Best Classic Ford Mustang Movie Cars

According to IMCDB.com, the classic Ford Mustang has appeared in almost 10,000 films and television shows. While many of those appearances are just in the background, it’s been the actual hero car of countless movies. This big screen popularity makes total sense given its 60 years of heritage, and its abundant use in popular culture has cemented the Ford Mustang’s status as a global automotive icon.

From aliens and assassins to British spies to cops and criminals, it seems that characters of all types have driven a Mustang on the silver screen, but here are our top choices of the best classic Ford Mustang movie cars. Let the debates begin!

Bullitt

There’s no debating that a certain Highland Green 1968 Mustang GT 390 is the best Mustang movie car of all time. Bullitt wasn’t exactly a great movie, but hands down, the incredible car chase scene is the greatest ever filmed. No CGI, just all stunt driving! The cultural significance of this 11-minute chase scene resulted in the movie’s vintage Ford Mustang being added to the National Historic Vehicle Register, and later, this exact star car sold at auction for $3.74 million, making it the most valuable Mustang ever.

Gone In 60 Seconds

Bullitt is definitely the Mustang’s main starring role of all time, but the 2000 remake of Gone In 60 Seconds gave that star car a run for its money. When Eleanor 2.0 arrived as a 1967 Shelby GT500, this car didn’t just wow audiences with its amazing chase scene, it became a cultural icon that inspired countless recreations.

Before Nicolas Cage and his stolen GT500 were tearing up L.A., Eleanor was a 1971 Ford Mustang SportsRoof (modified to look like a 1973 model). If you haven’t seen the original Gone In 60 Seconds from 1974, check out the final chase scene in that film:

Goldfinger

The Mustang has certainly been in many movies and shows over the years, but the car’s first major on-screen appearance was in the 1964 James Bond film Goldfinger. In that film, a ‘65 Mustang convertible gets some excellent screen time racing 007’s Aston Martin DB5 along winding Swiss roads before being disabled by the DB5’s trick gadgetry. Our favorite British spy has another Mustang encounter in Thunderball (1965) and finally gets to drive one in Diamonds Are Forever (1971).

The Thomas Crown Affair

The original version of this movie from 1968 had Steve McQueen blasting through the sand in a Meyers Manx, but the 1999 remake of The Thomas Crown Affair featured Pierce Brosnan as the billionaire art thief. Instead of a dune buggy, this movie uses a highly modified Ford Mustang that has been transformed into a 1967 Shelby GT350 convertible off-roader. According to the cinema rumor mill, this Mustang was allegedly created for use in the 1993 film Last Action Hero, but Arnold Schwarzenegger didn’t fit in the car and eventually was repurposed for this movie; lending credence to this claim is the fact that both movies had the same director. This custom Mustang played more of a supporting role than other Mustangs on this list, but its unique design and intriguing-if-true backstory more than make up for its lack of screen time or action.

John Wick

Eleanor may have shown the emotional connection between man and machine, but the John Wick movies prove that you should never mess with a man’s car… or dog. Keanu Reeves spends the first two films retrieving the stolen 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 and exacting his revenge, but the high-octane action has sparked the successful four-movie (and growing) franchise.

Misery

John Wick showed that the classic Ford Mustang could take a beating on screen, but the Mustang meets an early demise in Stephen King’s 1990 psychological thriller Misery. Not only did this pivotal opening scene lay the groundwork for the rest of the film, it was yet another example of the emotional connection between enthusiasts and their cars.

 

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

In The Fast and the Furious movie world, the 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback featured in the third film isn’t the most exciting, but its JDM engine swap makes it the best sleeper of the series. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift may have been the franchise’s lowest-grossing so far, but the final race scene delivers some of the most believable racing action after the old-school Ford Mustang was transformed into a restomod drift car.

Starman

Showing that even a Mustang II can look cool on the big screen, Starman (1984) featured a 1977 Cobra II driven by an alien and his reluctant hostage. Like the car itself, the movie is extremely underrated and often overlooked, but unlike the Mustang II, the movie features great performances from Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen.

Transformers

Michael Bay’s 2007 Transformers was a highly successful move that spawned an entire franchise of films. Still, the original is basically a 143-minute commercial for the reborn Camaro—not to mention all of the other GM products that were heavily showcased throughout the film. With that in mind, it’s no wonder that a Mustang plays a prominent antagonist, a Decepticon named Barricade who attempts to blend in with the human world disguised as a 2007 Saleen Mustang police car.

Need For Speed

Just as Transformers is a de facto Chevy commercial, Need For Speed is a Ford commercial. The protagonist drives a modified 2013 Shelby GT500 cross-country in hopes of racing against exotic hypercars in California. The GT500 doesn’t survive to make the climactic race, but the movie’s final scene was used as the cinematic debut of the fifth-gen Mustang.

That’s My Boy

Ok, hear us out on this one. Although this is easily one of Adam Sandler’s worst movies, it does feature one of the most famous Mustangs of the 1990s: a white 5.0 ragtop made famous by Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby.” There’s actually some decent action in the scene, and the Fox Body Mustang looks great showing off its moves.

Velocity Ford Mustang

In 2023, the Velocity Ford Mustang made its premier, showing a modernized take on the classic Ford Mustang with a soundtrack provided by Ford’s powerful Gen III 5.0L Coyote V8. Contact Velocity today, and let the Velocity Ford Mustang be the star of your next adventure!