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| “ | The name is Shiftwell. Holley Shiftwell. | „ |
| ~ Holley Shiftwell introducing herself to Finn McMissile later to Mater |
Holley Shiftwell is the tritagonist of Pixar's 12th full-length feature film Cars 2, the second installment in the Cars film series.
She is a British secret agent who, alongside her fellow secret agent partner Finn McMissile, were inspecting the terroristic incidents which were happening during the World Grand Prix, hosted by Sir Miles Axlerod. She is also Mater's girlfriend.
She is voiced by Emily Mortimer who also voiced Sophie Hatter in Howl's Moving Castle. In the Japanese dub from the movie, she is voiced by Romi Park, who also voiced Edward Elric in the original version of Fullmetal Alchemist.
Personality
Holley Shiftwell is happy, serious and focused in her missions. But also shown to be a Strong -Willed, Brave and Independent
She is very good with technology, as shown when she uses an onboard computer to check on anything important, along with other gadgets that allow her to progress. She can be serious and motivated, but also sometimes naïve, such as when Finn reminded her about the saying that a spy will get whatever they find and try to escape before they can be found out when she was confused about why Mater could not tell from the photo of the lemons' mastermind. She also has uncompromising loyalty, especially towards Mater and Finn.
Holley is also very intelligent, telling by the fact that she was able to film the lemons driving through Porto Corsa by reprogramming the town's red traffic lights to scan them recognizably, as well as when she put a picture of Mater onto a screen showing the filming of the lemons so to give an idea of Mater going into the lemons' meeting in disguise.
Physical appearance
Holley Shiftwell has a high resemblance to a Jaguar XJR-15. According to the Meet the Cars book, she is also a 2008 MT-R Mark II. Her license plate reads "HS1006", which has her initials as well as a reference to the birthday of her voice actress Emily Mortimer (October 6).
She is painted magenta-purple and has chrome rims and decals and jade green eyes. Soon at the end of Cars 2, she receives a dent on her left side after helping Mater defeat a couple of lemons. However, the dent is absent in the video games that follow the film, despite Holley claiming that she will keep it.
Biography
Cars 2
Holley Shiftwell comes across Finn McMissile at the opening ceremony of the World Grand Prix in Tokyo, and tells him that an American agent has been placed onto a secret oil rig owned by a group of thugs, and had been able to get a photo of the mastermind. Finn changes the plan of himself meeting the American by having Holley take the role instead, as the thugs from the oil rigs are at the ceremony as well.
The American agent, who is called Rod "Torque" Redline, activates his tracking beacon, and Holley follows the guide on her digital read-outs. To her dismay, Rod is in the men's bathroom. She is reluctant at first to go into it due to being opposite gender but agrees to Finn telling her that she cannot spend too much time stalling. Unbeknownst to her, Rod is being attacked by two of the thugs, named Grem and Acer. Just as Holley is about to go in, Mater comes out, with the tracking beacon on him due to Rod Redline placing his device with the photo onto Mater's undercarriage. Holley does not believe at first that Mater is the agent, but Finn believes that he is when Holley describes him to be extremely American.
Holley comes across Mater and tries to make sure she is talking to a spy by saying that a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia has no radiator. Mater knows the correct answer of it being air-cooled, to which Holley then tells him that she is from the Tokyo Station. However, Mater starts going on and on about other models that are also air-cooled. After his mentions of Type 3 Squarebacks and Type 2 buses, Holley tells him that they need to talk somewhere more private. Mater gets confused about what she means, to which she then figures that it is impossible to know if any places are not compromised. To make sure that they find someplace at another time, she asks when she can see Mater again, to which he replies that he will be at the World Grand Prix race in Tokyo the next day. Holley agrees to make a rendezvous with him at that time.
