The success of Barbie three years ago served as the starter gun for a Hollywood arms race. Superheroes and cinematic universes were out, and toys were in, as far as the studios were concerned after that film made over a billion dollars and marched its way toward the Academy Awards. In the time since then, Mattel and others have been doing their best to get their toys on the big screen, and the next one just delivered its first trailer with the first look at Matchbox The Movie.
Premiering today in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con, Apple Original Films revealed the first footage of Matchbox The Movie, which stars John Cena and premieres on the streaming service on Friday, October 9. Directed and executive produced by Sam Hargrave and written by David Coggeshall, the film also stars Jessica Biel, Sam Richardson, Arturo Castro, Teyonah Parris, and Danai Gurira. Though the name itself might immediately be groan-worthy, the footage actually reveals a film that is confident in the fine tonal line it’s walking, one that has its tongue planted firmly in its cheek.
Ever since Fast X concluded with an epic cliffhanger that The Fast Saga has not been able to answer, explosive car action has been missing for fans who want to have their adrenaline surge while watching a blockbuster. Not only does Matchbox The Movie seem like it’s going to be able to satisfy fans in that regard, but the humor is on clear display in a way that’s quite surprising. To cap it all off, the film also stars John Cena, having freshly exited the Fast Saga with the last movie.
The official plot synopsis for Matchbox The Movie makes it sound pretty serious, calling itself “an action-packed, globe-trotting adventure” that follows “a group of friends since childhood who have their lives upended when undercover CIA agent Sean (Cena), their long-absent former leader, returns to their small town and unwittingly gets them embroiled in a frantic international pursuit to save the world.”
Isolated, that synopsis makes this seem like they’re taking the idea incredibly seriously, but the trailer itself paints a distinct tone for the movie, one that not only is keen to recreate the action of playing with Matchbox cars with actual, real vehicles in a slew of environments, but also maintains a comedic tone with deadpan gags that are the specialty of both Cena and Sam Richardson. We can see this clearly in the trailer when Arturo Castro tries to reload his shotgun like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2, only to drop it on the road and keep driving.
Beyond simply offering laughs, the spectacle of Matchbox the Movie looks to be pretty epic and practical. Given that Sam Hargrave is behind the camera, that’s no real surprise. Having made a name for himself as a stunt performer and coordinator, Hargrave broke out as a director with the Extraction movies, action films that prioritized in-camera stunts and never cutting away. Seems like the secret sauce that he brought to the Chris Hemsworth-starring films has returned here.
One real disappointment, though, is that the film is headed straight to streaming, and will premiere on Apple TV on October 9. Action this big feels like it needs to be seen on the big screen…
