Cars is a 2006 American computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed and co-written by John Lasseter, it is Pixar’s final independently-produced film before its purchase by Disney in May 2006. Set in a world populated entirely by anthropomorphic cars and other vehicles, the film stars the voices of Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Bonnie Hunt, Larry the Cable Guy, Tony Shalhoub, Cheech Marin, Michael Wallis, George Carlin, Paul Dooley, Jenifer Lewis, Guido Quaroni, Michael Keaton, Katherine Helmond, John Ratzenberger and Richard Petty.
The film follows hot-shot race car Lightning McQueen, who gets waylaid in Radiator Springs, a forgotten town on the old Route 66. There he meets Sally, Mater, Doc Hudson and a variety of quirky characters who help him discover that there’s more to life than trophies and fame. Cars was released on June 9, 2006, and grossed $462.2 million worldwide. It received two Academy Award nominations, including Best Animated Feature, and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film.