On the day of the race, Finn and Holley watch Mater from inside a building, seeing that he is in the pits, to which Holley is confused about because of the rules of spies not coming into contact with the public. Finn believes that it is his cover, and they wait patiently for Mater to contact them, which he does not know about. Soon, Holley notices on her onboard computer that some of the thugs are closing in on Mater, and Finn leaves to battle them. Holley manages to hack into and speak through Mater's headset, telling him to get out of the pits. Mater eventually does, thinking that the rendezvous is a date. After Finn defeats the thugs, Holley says to Mater that the rendezvous has been jeopardized and that they will be in touch soon.
The next day, Holley gets on board Siddeley The Spy Jet before he comes onto the runway of Haneda Airport to pick up Finn and Mater, who were being chased by Grem and Acer. Mater is immediately interested to see Holley, stating her to be his imaginary girlfriend. Holley then replies to get into Siddeley, but Mater asks her if she wants a date with him, leaving her shocked and confused as he talks. However, they are soon attacked by Acer, who is shooting at them. Finn finishes him off by shooting at his tire to deflate it and cause him to turn toward another plane and fall into a lavatory service truck. As Siddeley comes towards the end of the runway, Finn turns around to pull Mater onto Siddeley.
Finding that the device is still on Mater's undercarriage, Holley takes it off and gets the photo downloaded. Mater begins introductions of her and Finn, which she feels confused when Mater says that she is his date. He immediately says that he did not get her name, to which she introduces it. The photo then comes up, showing what is an old engine which Mater recognizes at first glance. They are unable to figure out who the engine belongs to but find that the mastermind has some rare parts.
To find more information, they travel to Paris to find a black-market parts dealer who is named Tomber. As they see him talking to someone, Finn and Holley take cover, but Tomber sees Finn's reflection on several hubcaps after Mater appears, and quickly drives away. A chase takes place, ending when Holley appears in front of Tomber, causing him to overturn and go through the air before landing in a market stall. Holley then tases him, thinking him to be an enemy, but is stopped by Finn, because Tomber is actually his informant. Meeting up in a private warehouse for used car parts, they hear from Tomber that he had sold these kinds of parts to someone who is his best customer, and he was also not able to figure out who this guy is either, and had been wondering why the person would need so many parts. Mater tells them that is because he's a lemon car. When Finn questions the term, Mater explains that lemons are cheaply made cars that were built to breakdown all the time before saying that the Pacers and Gremlins that have been trying to attack them back in Japan are also lemon cars. Sensing a trend, Finn asks Holly to pull out the pictures he took of the oil platform and identify all the cars out there. Holly identifies Hugos and Trunkovs which Mater also identifies as lemons, which makes Holly deduce that everyone involved in the plot are all lemon cars. They find out that the lemons are having a secret meeting in Porto Corsa, Italy, which is also where the second World Grand Prix race is being held. Knowing that the mastermind will be there as well, they board Stephenson the spy train for Porto Corsa.
During the journey, Holley gets an idea of having Mater infiltrate the lemons' meeting while holographically disguised as a blue tow truck named Ivan, who is responsible for towing Victor Hugo to different locations. Mater has to make voice commands through a device put on his beacon light to activate the disguise. Noticing that Mater's bodywork is not smooth enough for the disguise's final fitting, Holley gets a mechanical arm from Stephenson's ceiling to fix Mater's dents. However, Mater is at first startled but then explains to Holley that he does not want to have his dents fixed, as he wants to still remember them, claiming them to be way too valuable. While Holley begins to work around Mater's dents, Finn adds some weapons into Mater's bodywork.
