<P> Real Steel is a 2011 American science fiction sports film starring Hugh Jackman and Dakota Goyo and co-produced and directed by Shawn Levy for DreamWorks Pictures . The film is based on the short story "Steel", written by Richard Matheson, which was originally published in the May 1956 edition of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and later adapted into a 1963 Twilight Zone episode, though screenwriter John Gatins placed the film in U.S. state fairs and other "old - fashioned" Americana settings . Real Steel was in development for several years before production began on June 24, 2010 . Filming took place primarily in the U.S. state of Michigan . Animatronic robots were built for the film, and motion capture technology was used to depict the brawling of computer - generated robots and animatronics . </P> <P> Real Steel was released by Touchstone Pictures in Australia on October 6, 2011, and by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in the United States and Canada on October 7, 2011, grossing nearly $300 million at the box office . It received mixed reviews, with criticism for the formulaic nature of the plot and the fact that elements remained unresolved or were predictable, but also praise for the visual effects, action sequences and acting performances . The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects at the 84th Academy Awards, but lost to Hugo . </P> <P> In 2020, human boxers are replaced by robots . Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), a former boxer, owns "Ambush", but loses it in a fight against a bull belonging to promoter and carnival owner Ricky (Kevin Durand), who rigged the fight to mess with Charlie as he sees him as a joke, partially because he beat him up the last time they competed for bailing on the bet . Having made a bet that Ambush would win as a result, Charlie now has a debt to Ricky that he can't pay--which he runs out on . </P> <P> After the fight, Charlie learns that his ex-girlfriend died and he must attend a hearing deciding the future of their son, Max Kenton (Dakota Goyo), whom Charlie has had almost zero contact with and complete apathy towards since he was born . There, Max's aunt, Debra (Hope Davis), and her wealthy husband, Marvin (James Rebhorn), request full custody, which Charlie concedes for $100,000, half in advance, on the condition that Charlie retains Max for three months while they are on vacation and the other half when they return . Thereupon, Charlie, Max, and Bailey Tallet (Evangeline Lilly), the daughter of Charlie's former boxing coach, acquire the once - famous "Noisy Boy", but it is destroyed in a subsequent fight against "Midas". As he and Charlie attempt to scavenge parts to make a new robot from a junkyard, Max discovers "Atom", an obsolete but intact sparring robot designed to withstand severe damage, that is capable of mirroring opponent and handler movements and storing them in its memory due to its rare "shadow function". </P>

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