay Pattison, Théo Christine (War of the Worlds) and Nikhil Parmar (Foundation).
Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story is now showing in UK cinemas. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
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