Upon arriving at Porto Corsa's casino, as part of the plan, Holley comes up to Ivan and a group of black Hugos, who are all unaware that she is a spy. She talks in an Italian accent, and says that she needs them to help her broken down made-up grandfather. Ivan and a Hugo named Alexander Hugo get into a small argument about who she was talking to, before she chooses Ivan. She takes him around the corner of the casino, and electrocutes him so that Mater can take his place while in disguise. Holley then joins Finn outside, communicating with Mater on the radio, along with showing Mater's point of view on her on-board computer. While he is in the casino, Holley warns Mater about being careful what he says, which makes him ask if she is wanting him to stop talking to her. Hearing what Mater is saying, Alexander is thinking that he is acting weird, to which Mater starts to talk to Alex while learning his nicknames by using an invisible heads-up display on his eyes. As soon as Mater starts to mention Alex's wanted status, Holley immediately tells him to stop, before Alex then says to quiet down because he may get him arrested. Holley remains shocked as Alex tells another Hugo (William Hugo) not to mess with Ivan today because he is in a bad mood, which makes Finn very impressed that it does not blow Mater's own cover.
Mater and the Hugos come into one of the casino's rooms to meet the rest of the lemons, waiting for their boss to arrive. Finn and Holley watch as there are knocking sounds on the door, but it turns out to be just Zundapp. The mastermind is then seen on the flat-screen televisions with only his engine seen, and talking in a disguised voice. Holley tries to get it descrambled but is unable to because it is too sophisticated. The mastermind mentions about that the lemons have all been laughed at their whole lives by the whole world after they stopped manufacturing their models and parts, then tells them about their plan of paying back. While he is talking, several of the World Grand Prix racers crash when their engines explode. Holley finds that it is due to a very strong electromagnetic pulse, which is coming from a generator disguised as a TV camera, being used by Grem and Acer on a tower. Finn then rushes to stop them, but just as he is about to, he gets captured when he gets pulled by a helicopter using a large magnet, as they already knew that he was going to come. Holley notices that Grem and Acer are still using the emitter, causing most of the other racers to crash, before she then sees Finn being carried away. Thinking that they need to abort the mission, she tells Mater to get out of the casino, before she too gets captured when she is surrounded by Ivan and several more lemons.
The lemons later capture Mater after his cover is accidentally blown, and take him, Holley and Finn to London, tying them to the giant gears of Big Bentley, which are supposed to crush them in a couple of minutes as the clock moves. Holley and Finn get shocked when Mater shouts to them that he is not a spy, as he said that he tried to tell them that, but they did not understand him earlier. Just then, Grem and Acer arrive in an elevator, planning to use the EMP generator to kill racecar Lightning McQueen, who is best friends with Mater, during the final World Grand Prix race, which is taking place in the city. This attempt fails, which leaves the lemons wondering why. Holley, Finn and Mater then get informed by Grem and Acer that they are going to the back-up plan, which is that they have put a bomb in McQueen's pit which should explode when he comes in. As they insult him, Mater notices that his gatling guns have slightly cut through the ropes he is tied in. After Grem and Acer leave, Mater repeatedly does voice command to make the guns cut through the ropes completely, setting him free. He is desperately wanting to help Finn and Holley, but they tell him to go and warn McQueen's pit crew, claiming to him that they will be okay so that he leaves.
Hearing Finn say that being killed by a clock gives a completely new meaning to the phrase "Your time has come". Holley gets thinking and uses her electroshock device to reverse the battery so that the gears move the other way so the clock's hands go counter-clockwise. However, on the other side, another gear is about to crush them. They drive forward to make a gap big enough for the gear to go between them and cut the ropes off to prevent from getting killed. However, as they prepare to get to the course, they then spot Mater's air filter, revealing to them that the lemons have actually put the bomb on Mater. They warn him on the radio just as he arrives at the pits to warn his friends about the bomb, which is also the moment when McQueen comes in and is glad to see Mater. Knowing that the lemons are about to make the bomb go off, Mater drives away from McQueen, who chases after him, not knowing about the bomb. Holley soon appears in front of Professor Z and points her guns at him, causing him to flee in fear. As Finn goes to get the professor, Holley goes to help Mater while using her retractable wings and afterburners for flight. She finally notices him going through the streets of London, using his rocket jets, while McQueen is holding onto his tow hook. She tells Mater to stop, but he declines, telling her that she could get hurt. However, Holley then sees Grem and Acer heading towards them and gets into action by flying ahead of them, causing them to hit her and bounce through the air into an inn, where the customers angrily beat them up for knocking over their beer.
