Up Next
You may have noticed the making of an Apple Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt lurking in the shadows of F1 grands prix over the last two years.
That film now has a confirmed release date for next year, further details of the plot, a title and a first teaser trailer.
Below we’ve compiled everything worth knowing about the upcoming original F1 film:
What it's called?
Quite simply - F1. Yep it's literally just F1. Not the most imaginative title but then does it need to be?
Is there a trailer?
There isn't an official trailer yet but a meaty 'teaser' for F1 was dropped just before the 2024 British Grand Prix.
Watch it below:
When will it be released?
The film will be released in theatres internationally on June 25 in 2025, distributed by Warner Bros. Studios.
Two days later it will be available in theatres in North America on June 27.
What’s the film about?
F1 is a fictional tale which features Brad Pitt’s character Sonny Hayes returning to F1 after some time away, Fernando Alonso-style.
Hayes joins rookie Joshua Pierce (played by Damson Idris, pictured above) at the fictional APX GP team with the aim of mentoring wunderkind Pierce. Hayes, played by 60-year-old Pitt, had his career interrupted by a crash in the 1990s and makes a remarkable - if slightly implausible - return to the grid.
APX GP is the fictional 11th team on the grid alongside the existing 10 teams.
Further official details of the plot are limited but there have been plenty of filming spyshots released given the public nature of some of the filming.
Who is in the film?
Brad Pitt, one of the world’s biggest film stars of the last three decades, headlines the cast list alongside Idris, probably best known for playing the lead role in the American crime drama series Snowfall.
Javier Bardem, an Academy Award winner for his role in No Country for Old Men, will play APX GP’s team owner.
Also among the cast is Kerry Condon, nominated at the Academy Awards in 2023 for her role in The Banshees of Inisherin, and Tobias Menzies who fronted AppleTV+’s recent historical crime drama Manhunt.
There’s also Sarah Niles (Ted Lasso), Kim Bodnia (Killing Eve), Samson Kayo (Our Flag Means Death) and Callie Cooke (Doctor Who).
Who is directing it?
This film will be the sixth full-length feature film directed by Joseph Kosinski.
His directorial career started with Tron: Legacy which was released in 2010. While it received mixed reviews from critics it proved to be a box office success.
That was followed by another sci-fi film Oblivion in 2013, which starred Tom Cruise and was based on Kosinski’s own source material.
Then came Only The Brave and Top Gun: Maverick which also starred Cruise and spawned both critical acclaim and commercial success, and the Chris Hemsworth-fronted Spiderhead which debuted on Netflix to mixed reviews.
Kosinski has reunited with producer Jerry Bruckheimer for the F1 film. Bruckheimer is the producer behind the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise among others.
Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton is also serving as a producer on the film, having offered his advice to keep the script as authentic as possible.
Where - and how - are they filming it?
The film has been made in collaboration with the existing F1 teams, the governing body the FIA and race promoters.
The film will feature on-track footage captured during real-world F1 events. The filmmakers used a black-and-gold-liveried, modified Formula 2 car with F1 stylings created by Mercedes’ technology division and Carlin.
Filming took place at multiple grands prix throughout the real-world 2023 season and will continue at several rounds in 2024. Filming is confirmed to be taking place at Silverstone once more as well as the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at “several other races” this year.
The cars are being driven by both Pitt and his co-star/team-mate Idris, as well as professional drivers where required, and mounted with a host of incredible cameras.
The captured footage - claimed to be a first of its kind - will be spliced with real F1 race footage too.
As well as recording on-track footage, APX GP had an impressive garage and pitwall set-up at the races it’s attending, as well as a paddock hospitality unit and some genuine race telemetry from 2022.
At the 2023 British GP, co-stats Pitt and Idris joined the usual pre-race ceremonies including the driver line-up for the national anthem.
Some deliberate camera angles for the TV coverage meant the watching world was unlikely to have seen them.
