Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006) on Netflix
PG-1320061h 48mActionComedySport
Ricky Bobby sits atop NASCAR, winning with help from Cal Naughton Jr., the friend who races as his teammate. Then French Formula One driver Jean Girard arrives to challenge him.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.6/10216,784 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes72%
Trailer
Plot summary
Ricky Bobby is born in the backseat of a speeding Chevrolet Chevelle in rural North Carolina, because his father, Reese, drives past the turnoff for the hospital. Ricky sees him only once more, on career day at age ten, and keeps the advice Reese gives him there. Fifteen years later he is part of Terry Cheveaux's pit crew at Dennit Racing. When Cheveaux steps out during a race, Ricky takes his place and finishes third, earning a permanent seat and a rise to one of NASCAR's most successful drivers.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Adam McKay and Will Ferrell first discussed a comedic film about a NASCAR driver while Ferrell was making Elf, and they later presented the idea to studios using only a six-word pitch: "Will Ferrell as a NASCAR driver".
- Despite NASCAR's involvement, many teams and drivers were reluctant to take part, largely because of the negative feelings they had about the 1990 film Days of Thunder. Only two drivers ended up making cameos: Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jamie McMurray.
- McKay was adamant about incorporating real stunts and had Ferrell and Reilly take driving classes at the Richard Petty Driving Experience, with Ferrell later saying he was "terrified" while driving the cars.
- When Carl Edwards crossed a NASCAR finish line on his feet after a crash, Fox commentator Mike Joy called it "shades of Ricky Bobby". Edwards, handed a DNF and scored 24th, later told Larry King Live, "I'm kind of a Will Ferrell fan. He did that at the end of Talladega Nights."
- At the 2012 Aaron's 499 at Talladega, Kurt Busch's unsponsored No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet Impala ran Ricky Bobby's "ME" paint scheme and Busch and his team were heard reciting movie lines over the team radio; he finished 20th after contact sent him spinning.
- During qualifying at the 2013 United States Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel and his race engineer Guillaume "Rocky" Rocquelin said "shake and bake" over the team radio, the phrase used in the film, after Vettel posted the fastest lap and took pole position.
