Disney Pixar released the first teaser trailer for αυτοκίνητα 3. The trailer has been trending for a while and it clocks in at just 49 seconds long. It’s already garnered millions of views and a lot of that is thanks to its mysterious setup and decidedly darker tone.

Looking as if they borrowed the tonal palette from Zack Snyder’s Batman κατά Σούπερμαν movie, the visual atmosphere of αυτοκίνητα 3 has a faded, realistic look this time around, almost equivalent to the way DICE gave 1 Battlefield that muted, dirty gun-metal look. Only this time, it’s an oily motor depiction of a less-than-stellar running Lightning McQueen, who takes a nasty skid and tumble to close out the visually engrossing teaser. Check it out below from Disney's επίσημο κανάλι στο YouTube.

One thing that absolutely stood out above all else is that the start of the trailer almost looked like real life. The cars, the sounds, the design of the track… It’s very cinematic looking, especially compared to the more cartoonish look that the first two movies had.

The camera shots of the three-quarter overhead view and the wheel cam off the right side of the sideskirt look great. Again, it’s almost as if it’s like a real life NASCAR event.

A lot of it reminded me of Days of Thunder. It’s got this motorized grit to it that just seems so much darker and dirtier than the previous two films.

Of course, this could all be a swerve and maybe it’s Pixar’s way of introducing viewers into a completely different kind of tale. The teaser could be all dark and gritty but the actual movie might be lighthearted and bright. We’ll just have to wait for the real, full trailer.

αυτοκίνητα 3 is due for release this upcoming summer in theaters around the world.