Cars 3
Directed by Brian Fee
Blindsided by a new generation of blazing-fast racers, the legendary Lightning McQueen finds himself pushed to the brink—and suddenly, the champion who once ruled the track is fighting just to stay in the race. With his career hanging in the balance, McQueen must turn to an ambitious young race technician with a plan of her own, draw strength from the legacy of the late Fabulous Hudson Hornet, and risk everything on… From TMDB
180 reactions from 2 sources (Bluesky, TMDB reviews) · newest Oct 17, 2026 · last updated Oct 17, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
Sentiment labels for these sources are still being hand-checked; no score yet.
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluesky * | 43 | 9 | 94 |
| TMDB reviews * | 4 | 0 | 2 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
28 newer reactions are still waiting for a label.
52 archived X posts (Mar–Apr 2026) are kept for the record and not used.
What viewers are saying
AI summary of the public posts linked below. Not a review by Rotten Tweets.
Counted from the reviewers’ own 0–10 ratings on the 6 rated TMDB user reviews we collected (7–10 positive, 5–6 mixed, 0–4 negative), not by the AI.
Some viewers find Cars 3 a worthy follow-up to the original, far better than Cars 2. [1][2][3] Others feel it's a clichéd rehash that never justifies its existence. [4][5] A few note the film's emotional moments and intergenerational mentorship theme. [6][7][8]
- [1]
A worthy follow up to the original film, miles better than Cars 2. They wisely focus the action back on Lightnin' McQueen and keep Mater to a bare minimum. It's not going to change lives, but a solid animated feature nonetheless. Even when Pixar is coasting they still deliver a very pretty looking film, albeit a little shallow. One thing bugs me though, why in a world of anthropomorphic vehicles, with no signs of …
- [6]
The new age begins! Having seen enough animated feature that possible eligible for the 2018 Oscars, I'm really disappointed with the result of some of the big titles. Yes, including this one, not big films, except 'Coco' are up to any impressive. The bright side is, after a long time, 2D animation might win. This was an okay film. Though I liked the story outline, but did not like how it all was narrated. I have …
- [9]
I agree 'Cars 3' improves upon 'Cars 2', not by much though. The story for this does feel more rounded than the preceding film, even if it ends rather lamely. The whole production builds up around Lightning McQueen, rightly, before strangely having a conclusion that focuses on newbie Cruz Ramirez. I like the idea of what they were going for, but the way the do it is actually quite poor - it feels too forced, as well …
- [7]
Cars: touching story about intergenerational mentorship Cars 2: bananapants spy parody movie Cars 3: touching story about intergenerational mentorship
- [8]
Watched Cars 3 with my girlfriend and I was not prepared for that movie to make me tear up
How this was made: an AI model (deepseek-v4-flash) read 34 of the 151 public posts we collected about this film and wrote the summary, likes and dislikes, citing the posts behind each point ([n] opens the post). A second AI pass checked every statement against the posts it cites; anything it could not match was removed, and code removed any statement with quotation marks, numbers that are not in the posts, or unattributed claims about people. The split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Generated Oct 9, 2026. Method
Critics, per Wikipedia
Cars 3 grossed $152.9 million in the United States and Canada and $231 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $383.9 million, against a production budget of $175 million. In North America, Cars 3 was released alongside Rough Night, 47 Meters Down and All Eyez on Me, and was projected to gross $55–60 million from 4,256 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $2.8 million from Thursday night previews and $19.5 million on its first day. It went on to open to $53.7 million, finishing first at the box office and dethroning two-time first-place finisher Wonder Woman. Cars 3 had the lowest opening of the series, but nevertheless was the 16th Pixar film to debut at number one. In…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 180 · most liked firstIf a recent Pixar film is written/directed by a braintrust Boi it does have that angey peepaw vibe. Early Pixar films like Bugs Life/Monsters Inc are about changing old systems with new ideas. Newer films like Cars 3/Monsters Inc 2 are about how the system works fine respect your fucking elders.
neutral · AI labelView post →The single most shameless example of fan service in film history is the final scene of Cars 3 where Lightning McQueen comes out with Doc Hudson's paint job, yes my son is home because DC schools closed early, I will be taking no other questions at this time.
positive · AI labelView post →Cars 3 Cereal (2017-2017): A rare non-U.S. promotional item for a Pixar film, there were two version of this cereal. In Europe, they got honey-flavored multigrain O's from Kelloggg's, while Canada got sweetened, cinnamon star-shapes from General Mills.
