'Hot Wheels' Movie Project Revived, Gets ‘The Fast And The Furious,’ ‘Star Trek Beyond’ Director

The live action film project adapting Mattel's line of "Hot Wheels" high-octane toy cars has been revived, with the project fittingly getting the director of four of the latest released films in "The Fast and the Furious" franchise, Justin Lin, to helm the project.

Lin was announced as now being the one behind the steering wheel of the prospective live action film of the "Hot Wheels" toy line, according to a report by The Hollywood Reporter and as and shared by Cinema Blend. Aside from acting as director for the movie, Lin will also act as producer with his own Perfect Storm Entertainment production company; furthermore, his company will also have to option to add to the film's financial backing.

First signs of Mattel planning to have its "Hot Wheels" line adapted into a full live action movie showed up back in 2003. Columbia Pictures was the first company to get the rights to develop the "Hot Wheels" film, with Joseph "McG" McGinty Nichol set to direct the project according to a report by IGN.

Justin Lin goes from real cars to toy cars with the #HotWheels film adaptation: https://t.co/0g2XzI5SK9

— Five Nerdy Venoms (@FiveNerdyVenoms) September 29, 2016

Obviously, Columbia Pictures' initial plans failed to follow through, with McG announcing his backing out of the director's chair and moving onto a producer's capacity. 2009 saw the "Hot Wheels" film rights switching over to Warner Bros., as reported by Worst Previews, with Columbia Pictures moving back to produce instead of financing.

Those plans failed as well, and Legendary Pictures announced back in 2011 that it has acquired the rights to the "Hot Wheels" movie, though the project still remained in development hell. With Lin's signing on to direct to movie, the project is slated to get back into burning some rubber with the director teaming up with Troy Craig Poon and Legendary to find a writer to draft out the premise of the "Hot Wheels" movie.

Lin's most recent project was the well-received "Star Trek Beyond," though his helming as the director of the "Hot Wheels" movie is fitting considering his past projects include a good chunk of the vehicular action franchise "The Fast and the Furious." As the "Hot Wheels" movie is still in its initial planning stages, the film is not the next immediate project for Lin.