Mattel Television Announces ‘Hot Wheels Let’s Race’ Animated Series

Mattel has announced its new animated children’s series, “Hot Wheels Let’s Race,” will debut on Netflix in spring 2024. 

Inspired by Hot Wheels, “Hot Wheels Let’s Race” is a comedy series for kids, following the newest generation of racers: Coop, Spark, Mac, Brights, Axle and Sidecar as they attend a racing camp.  

“Hot Wheels is a globally celebrated brand that ignites and nurtures the challenger spirit that lives within every kid in order to help them reach their true potential,” says Rob David, vice president, content creative, Mattel Television. “As Hot Wheels continues to grow and appeal to kids and families worldwide, ‘Let’s Race’ will bring even more fun to fans of all ages with creative stories, engaging characters and of course, fast vehicles.” 

Season 1 of “Hot Wheels Let’s Race” will be available on Netflix in spring 2024. Mattel will also soon reveal a lineup of Hot Wheels toys and consumer products, featuring the show’s vehicles, settings and storylines. 

This animated show follows up “Hot Wheels Ultimate Challenge,” a live-action competition show inspired by Hot Wheels. According to Circana, Hot Wheels is the top-selling toy in the world. Mattel says that in 2022, Hot Wheels recorded its highest-grossing year to date. 

With this momentum, Mattel is taking a legacy brand with a large fanbase and taking its popularity to new heights through entertainment media. This seems to be Mattel’s overall strategy, as it just celebrated “Barbie” being named the biggest box office success of the year (more than $1.35 billion in sales). Mattel Films has announced 14 live-action motion pictures in active development with major studio partners including American Girl, Barney, Hot Wheels, Magic 8 Ball, Matchbox, Major Matt Mason, Masters of the Universe, Polly Pocket, Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots, Thomas & Friends, UNO, View-Master and Wishbone.  

Related:Hot Wheels: Product to Entertainment, Entertainment to Product

By taking popular toy IP and creating additional entertainment from it, Mattel is betting on the love of its product through expansion. Media and licensed consumer products are key in the company’s repositioning as a multi-faceted entertainment giant. It is not just a company known for toys any longer, but television and movies, too.