neutral · AI labelView post →Personally I’m offended when sex ISN’T in a movie. I’m upset Cars 3 didn’t have sex in it but you don’t see me writing letters to Disney about it.
neutral · AI labelView post →Cars: touching story about intergenerational mentorship Cars 2: bananapants spy parody movie Cars 3: touching story about intergenerational mentorship
neutral · AI labelView post →saying 300, a movie with zero gay romance or gay sex in it, is one of the gayest movies ever made is like saying Cars 3 is one of the sexiest movies ever made.
neutral · AI labelView post →Watched Cars 3 with my girlfriend and I was not prepared for that movie to make me tear up
positive · AI labelView post →Crazy thing I recently learned; originally Cars 3 was supposed to have a completely different plot. It was supposed to be a body-swap movie. It would have involved Lightning McQueen having another car jealous of his success steal his body and identity. www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0eM....
neutral · AI labelView post →Kids while you're sitting on the toilet, giving you live updates on what’s just happened in Cars 3, a movie you have watched together a dozen times.
neutral · AI labelView post →“Cars 1 has a lot of absolute nonsense toys based on it” is a phrase that always comes out as “Cars 1 was made to sell toys.” i guarantee when they were making that movie they didn’t already have Shit McQueen in the pipeline. they 100% provably did with Cars 3.
neutral · AI labelView post →Just got done watching "Cars 3" I think "Cars 2" might be the only movie in a film franchise (that I know of) where you can skip it and not miss anything, cause "Cars 3" feels like a true sequel to the 2006 original. #pixar #cars #pixarcars
positive · AI labelView post →Post-Apocalyptic Family Fun Film Fest: Mad Max: Road Warrior Cars Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome Cars 2 Mad Max: Fury Road Cars 3 Furiosa: a Mad Max Story Mortal Engines
neutral · AI labelView post →I just made an ultimate realization after watching Usual Bloke Luke's RWS Ranking video - that Gordon the High-Speed Engine is the equivalent of Cars 3 of Thomas (yeah, this predates before the Pixar movie series, but it's fun to observe).
neutral · AI labelView post →my favorite movie about redemption? Cars my favorite spy movie? Cars 2 my favorite movie about time being an unstoppable force? believe it or not, Cars 3
positive · AI labelView post →Just finished watching Cars 3 from Freeform therefore finished the marathon of each movie daily. My favorite and best sequel of the franchise. It was nice watching all 3 movies for this special occassion. Happy 20th Anniversary Cars!
positive · AI labelView post →And it all started with a little THC to melt your brain and reality. Why won’t it wear off? Why won’t it wear off?! WHY WON’T IT- Daddy calls from the living room. “Do you want to watch Cars 3?” Cars 3? hat’s your favorite movie! You wonder what that could be about! (End) #ABDLWeeklyPrompts
neutral · AI labelView post →I thought it was FOR LOVE OF THE GAME, but I used to do a questionnaire interview with baseball players where one was “what’s your favorite baseball movie?” and so many said that movie I’m no longer sure if it’s mid, so… CARS 3
neutral · AI labelView post →Remember how dark the teaser trailer for Cars 3 was because it looks like McQueen fucking DIES? I was talking with some friends on Discord the other night about this and went “how else was Pixar going to get everyone’s attention for another Cars movie after Cars 2?” m.youtube.com/watch?v=E4K7...
neutral · AI labelView post →What is the funniest possible movie that can fit in this format? Saw 5? Pink Flamingos? Cars 3?
neutral · AI labelView post →I keep seeing people all like "no movie has ever been improved by a gratuitous sex scene," as if they haven't seen the sex scene in Pixar's Cars 3.
neutral · AI labelView post →might have been the weed candy taking over, but I remember how emotionally moved I was during Saturday's group watch. Seeing a portrayal of the emotional and psychological struggles of a latina woman to be her best brought me and a few others to silence. Problem here is the fuckin' movie was Cars 3
neutral · AI labelView post →It's absolutely insane that Paul Newman's final film was Cars. And then over a decade later Pixar swooped in and went "hey we've got some more audio of Paul Newman we didn't use." And then his final film was Cars 3
neutral · AI labelView post →I’m tired of this lazy “there’s no funny movies anymore” argument. In the last decade alone we were gifted: The Emoji Movie Daddy’s Home 2 Cars 3 Sandy Wexler Angry Birds 2 Impractical Jokers: the Movie A Madea Family Funeral Hubie Halloween The Garfield Movie Like damn show some gratitude.