As Mater and McQueen halt to a stop, Holley appears, saying that they have got to get the bomb off, which makes McQueen finally realize the situation. Finn then arrives with Professor Z tied up and orders him to turn the bomb off. The evil professor tells them that the bomb is voice-activated, but after it denies Mater's voice telling it to deactivate by starting a timer, they hear from Professor Z that only the one who had turned it on can deactivate it. Holley aims her electroshock device at him, threatening him to say it by force, to which he does, but his voice is denied as well. Professor Z explains that he is not the one who had activated the bomb and asked maliciously if anyone else would like to try, but Holley then tases him, rendering him unconscious, saying that he was getting on her nerves.
A few moments later, they get surrounded by the rest of the lemons, who try to make sure that they do not escape and the bomb activates. But as J. Curby Gremlin gets out his gun, McQueen and Mater's friends come to the scene to help them fight the lemons. Holley defeats many cars on her own, causing the rest to retreat but they are cornered by the British military and Sarge.
With the lemons successfully arrested, everyone tries to figure out how to disarm the bomb. Mater then figures out who had turned it on, and takes McQueen to Buckingham Palace while using his rocket jets and parachute, with the rest of the gang following on land (or in the case of Holley, with flight). Mater tells the Queen, the bodyguards and police that the mastermind is none other than Miles Axlerod, the creator of the World Grand Prix and Allinol fuel. Miles tries to convince that Mater is the crazy one, but the tow truck explains that he had figured it out because when the bomb was attached to him, it had the same bolts that hold together the mastermind's engine, and that he remembers a saying of old British engines having oil in them when it is under them, pointing out that Axlerod had framed him for leaking oil back in Japan. Axlerod still claims that Mater is crazy, even Holley and Finn were skeptical themselves and wonder why would Axlerod want to hurt anyone if he created the World Grand Prix and Allinol, to which Mater explains that it would be to make everyone think that alternative fuel is not safe and go back to fossil fuels, and that they would have to buy oil from the oil rigs so that the lemons can become rich. He also pointed out that Axlerod said these words in a disguised voice, which he still claims to be ridiculous.
As the timer on the bomb gets closer to zero, the bodyguards evacuate most other vehicles, including the Queen, her grandson, and other spectators. Axlerod is cornered by Mater on the edge of the platform, and Holley and everyone else brace for the explosion. Just one second before it could explode, Axlerod is forced to make the bomb successfully deactivate. Mater then opens Axlerod's hood to show Finn, Holley, and the police that his assumption was correct, convincing them that Axlerod is the mastermind as his engine is a perfect match to the picture Holley took. Holley and Finn then join McQueen, his friends, and the spectators to watch Mater being knighted by the Queen for his bravery before returning home with his friends.
Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell soon arrive in Radiator Springs to greet Mater, also convincing Van on Mater telling him, Minny and the townsfolk about his big adventure. As Mater introduces everyone to the agents, Holley mentions that she is Mater's girlfriend, which also surprises Guido completely, as he and Luigi had not believed Mater claiming so back in Japan, now finally believe him. Flo notices that Holley has a dent on her side, which was caused when Grem and Acer drove into her back in London. Ramone offers to get his tools to fix the dent, but Holley decides to keep it, stating it to be as valuable as Mater's. McQueen soon gets to the question of why he did not explode when he was hit by the pulse, to which Finn and Holley explain that they could not figure that out either, along with that they have found out Allinol was actually gasoline modified to explode when coming into contact with the beam itself. The answer to the question is then revealed when Fillmore says that his organic fuel was put into McQueen by Sarge during the race.
Everyone soon watches McQueen, and the rest of the World Grand Prix racers participate in the unofficial Radiator Springs Grand Prix, with the townsfolk cheering McQueen on. Siddeley then arrives, ready for Finn and Holley to leave as they have another mission. Knowing that Mater still isn't a spy, they mention that it was still great to meet him. He politely declines to join them, as he is at Radiator Springs, to which he calls home, and Holley promises to return for their first date, much to Mater's delight.
