This Is How Hollywood Shot Those Insane Need For Speed Car Stunts

Chances are that if you ask a car guy which video game was ever-present in their childhood, Need For Speed will come out trumps. In a couple of months, the series will make its big-screen debut with a highly anticipated movie starring Aaron Paul (of Breaking Bad fame) in the lead role.

As if anyone ever suspected differently, the movie trailer confirmed we'd get a bunch of exotics undertaking high-speed races, often ending in spectacularly exaggerated crashes.

Speedhunters got to go behind the scenes filming some of the stunts that'll play a pivotal role in the movie. At first glance, you'll spot a 1140bhp Koenigsegg Agera R, a 580bhp Lamborghini Sesto Elemento and a 1180bhp Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. But not everything is as it seems.

In fact, these are not hypercars at all. They are extremely elaborate replicas. When you're racing and wrecking as much as these guys are, using the real thing is obviously impossible, so each car is based on the same mid-engined, rear-wheel drive platform. Rather than an exotically-fabricated powerplant, the replicas use a reliable Chevrolet LS3 V8 that pumps out more than enough power to keep the film looking legit.

Using replicas also allows the production staff to modify vehicles for special stunts. This Saleen S7 has been fitted with a rail system that allows it to drive under another car, launching it into the air.

But it's not just the stars of the film that get a makeover. This Mustang is sporting a rather nifty camera rig, that allows precision drivers to get in amongst the action, while camera operators get incredible high-speed shots.

This Merc ML 63 AMG gets an elaborate 'Russian arm' rig, which allows almost unlimited camera movement. It'll sweep vertically and horizontally, while being panned and tilted simultaneously - it takes a team of four to operate.

And finally this a 'pod car'. The camera rig attaches to the front of a vehicle and shoots the driver's face through the windscreen. It allows real driving shots to be used, rather than the old-school in-studio projections we used to see.

At the rear of these vehicles is a pod that seats the professional driver who is controlling the car, allowing the actor to concentrate on nailing their lines.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the stunts are hugely time consuming. Months of preparation go into these live-action stunts, as you'll often only have one chance to get it right. So that's months of preparation for a shot that features in the film for just a few seconds.

The stunt coordinators work with drivers to figure out the exact angles, speeds and forces required to complete the stunt. One particular shot, in which a Veyron must be T-boned by a cop car, rolled into a second day of shooting. The Bug had to be travelling exactly 60mph for the cop car to hit it where intended. Constant throttle adjustments and fine-tuning eventually led to a perfect shot.

Visit Speedhunters to see more behind the scenes photos, and get a closer look at those incredible replicas.