10 Movie Unmaskings That Shocked EVERYONE

8. Rex Racer - Speed Racer

Mission Impossible III
Warner Bros. Pictures

Having been in development for a ridiculous 16 years, hopes were high when Speed Racer zoomed to the silver screen in 2008. And while the reception to the movie wasn't entirely positive, the film was never anything less than a visual delight.

With Emile Hirsch's Speed starting to believe that his rival-turned-mentor Racer X is really his long-dead brother Rex Racer, the middle act of the film sees an enraged Speed confront the mysterious, masked Racer X as he looks to find out the truth for himself.

What was initially shocking here, is that Matthew Fox's unmasked Racer X isn't Speed Racer's brother. It's a jarring moment that went against the established narrative of such feel-good movies of years gone by, and it was something that obviously took Speed Racer aback.

And that was that...

Well, until the closing minutes of Speed Racer throw that unmasking on its head by revealing that, yes, Racer X is indeed Rex Racer. Courtesy of a timely flashback, we see that Rex faked his own death, underwent extensive plastic surgery, and has maintained this secret in order to protect his family and to protect his beloved sport of fast cars and competition.

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Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.