negative · AI labelView post →I don’t hate this movie like the internet does. It’s insane and for a franchise about cars, I think that can only be a plus. Especially the ending. Kinda bummed they ignored Mater’s girlfriend in Cars 3. As someone who went to Japan before this movie came out, I was laughing at all those scenes.
neutral · AI labelView post →No it's not, Cars 3 is a fine movie, not as good as Cars but it's watchable, Cars 2 is by far the worst Pixar movie ever made.
neutral · AI labelView post →Been playing Cars 3: Driven to Win I never seen the movie but the game is really fun.
neutral · AI labelView post →Rewatching "Cars 3" for the first time since its premier. Man, the posters for this movie went so needlessly hard. #pixar #cars
neutral · AI labelView post →Cars 3 is a top five Pixar movie. There, I said it.
positive · AI labelView post →“Okay, let’s go get you changed,” she said. You started tantrumming. You didn’t want to stop and get another diaper change! You wanted to watch Cars 3! You’d tried to watch it, the greatest movie of all time, and Mommy came in and ruined it by checking your diaper right at the best part!
neutral · AI labelView post →Instead he’s opted for much more difficult conversations with kids, such as “Mom, what is ELIO?” and “Dad, why is there a Pixar movie on Disney+ I’ve never heard of?” and “Can we watch Cars 3 instead?”
neutral · AI labelView post →I love Lightning McQueen so much, Cars 3 is my fave Pixar film
positive · AI labelView post →One thing I appreciate about "Cars 3" is the fact that it brings back Paul Newman via unused voice recordings from the first movie. And compared to Don Rickles in TS4, Doc remains a pivotal character in this particular sequel even if he's now deceased. #pixar #cars #pixarcars
neutral · AI labelView post →Tom had passed before Cars 3, and all his lines in that movie were archived recordings. That was when I started crying.
neutral · AI labelView post →As much as Cars 3 does have its flaws and I still prefer the first film the most, moments like these still hit pretty hard almost a whole decade later. And of course, being more of a direct sequel to the first film than 2 (as much as Cars 2 is a guilty pleasure of mine) and wrapping up the main-
neutral · AI labelView post →my favorite movie to do this thought exercise with is Cars 3. Lightning McQueen replaced by a girl car named Cruz Ramirez…the discourse would go on for weeks
neutral · AI labelView post →F1: The Movie: Aging Formula 1 driver Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) comes out of retirement to mentor and team up with a younger driver and a struggling team. Think Rocky meets Days of Thunder while also being the plot of Cars 3. Has some good VFX and sound but overall its not the best racing movie ever.
neutral · AI labelView post →Cars 3 is fucking weird. Like it's a really fucking weird, downbeat, melancholy film. I think I like it a lot just for being so weird. I can't imagine kids liking this at all. I'm not sure if it's actually *good* but I'm enjoying watching it. What an unusual Pixar.
neutral · AI labelView post →Not enough people talking about how the Brad Pitt racing movie appears to have the same plot as Cars 3. Like going by the trailer it’s beat-for-beat.
neutral · AI labelView post →I’m tired of pretending Cars 3 wasn’t a great ass conclusion to the trilogy and I’m happy it exists. I rewatched it last night for the first time in years and I still honestly prefer it to every Pixar sequel besides TS 2&3 and maybe Inside Out 2 though I need to rewatch that movie.
positive · AI labelView post →I never intended to become a Cars 3 apologist but that movie is much better than it has any right to be
positive · AI labelView post →Yea that's all fair. But I'm gonna just say this and not elaborate any further but Cars 3 is pretty good for a pixar movie and it's the best Cars movie.
positive · AI labelView post →My twin boys would watch no other movie than Cars, for what seemed like forever. I must have seen it like 80 times. They correctly rejected Cars 2, but to my surprise were such Cars zealots they were initially very unsure of Cars 3 (odd numbered Cars movies are good, like Star Trek movies).
