The Porsche Taycan Turbo – the silent star in ”Den of Thieves 2: Pantera”

All great heists need meticulous planning, split-second timing, and most of all, perfect silence. So as the filmmakers behind “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” plotted their high-speed chases, it became clear that there was no better car than the Porsche Taycan Turbo.

In the movie, the characters plan an elaborate diamond heist in which the robbery happens entirely undetected. “It had to be credible that the thieves could get in and out of the heavily secured diamond exchange without anyone noticing they were even there,” says writer-director Christian Gudegast. “We needed a car that is super-fast, agile, and quiet, at the same time. That's only possible with an electric sports car.” And after doing his research, Gudegast felt that only the Porsche Taycan Turbo would get the audience’s adrenaline pumping, writing the car into the script at an early stage — even before he knew if Porsche would agree.

The Taycan Turbo provided the image that Gudegast wanted, as well as the necessary technical capabilities. With its role in the ‘Den of Thieves’ sequel, the car also makes history as the first all-electric stunt car in a Hollywood chase scene.

Porsche provided a total of five modified cars for filming, one of which was converted into a so called “pod car” – controlled entirely from the roof of the car by a stunt driver while actors created their performances.  All control devices – from the steering wheel, dashboard, and start button to the seat and accelerator pedal – were relocated to a capsule on the roof of the Taycan Turbo, where a stunt driver controlled it so the actors inside could focus on the action.

The team had two months to implement the modifications requested by the filmmakers and to test the stunt cars. To accommodate this, the port of Tenerife was closed for a period in the summer of 2023, with Porsche specialists working through the nights to realize the director’s vision. For example, the engineers reprogrammed the software and the sensors to allow driving at nearly 100 km/h in reverse through a narrow tunnel.

“The entire project was very ambitious and required collaboration across teams and countries,” says Dominique Tascioglu, Head of Brand and Content Marketing at Porsche AG. “People from Zuffenhausen, Weissach, and Atlanta, but also the local colleagues from Porsche Ibérica – everyone pulled together with the film’s production team. The end result was definitely worth the incredible effort from everyone."

Gudegast is also happy about the collaboration, saying: “We were very fortunate to have Porsche on board. They were phenomenal and worked wonders.” While some were initially sceptical that an electric sports car could credibly take on the role of a getaway car in a heist thriller, Gudegast never had any doubt. Even the electric sound of the Taycan contributed to the drama of the plot. “It sounds as cool as a spaceship and very sexy,” he says.

The film will be released in the U.S. on January 10, 2025.

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera

Gerard Butler (Plane, Has Fallen series) and O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton, Godzilla: King of the Monsters) return in the sequel to 2018’s action-heist hit Den of Thieves. In “Den of Thieves: Pantera”, Big Nick (Butler) is back on the hunt in Europe and closing in on Donnie (Jackson), who is embroiled in the treacherous and unpredictable world of diamond thieves and the infamous Panther mafia, as they plot a massive heist of the world’s largest diamond exchange.