Apple confirms Brad Pitt to star as driver in new F1 film produced by Hamilton

2022 F1 Season

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Apple Studios has announced it has acquired the rights to a Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt and produced by Lewis Hamilton.

The film’s screenplay is being written by Ehren Kruger and the feature will be directed by Joseph Kosinski. The pair previously worked together in the same roles on Top Gun: Maverick, which is currently playing in cinemas.

Apple’s as-yet-untitled Formula 1 film will star 58-year-old Bitt as an older driver who comes out of retirement to join a rookie team mate and take on the series’ top competitors.

The film will be produced by Hamilton, Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment company (which previously created World War Z), Jerry Bruckheimer and Chad Oman (who also worked on Top Gun: Maverick, as well as the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise).

It remains to be seen whether the film will include an appearance by seven-times F1 champion Hamilton, who has previously made cameo appearances and voice acting roles in films including Cars 2, Cars 3 and Zoolander 2, as well as hit game Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

Hamilton is a co-producer of the upcoming film
Hamilton was also executive producer on the 2018 documentary film The Game Changers, about a Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor’s switch to vegan protein. The new Apple Original Films project will be his first full production credit.

Pitt has previously shown a strong interest in motorsport including waving the start flag at the 2016 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He had previously worked for several years on a biopic about the Le Mans racer and engineer Caroll Shelby, also with Kosinski, which eventually became the Matt Damon-fronted Ford vs Ferrari (aka Le Mans ’66).

Screenwriter Kruger, in addition to having worked on Top Gun: Maverick, is best known for writing three of the Transformers franchise films, the sequels Revenge Of the Fallen, Dark of the Moon and Age of Extinction.

Apple Studios is the production house for AppleTV+ original productions. It is also working with Pitt and George Clooney on another original film, as yet untitled.

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Author information

Hazel Southwell
Hazel is a motorsport and automotive journalist with a particular interest in hybrid systems, electrification, batteries and new fuel technologies....

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61 comments on “Apple confirms Brad Pitt to star as driver in new F1 film produced by Hamilton”

  1. I love it when stuff explodes.

    1. On screen, that is :)

      1. Mr. Mann, is that you?

        1. Prolly Michael Bay. He makes everything go boom.

  2. IfImnotverymuchmistaken
    8th June 2022, 11:52

    Didn’t they already make that movie? Only with Sylvester Stallone.

    Although, Maverick is great, so maybe they do a good job here as well. Fingers crossed.

    1. Yeah, I don’t have to read any further than when they mention using the same scenario. It may be a great movie (original was pretty shallow and I didn’t enjoy it at all, so I hope they would make it less silly), but would it be so hard to invest in a story, since you already invest in the whole production? Sadly for writers, but luckily for film producers, creative writing is very cheap these days. After all, there’s so much inspiration to be had from the actual historic events in the long history of racing. This is gonna be another Hollywood-style cliché money grabber.

    2. TG:M is indeed great, though pretty far from accurate. Then again, there have rarely been any movies which depicted a realistic image of racing.

    3. I luv chicken
      9th June 2022, 1:54

      Hahahahaha!

  3. OMG another Driven. Please no!!

    1. Ehren Kruger is a pedigree screenwriter. It should be top quality.

      1. Steveetienne
        8th June 2022, 15:11

        A cursory glance at his resume would suggest otherwise.

        1. lol you’re a savage. Really made me laugh

  4. Only went to see Driven at the cinema to see Champ Cars on the big screen, will probably do the same with this

  5. David Sexton
    8th June 2022, 12:26

    Sadly, some who do not follow F1 will consider this a docu-drama and think an old, over weight driver could just jump into a F1 car and show the world and his team how easy it is to win the WDC (I’m assuming that’s what retired heroes do). That scenario is about as likely as the dream I had last night of my 65 pound dog flying in the air at tree top level chasing a frisbee for two city blocks.

    1. Its a film. FICTION

    2. Indeed, but there are exceptions:

      Indycar is not quite F1, but still, Juan Pablo Montoya raced in Indy500 this year and finished 11th. Even though he’s fairly out-of-shape and out-of-touch with racing at this level.
      He also raced the previous weekend in the Indianapolis Road Course to prepare for the 500 and ran well inside the top 5 with a couple of laps to go until an issue with the car.

  6. Apple’s as-yet-untitled Formula 1 film will star 58-year-old Bitt as an older driver who comes out of retirement to join a rookie team mate and take on the series’ top competitors

    .

    So Brad Pitt is either playing Nigel Mansell (partnering rookie Hill in 1994) or Fernando Alonso (partnering rookie Ocon in 2021) or Lauda (partnering rookie Prost in 1983)?

    None of the 3 were strictly rookies though.

    1. Could be Michael Schumacher – it only says he’ll take on the competitors, not beat them…

      1. Or maybe the future of Hamilton ;)

    2. My bet is on a female colored lesbian.

      1. this is not Netflix, though you might be correct

      2. petebaldwin (@)
        8th June 2022, 19:14

        Yeah because they usually only cast male lesbians….

      3. Electroball76
        8th June 2022, 21:26

        For Brad Pitt’s role?
        Maybe the movie will be like Tropic Thunder.

    3. I was thinking more Mansell in 95…Hakkinen still counts as a rookie that season right?

  7. Can’t wait for the scenes where they need to pass somebody, so all they do is stamp on the throttle and shift a gear.

    1. LOL. I don’t expect there will be a lot of dialogue about the having the tyres in the right window or disintegrating.

    2. Now, they will show the DRS being activated and the car breezing past the opponent on a long straight..

    3. Oh yes, my favorite racing movie cliché! Somehow, they all have an extra gear on these cars that they use strictly for passing…

    4. Electroball76
      8th June 2022, 21:33

      “Call Masi, dammit! Get him to change this!” – Rival McRivalface.

