Despite being a little less than a year away from its release in theaters, Apple Studios’ F1 movie has caused significant hype so far in 2024, especially due to its incredible storyline and cast members.
Brad Pitt and Damson Idris have joined forces to take on the leading roles in the drama, which follows a Formula One driver who comes out of retirement to mentor and team up with a younger driver.
Both stars had to train for three months with real drivers to prepare for the film. The Fight Club actor drives in his scenes, but he uses different cars from those that will be seen in the thriller.
Which real-life drivers will be in the F1 movie?
As we’ve seen in promotional images and the preview, Brad Pitt (World War Z) and Damson Idris (Snowfall) won’t be the only stars present in the most anticipated movie of 2025; it will also feature real-life drivers.
Lewis Hamilton will make his acting debut in F1, so it has been confirmed that, in addition to producing the project directed by Joseph Kosinski, he will also be part of the cast, along with other racing industry peers.
Carlos Sainz, Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen are three of the confirmed drivers. During an interview with Deadline, the director and producer Jerry Bruckheimer talked about the presence of the professionals in the drama.
“They’re all playing themselves. We’re just embedding into this world, so the drivers are who they are in these races [in the movie]. We’re the eleventh team, we’re the back of the pack in an incredible field of teams. We see the drivers on the track and we’re hoping to see all of them off track as well“, Jerry said.
While the filmmaker in charge of the movie assured that they have chosen the ideal drivers to carry out the story, since they are not only charismatic but also among the best in the world, he revealed:
“These drivers are picked because they’re phenomenal, for F1 they have got to be amazing, and they are charismatic and they’re good looking because they’re representing a brand. They’re like movie stars, it’s the same thing. There’re so many similarities to our world.
What we have to do is give the audience the emotion. Look at Top Gun: Maverick with all the flying and all the great stuff Joe did — if we didn’t have that emotional story, they wouldn’t have lined up to see the movie, or have seen it two or three times. We’re going to try to do the same thing here“.