Do you know how did Doc Hudson die? We are talking about the fictional character of the animated film, Cars, released in 2006. It was voiced by the late Primetime Emmy Award-winning actor and race car driver Paul Newman. In case you failed to make it, Doc Hudson stopped appearing in Cars 2, and people assumed him to be dead. It turned out to be because of Paul Newman’s death. What happened, and how did it get showcased in the film?
Before that, let’s briefly discuss Doc Hudson in Cars and the person behind his voice. Doc Hudson appeared as the former race car, winning Piston Cup. He later served as the medical doctor and the local judge of Radiator Springs. If you didn’t know, his full name was Hudson Hornet. Talking about his creators, it was the trio of- John Lasseter, Joe Ranft, and Jorgen Klubien, respectively.
On the other hand, Paul Newman, the voice actor for Doc Hudson, was a versatile actor. Some of his notable works include Cool Hand Luke, The Verdict, Message in a Bottle, Empire Falls, Road to Perdition, etc.
Coming back to Doc Hudson’s death, Paul Newman died a few years before the release of Cars 2. Because of that, Doc Hudson failed to make an appearance, for which fans accepted him to be dead. Knowing this, people have been curious to learn the cause behind the actor’s death. Along with this, if you are looking for how Doc Hudson died, here are the details.
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Doc Hudson’s Death In Cars: What Happened To Paul Newman In Reality?
Before talking about Doc Hudson’s death in Cars, let’s first learn what happened to the person behind him. Yes, we are talking about Paul Newman’s death.
The Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid actor, Paul Newman, passed away several years ago in 2008. To be more exact, it was on 26 September when Paul was 83 years old. Being a professional race car driver and enthusiast, too, he enjoyed contributing to the 2006 Pixar film, Cars. What went wrong? Even though he was aged but still doing good, when Paul Newman’s death came out to the public, everyone was left in shock.
On that very day, Paul Newman was at his home in Westport, Connecticut. He was ill and died after suffering from lung cancer. Only the patient knows how much pathetic it is. We only know how life-threatening the disease can be. He was considered the magnetic titan of Hollywood. It was quite a “tragic death” and was the consequence of heavy smoking.
Moving on with Doc Hudson’s exit before making it to Cars 2 highlighted his death as well. After Paul Hudson passed away, the character could have been voiced by someone else. But Pixar felt like it wouldn’t be the right thing to do, more precisely, a bad idea. So he decided to Doc Hudson’s absence in Cars 2. How did Doc Hudson die? Surprisingly, it turned out to be the biggest mystery that the film failed to address or show.
Cars 2 was released back in 2011, a few years after Paul Newman’s demise. Well, Doc Hudson’s death was assumed to have happened somewhat in between Cars and Cars 2. There was a brief moment between McQueen and his best friend, Mater. That, anyway, acknowledged Doc Hudson’s death. But, the weird part was there were no further details about what went wrong with him. Anyway, Doc Hudson’s assumed death helped McQueen to learn how to cope with his racing days.
People didn’t take Doc Hudson’s death on a good note. It seemed to be very weird. Why? Some fans wondered if he died because of his old age. Concerning that, the Cars franchise didn’t show any of the cars to have died because of that. Also, in Cars 3, when McQueen visited Doc Hudson’s stomping ground, he met everyone in good wealth. So, the franchise should have shown the absence of a few.
Briefly, we may say that the exact cause behind Doc Hudson’s death was not showcased. It was all the aftermath of Paul Newman’s death.
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