Yesterday’s victory for Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone, his first for two years and seven months and the win that gave him an unprecedented ninth at the British Grand Prix, felt like something from the movies. Indeed much of this season has, with Hamilton’s Ferrari move, the Red Bull maelstrom, and McLaren’s emergence from the midfield to race challengers. Sometimes it can feel like the Formula 1 circus would make for quite a good film…
Though the very simple ‘F1’ title has only recently been confirmed, we’ve known about the movie for a little while now. Anything starring Brad Pitt and with Lewis Hamilton aiding the production was likely to make a splash - especially as a focus on realism has meant shooting in the pit lane during race weekends.
Rarely have we seen such devotion to what flagship motorsport is actually like - Rush was very good, but was all about a different era, and the exceptional Senna movie was obviously a documentary. Then again, with Drive to Survive providing Netflix viewers with more insight than ever before, it's fair to say that any new film that calls itself 'F1' is going to need to be on its game.
The movie follows the APXGP team, with Brad Pitt as a former driver returning to the sport and racing alongside Damson Idris as the rookie teammate. The cast also includes Javier Bardem, Kerry Condon, Tobias Menzies, Sarah Niles, Kim Bodnia and Samson Kayo. The makers have said F1 will ‘immerse audiences in the spectacle of the most popular annual sports series, celebrating the skill and heroism of the drivers while showcasing the incredible challenge of competition in Formula 1.’ We’ve seen filming at races since last year, and that will continue all the way to Abu Dhabi this December.
This newly released trailer certainly whets the appetite for next summer’s release. The engines sound real for one thing, which often seems beyond a car film, and the action already looks properly, genuinely thrilling. Not the usual augmented mess. Add to that the real drivers alongside Pitt and Idris, tracks like Spa, Silverstone and Monza, plus a cameo from Guenther Steiner, and F1 is shaping up nicely for even the most cynical of Grand Prix fans.
The film is being directed by Joseph Kosinski, the man responsible for making a decent job of both the Tron: Legacy and Top Gun: Maverick. F1 will be in North American cinemas on 27th June 2025 and ‘internationally beginning 25th June.’ So we’re surely less than a year from seeing it in UK picturehouses. Best get booking some time off soon, just to be sure you’re available…
