X

Lexus puts its grille on a spaceship and oh, man, is it terrible

Seriously, what's with automakers and pretending that cars belong in space?

Andrew Krok Reviews Editor / Cars
Cars are Andrew's jam, as is strawberry. After spending years as a regular ol' car fanatic, he started working his way through the echelons of the automotive industry, starting out as social-media director of a small European-focused garage outside of Chicago. From there, he moved to the editorial side, penning several written features in Total 911 Magazine before becoming a full-time auto writer, first for a local Chicago outlet and then for CNET Cars.
Andrew Krok
2 min read

Lexus, a brand purchased by people who were around to watch man walk on the moon, has put its name and look on a spaceship for the upcoming movie "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets." The movie looks fun, but the spaceship just looks...wrong.

Lexus put its head together with the movie's creative team to create Skyjet, a "single-seat pursuit craft" that seems to have a not-insignificant role in the film. You can see the Skyjet in the movie's teaser at 1:16 in the trailer. It looks generally futuristic, until you get to the front end, which features Lexus' traditional spindle grille and a set of headlights that look oddly similar to the peepers on the upcoming LC luxury coupe.

I know that movies are expensive, and Lexus shouldering some of that burden makes it easier to bring art to the masses. I also understand that it's a business's job to get its name in front of the public. But why, oh why, are we putting grilles on spaceships? There's not any air in space. Why does a spaceship need daytime running lights? What gives Lexus the gall to assume its company will exist for 700 more years?

Corporate sponsorship pops up in the weirdest ways. Nissan teamed up with Disney to produce a "Rogue One"-themed Rogue, even though cars don't exist in the "Star Wars" universe. Now, Lexus has designed its own spaceship. Next thing we know, Tesla and SpaceX will merge and you can buy a rocket alongside your EV.

Lexus Spaceship for Valerian
Enlarge Image
Lexus Spaceship for Valerian

That grille is going to cause some serious drag and re-entry issues.

Lexus