Editor in Chief

Cars 3 deleted scene: The Betrayal of Lightning McQueen

Brian Fee Cars 3

Cars 3 is now available on digital, and one of its deleted scenes has been shared online, courtesy of USA Today.
In an earlier version of the film, Lightning experiences betrayal at the wheels of Sterling (Nathan Fillion), the new owner of Rusteze. Sterling was skeptical of Lightning’s ability to race, preferring him to retire. But in this version, he replaces Lighting with Cruz Ramirez (Cristela Alonzo), his beloved new trainer, early on. Watch the clip below.

No doubt Cars 3 would have been a much more dramatic film had this scene remained. And it is interesting to speculate how Lightning and Cruz’s relationship would have evolved. There are so many directions encompassed in the filmmaking process, and it’s wonderful that Pixar shares them with us, including the directions not taken. While this scene contains some emotional weight surrounding Lightning’s journey as he’s pressured to retire, it’s for the best that it was cut. Director Brian Fee explains why brilliantly.

“We didn’t want McQueen to be the last one to realize her [Cruz’s] value; we wanted him to be the first to discover it.”

See this deleted scene and plenty more extras when you pick up Cars 3 on digital.

Last modified: October 25, 2017

Simoa (Elliefredricksen) is Editor in Chief of Upcoming Pixar and an aspiring Pixar heroine. She joined Upcoming Pixar in 2014 and is always excited to see how her favorite animation studio changes and grows.