Video games
Cars 2: The Video Game
Holley Shiftwell is one of the playable characters in the game, unlocked from the start, and helps the player in training levels perform tricks and receive boosts. She is one of the characters who have medium weight and works at C.H.R.O.M.E. with Finn McMissile throughout the story to have Mater, Lightning McQueen, and their friends trained by taking part in simulations, competing in normal and battles races, and attacking enemies on a race track or arena. Eventually, most of them pass, with Holley noting that they would have to win every race to pass.
The player will unlock a Racer Holley customization by earning the "Agent - Second Class" crest. A Cherry Blossom Holley customization can also be downloaded for the PlayStation and Xbox 360 versions.
Kinect Rush: A Disney/Pixar Adventure
Holley makes her first appearance in the end scene of Fancy Drivin', saying that the player would be perfect for being a racer as well as a spy. She later teams up with the player in the Bomb Squad level to find a bomb planted somewhere in Tokyo, soon finding out that it has been put on Francesco Bernoulli, who is unaware about it. Eventually, they catch up to him and deactivate the bomb, before picking it up to be analyzed. She then congratulates the player for doing such a brilliant job.
Additionally, after the player unlocks retractable wings for their character, Holley is heard talking to the player about ramps up ahead in the levels.
Disney Infinity
Holley Shiftwell is a playable character in the Disney Infinity game series. Her figure is available with McQueen's figure and the piece for the Cars Play Set. She can be used in the play set, along with the Toy Box of all games. In the Cars Play Set, the residents of Radiator Springs are preparing for a racing competition, and Mater is planning to arrange his date with Holley. After Chick Hicks is taken by Ramone and Flo to be painted like McQueen, Holley tells Mater that they can hang out at Flo's V8 Café.
Her exclusive Toy Box Adventure in the first game is Holley's C.H.R.O.M.E. Course, where the player has to defeat a number of enemies to get a medal.
Cars: Fast as Lightning
Holley Shiftwell appears in the mobile game, being one of the playable characters. She is unlocked after completing all of Raoul ÇaRoule's races, also unlocking her track and hideout.
Powers and Abilities
Holley Shiftwell has several gadgets, such as an on-board computer, projection lamps, dual mounted trackball platforms, headlight cameras, digital read-outs, retractable wings for flight, concealed guns, an electroshock device, and a telescoping utility arm.
Specifications
- Top Speed: 160 mph
- 0-60 mph: 5.5 seconds
- Engine Type: 3.5-liter turbocharged V6
- Horsepower: 275
- Hometown: London, England
Weaponry and Gadgets
Holley Shiftwell can go up to 160 mph, and from zero to 60 mph in 5.5 seconds. Her engine type is a 3.5-liter turbocharged V-6, and she has a horsepower of 275. She also has several gadgets:
- On-board computer: Holley is able to get a holographic screen displayed on her front by her hood to show spy data, and she uses dual trackball platforms as a mouse.
- Projection lamps: These show the display of a hologram above her headlights. Located above her headlights, they emit the hologram heads-up display.
- Dual mounted trackball platforms: These are used to control her heads-up display, by using her wheels. They draw up in her undercarriage, and are like a computer mouse.
- Headlight cameras: They send images to her on-board computer, being invisible.
- Digital read-outs: She can get transmissions from other secret agents as well as seeing an environment's map with the screen, which is located on her left wing mirror.
- Retractable wings for flight: They allow Holley to fly through the air. Wings come out from her rocker panels, and her rear deck lid turns into a T-tail, along with her exhaust using afterburners.
Additionally, she has several gadgets and weapons equipped in her front wheels:
- Concealed guns: They are used to shoot bad guys. She has one in each wheel.
- Electroshock device: This is used to give people an electroshock, looking similar to a taser, and has a long cord.
