2054 Lexus Vehicles Steal the Spotlight at ‘Hollywood’ Event
L.A.’s ‘Hollywood Dream Machines’ exhibit features iconic rides like the Lexus cars from Minority Report and Luke Skywalker’s Landspeeder.
One of many interesting things that we learned at the May 4 preview of the Petersen Automotive Museum’s newest exhibit, “Hollywood Dream Machines: Vehicles of Science Fiction and Fantasy,” is that when it comes to stealing the spotlight in Hollywood, Mustangs have done it more than any other brand. However, after we took a tour through the dynamic display of some of the most iconic autos from the silver screen, we suspect that Lexus will eventually topple that trophy from Ford.
After all, it was the slick designs and rule-breaking creativity of the Lexus vehicles from movie industry auto designer Harald Belker that immediately grabbed our attention at the media preview, because few other vehicles in the room looked anything like these unique and progressive Lexus designs.
In fact, there are few design elements we noticed on the 2054 Lexus coupe from the 2002 Tom Cruise blockbuster film Minority Report that we’d like to see on a Lexus sometime in the not-too-distant future. For Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation of Blade Runner novelist Philip K. Dick’s short story, Belker created sleek, beautifully designed vehicles that echo Lexus’ classic lines and push those dynamics 50 years into the future. Of course, the red 2054 Lexus you see below is all-electric. However, it is a hybrid unlike any other in that despite existing at a time when daily drivers could levitate along magnetic highways, this Lexus has wheels to traverse places that the “maglev” pods never could.
But this rad ride is about more than just getting great mileage off the grid. The futuristic 2054 Lexus, which is on loan to the Petersen from its owners, Steven Spielberg and 20th Century Fox, is also one of the sportiest-looking Lexus we’ve ever seen. The wrap around fenders in the rear that seamlessly meld the bumper into the aesthetic are particularly cool, as is the displacement of the front fenders.
Baby’s Got Back
The rear of the Belker’s Lexus coupe is curvy, wide and high, and it all works very well together visually. The intricately designed grill plate in the rear that has dye cuts that echo the design aesthetic of the Lexus logo is something that should be an option today. The less- is-more approach to the taillights is also an ingenious move. In the 2002 film, viewers got to see the Lexus 2054 come together, from its seamless front bumper to what looks to be its trunkless rear, as Cruise’s character, John Anderton, is being pursued and ends up escaping in the Lexus seconds after it was built around him in the fully-automated car factory.
The 2054 Lexus coupe with wheels was not the only Lexus that Cruise cruised around in. Anderton’s daily driver in Minority Report was a 2054 Lexus Maglev Pod, which was awesome because it was designed to deliver passengers directly to their destination, even if it means travelling vertically up a wall to a high-rise apartment.
Balker ‘s main objective when given the task of creating the main mode of transportation for Spielberg’s big budget action-adventure film was to make them “fast, efficient and eco-friendly.” So, it makes sense that he’d use Lexus as his base.
One of Balker’s other memorable machines is the 2054 Lexus Roadster, which is one of two futuristic sports cars that were custom built for Minority Report. And this convertible is an “off-grid” vehicle that travels smoothly whether it is utilizing the city’s magnetic track to levitate, or tackling rugged roads. The color-shifting body panels are an added plus.
The only vehicle that topped these famous Lexus machines was this iconic vessel…
“Hollywood Dream Machines: Vehicles of Science Fiction and Fantasy” opened May 5 and is on display at L.A.’s Petersen Automotive museum through March 2020. Get full details here.
Join the Club Lexus forums now!
