While people’s feelings about theCarsfranchise are varied, it’s a classic for a reason. It’s a great example of howPixar has never been afraid to lean into the “What if X had feelings?” formula. TheCarsfilms were some of the first to begin this trend, establishing a world where society is not run by humanity, but instead by sentient cars with feelings. However, there are multiple reasons whyCarsis a divisive series. For instance,Cars 2is regarded as a classic by some, but it wasthe first Pixar film to break the studio’s streak of Oscar nominations.
In addition, the rules of theCarsuniverse are so confusing thatevenCars' voice actors don’t understand the movies' universe. It is difficult to watchCarswithout wondering about the details of the world it takes place in. There are sidewalks without people to walk on them, for example.Details like this could imply the existence of humans in the universe’s history, but there are other details that still don’t make sense if humans once existed in theCarsuniverse.
Creative Director Jay Ward Believes There Were Once Humans In The Cars Universe
The Cars' Personalities Could Have Originated From Their Drivers
According toCarscreative director Jay Ward,the cars of theCarsuniverse could be an extension of modern self-driving car technology(viaScreen Crush). Ward suggested that cars simply left humanity behind, having no need of them anymore.
Imagine in the near-future when the cars keep getting smarter and smarter and after one day they just go, ‘Why do we need human beings anymore? They’re just slowing us down. It’s just extra weight, let’s get rid of them.’ But the car takes on the personality of the last person who drove it.
While this is not necessarily canon, it could be an explanation for why the world around them looks so similar to ours. Ward’s theory suggests thatthe cars were initially created by humans but have now developed past their original creators. Ward suggests that some of the details of the cars' personalities came from their drivers, implying that some ofCars' continuity errorsstem from the cars inserting themselves into history they weren’t actually part of.
If Ward’s theory is true, it raises the question ofwhy cars were specifically the type of artificial intelligence to gain sentience, as similar types of technology are used in many other industries today. It’s possible that the humans in theCarsuniverse were very specifically focused on the development of transportation technology and some of those other types of technology were not as developed as they have been in the real world.
Sentient Automobiles Getting Rid Of Humans Makes Cars Way More Disturbing
The Cars Could Be The Species That Started The Apocalypse
ThoughCarshas been dark for a Pixar franchise for a while now, Ward’s theory makesCarsa lot darker, as it could suggest that some ofthe franchise’s main characters or their ancestors could have been involved in the wiping out of an entire species. Since we don’t know whether the theory is true, this also means that if it is true, we don’t know how long ago humans might have been wiped out. It’s possible that even the heroes of the franchise could have taken on the personalities of their original drivers.
If Ward’s theory is true, once the cars gained sentience, they decided that the best course of action was to entirely wipe out humanity.
While the end of human society in theCarsuniverse would be dark regardless, Ward’s comment that the cars might have gone, “Let’s just get rid of them” adds another layer of horror to it. This would suggest that theCarsuniverse is not only an apocalyptic future where humanity has been wiped out, but thatwe are watching the society that has been built by humanity’s destroyers. If Ward’s theory is true, once the cars gained sentience, they decided that the best course of action was to entirely wipe out humanity.
Call Cars 3 “Pixar’s Worst Movie” If You Want, But There’s One Big Reason To Love It
Cars 3 premiered to some harsh reviews, but the third entry in the series did one thing better than a lot of other Pixar and Disney legacy sequels.
Some dates are shown in theCarsmovies, showing that cars have been sentient going back into the 20th century. Ward’s theory suggests that if the cars only gained sentience with the development of self-driving cars,the actions they’re remembering were actually done by their driversbefore the cars took on aspects of their personalities. This makes the franchise darker not only because of the murder of humans but also because of the assimilation of their personalities.
I’m Not Entirely Convinced There Were Once Humans In The Cars Universe
Many Aspects Of The Cars Franchise Point To The World Just Being Entirely Populated By Cars
There are reasons whyWard’s theory doesn’t really make sense with what we see in the movies, however. The theory creates newCarsplot holes, as the movies show sentient cars as potentially having existed long before cars even existed. There’s a portrait of an old king as a car, for example, anda post-credits scene shows the cars watching other Pixar movies, created by cars.
These references could be the species currently at the top of the proverbial food chain placing themselves in history and wiping the existence of humanity from memory, but it seems far more likely that these references are because in this world,everyone is just a car. In addition, theCarsfilms show cars taking roles other than the ones held by humans. Even the bugs are cars.
Amazing Pixar Theory Claims The Incredibles' Villain Is Secretly Responsible For The Cars Universe
The origin of the Cars universe is one of the biggest questions about Pixar’s movies, and one theory explains it through an underrated villain.
This doesn’t necessarily make Ward’s theory impossible, as there are potential explanations for how the theory could be the case. The destruction of humanity could have led to the death of other species in the world. Humans could have been developing little bug-like cars for some reason when they were wiped out. The cars could have just continued to develop and evolve after the destruction of humanity, whether through nature or through their own purposeful experiments, and could have started replacing everything else with cars as well.
However, it seems likethe most likely explanation is that the world ofCarsis solely inhabited by cars and always has been. It’s just an alternate universe where somehow, many of the same events from human history did occur, even though they were happening due to the actions of sentient cars.
Cars Is The Trickiest Movie To Fit Into The Pixar Theory
The Existence Of Humans In Other Movies Means They Must Have Once Existed In The Cars Universe
The Pixar theory has been used to link together Pixar films for years now, and people have continued to link new films to it, even with the release of newer films such asLucaandElementaladding more connections that are necessary to make the shared universe theory work. Decades into the existence of Pixar as a studio, one of the most difficult franchises to connect to the theory is one of Pixar’s first.
Pixar is known for exploring stories featuring non-human characters, butthe Pixar theory can still only work if there were once humans in theCarsuniverse. The fact that humans existed in other Pixar films means that in order for theCarsfranchise to take place in the same world, it must have once had humans too. This also means that the existence of things such as cars being bugs must also be a somewhat recent development.
10 Continuity Errors In The Cars Franchise
For a film that is centered around very niche car and racing related jokes, the Cars franchise has developed a pretty huge fanbase.
Regardless of whether there were once humans in theCarsuniverse or not,Carsis not afraid to lean into its concept being a world fully populated by vehicles. While this might make it more difficult to tie the franchise into the Pixar theory, any signs of humanity in theCarsuniverse are seen solely through what they might have left behind if they ever did exist.