neutral · AI labelView post →The main problem with Cars 3 is that Cruz isn’t a very good character. The movie sort of implies that despite her go-getter personality, she was held back by sexism/racism but what does that even mean in the Cars universe? The movie isn’t capable of exploring that, so the whole plot feels muddled
negative · AI labelView post →OOOOOOOOOOH! THAT’S THE NAME OF THE MOVIE! AND IT WAS AFTER LIGHTNING MCQUEEN’S COMING OF AGE IN CARS 1! SO THAT’S WHY IT WAS CALLED “CARS 3”! YOU GET IT NOW.
neutral · AI labelView post →Your third hit was during the opening montage of Cars 3. You’d missed the Thunder Hollow sequence because you forgot (how) to pause the movie to go potty. So the most logical choice now that the movie had ended was to start it over and watch it all the way through again without interruptions.
neutral · AI labelView post →Cars 1 also has a middle third that sort of meanders but it’s paced slowly in the service of McQueen’s arc and placing emphasis on the town Radiator Springs and its cast. when people say nothing happens in that movie and it’s too long they’re lying to you. they’re correct in saying it about Cars 3.
neutral · AI labelView post →Pixar’s Cars: the fuck is this? Is this a kids movie about sports sponsorship and endorsements? Cars 2: ….. Cars 3: amazing, tears, ovations, flowers. 5 stars! Planes: the fuck is this? Planes Fire & Rescue: movie of the year!
positive · AI labelView post →Or better yet, they absolutely missed a perfect opportunity to nominate a THIRD independent film or an anime. But oh well, at least the next Pixar film after Cars 3 did dethrone the sloppy DreamWorks film of that year.
neutral · AI labelView post →This is like when Brad Pitt as Achilles says "Cousin!" to Patroclus in Troy. A very bad movie. And somehow I may choose watching that again over F1, which is just a hallmark movie with cars for men, with a weaker version of the plot and acting in Cars 3. I said what I said.
neutral · AI labelView post →It did create the unfortunate side effect of making the movie look darker than it is, and I think it's part of why Cars 3 got a mixed rap when it initially came out. Nowadays though, been seeing people say it's one of the better Pixar sequels.
neutral · AI labelView post →Maybe it's just a coping mechanism but actually I think I genuinely enjoy Cars 3. It ended up a surprisingly mature movie about accepting your age and paying it forward to the next generation and the disenfranchised.
positive · AI labelView post →Happy 9 Year Anniversary To Cars 3 This is fav movie ever, I probably watched this movie more than 50 times. #Cars3
positive · AI labelView post →Same. Not to mention, I have even more beef with John Lasseter after watching Animat react to the commentary of “Cars 2” (I said that quotes because Cars 3 is the real second film). Disney and Pixar are better off without you, John!
neutral · AI labelView post →Yeah, "Cars 3" is easily a big improvement over the first movie (I'm not counting "Cars 2" for how wildly different that one is). A more original story, more character development, and Cruz is perhaps one of my favorite deuteragonists in a Pixar flick.
positive · AI labelView post →Cars is easily one of those films where the story is pretty by-the-book but makes up for it with strong characters. Granted, I still stand by my opinion that Cars 3 is a much better movie, but I still have a major soft spot for the original.
positive · AI labelView post →I rather replace the Alec Baldwin’s baby costume film with Lego Batman or Captain Underpants instead. Those films were far superior than Alec Baldwin’s 24/7 baby poop joke film. And if not, heck just nominated Cars 3 instead.
neutral · AI labelView post →Y'know what? I'm just gonna say this, Cars 3 is an underrated movie. It's not the best in the trilogy, and it does have some Cars flavored world confusion, but damnit it's just a charming little movie to turn on every now and then. Just like the 1st Cars movie #filmsky #PixarCars
positive · AI labelView post →Saw the movie F1 today. Came in knowing almost nothing about the sport. Great overall! Lots of similarities to Cars 3. (Most of the movies I see these days are animated…)
neutral · AI labelView post →26. Cars 3 This movie is really good actually!! I love Cruz!! Lightning McQueen is empathetic and they keep the character development going well!! The Doc Hudson scenes were so well written!! I love this movie actually!! 16/20
positive · AI labelView post →Cars: A basic character arc where a tough lesson changes someone for the better. Cars 2: A spy movie with MULTIPLE GUNFIGHTS?? Cars 3: A touching tale of aging out of your prime and respecting those who paved the way and were othered for race/gender. Related: My son is into the Cars franchise.
neutral · AI labelView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.
This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.