  8. This could be really good. Especially with Lewis on hand to offer advice. But who knows. It’s quite a classic story line.

    I have not seen Ford vs Ferrari but I understand it was quite good.

    1. @phil-f1-21 The best racing film in ages

  9. The premise itself isn’t totally ridiculous (no doubt Pitt won’t actually be playing a 58-year-old), but it does sound like the most predictable film ever. I can make a pretty solid guess as to who’s going to win at the end.

  10. Hearing good things about Top Gun: Maverick, and Brad Pitt (while too old to realistically be an F1 driver) is always fun to watch, so sure, why not? Probably going to be a fun action movie with some cool action shots, I’m game.

  11. This is terrible. get an F1 driver aged actor. sounds like Driven with Sylvestor Stallone, one of the worst movies ever made, or the Top Gun trash with a 58 year old actor unrealistically tyring to “act” as a fighter pilot. But i guess there is enough people who will watch unrealistic trash movies for entertainment still.

    1. You are welcome to pitch your movie to Apple :)

  12. They should just follow the events of the 2021 season.

    It had one hell of a twist at the end!

    1. And the good guy wins at the end, so perfect for hollywood, too.

      1. I think Netflix would have something to say about that

      2. I am not sure this would be a very feelgood ending for the average viewer. Lewis’ heroic comeback from 30+ points behind in the standings only to be snatched away at the last minute by devious, all powerful officials ;;

        1. A movie you have never seen before. A young promising talent fights his bull to the next level and want to win the ultimate crown. He has been fighting for years to get to this level but he has never succeed and this is his time. Can he become the youngest ever to win the crown. He has to fight trough againts the stallions but the biggest obstacle in his way is the british silver arrow. Can he defeat? Only you can find out in the exploding and megalomaniac fight in F12021. But be aware there is one guy who will throw anything to be part of this fight. Who can it be?

  13. Jos Verstappen
    8th June 2022, 14:07

    This is the coolest thing I have ever heard! Not always the biggest fan of Lewis, but my word what a life he is living!!

  14. so.. he hires a white fellow! lol..

    so much for diversity! :)

  15. Sounds like Driven V.2.. currently, which 58 year old-ish ex-formula one driver has the physical and mental capacity to drive a current F1 car? at 58, the driver would be 25+ years past his prime. kind of like if Coulthard or Hakkinen or M Schumacher would race in today’s cars…

    1. One could lodge the same objections about every single James Bond movie.

    2. Neil (@neilosjames)
      8th June 2022, 19:15

      As he currently looks, they could convincingly screen-age Brad Pitt at around 45, so wouldn’t really be a ’58 year old’ in the film.

  16. Oh, c´mon! That’s ridiculous! How can Hamilton start producing movies in a top company like Apple?

    He should start in midfield companies to learn how to fight for results and then go to top companies like any producer in this industry!

    Shame!

    1. Coventry Climax
      8th June 2022, 22:50

      He’s a pay-producer ..

  17. Pitt has previously shown a strong interest in motorsport including waving the start flag

    LOL, you got me there…

  18. AllTheCoolNamesWereTaken
    8th June 2022, 20:36

    Well, if they could cast John Wayne as Genghis Khan …

    1. Are you sure about that i heard it in the 1960 that he played it but never saw the movie or was shown in the Netherlands.

  19. In Driven, Sly Stallone picked up three quarters with his tires, but at the current rate of inflation, Brad will need to pickup $1.23.

  20. Coventry Climax
    8th June 2022, 22:47

    One can only hope Pitt wears a helmet throughout the movie. Every film he’s made sofar he shows the same pouty face, which I can’t stand. Usually skip any movies he’s in. Very likely will do so again.

  21. Hmmm, so Pitt’s flag waving provides some level of qualification to represent an F1 driver.

    Maybe if I hold a placard at the next election I may get a film role as president.

  22. If what i hear is true it’s the same story as driven which isn’t F1 but a indy kind of stuff. The only one who could drive at that age and win is Fangio but i think it’s more modern.

    The script should be more current like George and Lewis and plot twist Lewis robs F1 and you get a pursuit in the road in F1 cars … something believeable like this……..

    1. On the public road …. typo

  23. Well, at least the plot sounds promising, right (Driven II? Stallone also wandted to do F1 but Bernie didn’t like what they offered, so they ended up doing IndyCar).

    I guess there are some credible names tied to this, and Hamilton being involved we might hope to get a watchable movie. The most recent movies with Pitt also were pretty good.So overall, I guess it will be a net positive.

    1. MingTheMercyless
      9th June 2022, 16:27

      Do you think? My guess is Brad will drive a car that’s 2 sec a lap faster then anybody else, while incessantly complaining about tires, and people driving dangerously.

  24. Best part of American movies is when cars are racing foot to the floor on a straight they drop a gear and the car goes boom passed the other car! Instead of boom there goes the gear box!!! Hahaha! Americas obsession with Manuel shift i guess..

  25. RocketTankski
    9th June 2022, 9:24

    Mercedes vs Ferrari (or Las Vegas ’26).
    Could this mark the beginning of the retirement phase for Lewis?

  26. Sergey Martyn
    9th June 2022, 17:55

    Hmm, looks like Brad will play gay or even a transgender who kisses boots of some young Afro racers. That would be very politically correct.

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