- Telescoping utility arm: Holley can use this to press a control panel's buttons and carry devices that are small, such as the one carrying a photo of the lemons' mastermind's engine.
Creation and development
In one of the earlier incarnations of Cars 2, Pixar had a character named Giulia who was basically a double agent; she connected with Mater, and the two of them later went off and had their own adventures and met up again with the other characters at the end. Secretly, she was working for Zil and was a double agent. Giulia was deleted, but Pixar put a new character to be an heroic secret agent called Holley Shiftwell.
Holley is based on a blend of high-end European sports cars, most notably the Jaguar XJR-15 and Aston Martin DB9. Her design reflects sophistication and agility, complementing her spy persona. She was created specifically for Cars 2 to serve as a counterpart to the more bumbling and comedic Mater, allowing for a fun dynamic in a James Bond-esque spy subplot. Her character also adds a touch of romance and international flair.
Her name is a playful reference: “Holley” likely nods to Holley Performance Products, an automotive parts manufacturer, while her surname “Shiftwell” is a pun combining automotive terminology (gear shifting) with a cheeky nod to her smooth, competent demeanor. Her popularity was notable among fans, especially younger audiences and those who appreciated the spy-themed twist in Cars 2.
Holley's model initially was intended to be a Porsche, but was changed due to Sally Carrera already being a Porsche.
Descriptions on LEGO.COM
This beautiful young desk agent may not have had a lot of mission experience yet, but she knows every trick in the secret agent manual and she’s ready to put her skills into practice saving the world!
It's time for Mater's next big spy mission, and it's up to Holley to make sure the rookie secret agent is all geared up and ready. Good thing she has her computerized info screen to give her all the data she needs!
As a super secret agent and spy, Holley is full of surprises. Sprouting a set of wings, she takes off into the air in jet mode to save the day from the forces of automotive evil!
Trivia
- Some Lego Cars 2 sets include Holley. However, that version of her is a little bit more pinkish (in the film and other media, however, Holley is purple).
- Her license plate is HS1201, which includes her initials. The number 1201 is Emily Mortimer's birthday (December 1).
- Holley's name is a reference to Holley Performance Products, a manufacturer of high-performance carburetors and fuel systems located in Bowling Green, KY.
- For most of the film, Finn McMissile doesn't seem to know his partner Holley is flight-capable.
- Holley's design has a close resemblance to the Jaguar XJR-15.
- Her design resembles a car by the British company TVR which specializes in creating sport cars
- Holley's license plate reads HS1006. The number 1006 is her voice actress Emily Mortimer's birthday (October 6).
- In some LEGO Cars 2 sets, it includes Holley. However, that version of her is a little bit more pink than purple.
- It is unknown why Holley did not appear in Cars 3, but it is possible that the nature of her work meant that she was busy with her job around the time of the third film.
- Holley's model initially was intended to be a Porsche, but was changed due to Sally Carrera already being a Porsche.
- Coincidentally, both female characters have their respective love interests (Mater for Holley; Lightning for Sally).
- She is currently the only leading female character of the Cars film series to not be primarily associated with Lightning McQueen (although, she did helped him survive from being victimized by the Lemons), as she is instead heavily linked to his best friend, Mater.
- Even though she didn't meet or interact with Chick Hicks in the Cars movies, Holley did interact with him in the Disney Infinity franchise.
- As the most prominent female character of Cars 2, Holley is unique for being the only leading female Pixar character to not be positioned in any of the three principal character types, since she's not the film's protagonist, or its deuteragonist, or even its triagonist. Instead, she's simply a supporting character.
External Links
- Holley Shiftwell on the Near Pure Good Wiki
- Holley Shiftwell on the Love Exalted Wiki
- Holley Shiftwell on the Disney Wiki
- Holley Shiftwell on the Pixar Wiki
- Holley Shiftwell on the World of Cars Wiki
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Radiator Springs Racers C.H.R.O.M.E. Propwash Junction Piston Peak Fire Department Others | ||
