Michael Bay and Sydney Sweeney teaming up for an OutRun movie adaptation just got some fresh news, and it sounds like things are moving forward. The announcement came earlier this year that the Transformers director and the Euphoria actress would be working together on a feature film based on Sega’s classic arcade racing game. This was before Sweeney hit a rough patch at the box office, starting with Eden’s theatrical release back in August.
Things have turned around for Sweeney lately though. Her new thriller The Housemaid, where she stars alongside Amanda Seyfried, is doing solid business in theaters. The book to movie adaptation has a decent 76% on Rotten Tomatoes and has pulled in $26 million worldwide. That might not sound huge, but it’s five times the combined $5 million gross of her other three 2025 movies: Eden, Americana, and Christy.
Sweeney’s got a packed schedule with several projects lined up, and OutRun is definitely one to watch. Producer Brad Fuller recently talked to ComicBook and gave an update on where things stand with the movie. He mentioned he’d literally just been chatting with Bay about it right before the interview.
“We are in early stages. Right before you called, I was saying to Bay, ‘I have to get off the phone. I need to do this thing’,” Fuller said.
He also talked about why the project makes sense for Bay and Sweeney. “Outrun is based on a Sega video game. It was a driving game in the 80s. Bay has always wanted to do a driving movie.” Then he hyped up Sweeney, who’s confirmed as a producer on the film, calling her a “gearhead” and saying she and Bay “are starting to figure out the script right now.”
Fuller went deeper into his thoughts about the project and Sweeney in particular:
“I am very invested in Sydney Sweeney. She has been supportive of our company for a long time. I felt since Sydney has brought us two things that I would like to return the favor. Outrun is perfect for her. Sydney actually works on her own cars. That’s not fake. She is a gearhead. I put Michael with Sydney at Universal and I think they are starting to figure out the script right now.”
Fuller was actually talking to ComicBook to promote his new action comedy Anaconda, which Tom Gormican directed and stars Jack Black and Paul Rudd. The producer’s got a serious resume behind him, with credits including the A Quiet Place movies, The Purge series, Elevation, Black Sails, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, and plenty of other iconic pop culture titles.
Sweeney broke through with HBO’s Euphoria and a small but memorable role in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which featured a bunch of actors who were just starting to blow up at the time. Since then, she’s appeared in The White Lotus, the hit romcom Anyone But You, and other films like Immaculate and Madame Web.
Bay’s most recent directorial work was this year’s action documentary We Are Storror, and knowing his style, he’s probably going to bring his signature over the top action sequences to OutRun. Video game adaptations have been crushing it lately, so this one could have some real box office potential. That would be great news for Sweeney after a year that’s been pretty rough until The Housemaid turned things around.
The fact that Sweeney actually works on her own cars and isn’t just playing up the car enthusiast angle for publicity makes this collaboration feel more authentic. Bay’s always wanted to make a driving movie, Sweeney’s genuinely into cars, and they’re both trying to crack the script right now. It’s early days, but the pieces seem to be falling into place.
