In Gran Turismo, Orlando Bloom’s Character Proves You Can Turn “Gamers into Racers”

Even though he’s a doting father of two, Orlando Bloom has been a bit of an adrenaline junkie, ever since his breakout roles in two big movie franchises, Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean.

Now, he appears in another action movie, Gran Turismo, a true-life story about a young gamer who becomes a competitive real auto racer. Bloom, who is engaged to pop superstar singer Katy Perry who herself performed for the royal family at King Charles III’s coronation concert, says of his new movie: “It’s a movie about that if you dream big enough, you never know what will happen.”

Bloom plays a character based on Darren Cox, a former Nissan Europe executive, who in 2006 helped Sony PlayStation racing gamers become professional racing drivers. Cox's concept materialized with the founding of Nissan GT Academy, a joint venture between Sony and Nissan, which took its name from the well-known Gran Turismo video game series. Bloom talks to us about performing in the adrenaline-soaked racing car space:

Orlando, What’s the Story of Your Character in Gran Turismo?

In the movie, my character challenges the young gamer/drivers by saying, “You ten are the best Gran Turismo players in the world. Now it’s your job to race real cars…” My Danny character is based on real life Darren Cox, a former Nissan Europe executive, who came up with this idea to take simulated car drivers, gamer kids who could drive really well. He developed this GT Academy, a mad dream idea, suggesting, “Let’s take kids from race car games and put them into real cars on tracks.” And, thus, Cox’s concept of “Gamer to Racer” was born.

What Attracted You to Gran Turismo, this Biographical Sports Drama Film?

South African director Neill Blomkamp (District 9, Chappie, Elysium) approached me about doing a true story about a kid from Wales, Jann Mardenborough who dreamed big and big enough that he got to drive real cars. He was so good at driving a simulation, that in a matter of mere months of training, he also got so good in a (real) car that he could ultimately compete and podium at Le Mans, one of the world’s most prestigious car races.

Do Fast Cars Appeal to You?

The way I’m hot-wired, the way my internal mechanism works, is that I tend to move quite quickly, and so it makes sense that I also like driving, fast. While it's something that works for me, being in this environment, I really didn’t get as much time driving the cars as I’d like. But, it was an awesome experience being in this space, going to these amazing race tracks all over the world. Yes, I really responded to space…

Having Played So Many Different Characters and Filming around the World, What’s Your Take on Human Beings, Generally?

This is what I’ve learned. I used to treat myself after every movie, like Pirates where I performed alongside the great Johnny Depp, by buying myself a very nice watch. Well, a few years ago, I had them stolen from my home, but I wasn’t going to just accept it. So, I actually consulted a private detective, and got a small voice recorder. I then wired myself with a microphone like real cops do, and went down to these pawn shops by myself. But, I wasn’t scared, I’m from Kent. I said to the guy, “Okay no police, and no harm no foul, but I just want my watches back.” I persisted and got back half of them! I met some really interesting characters along the way. Honestly, human beings are fascinating to me. Everyone’s just trying to survive and get it done, right?