Lewis Hamilton has been hailed by the director of the F1 movie for the “instrumental” role that he played in making the film, with the rest of the grid also praised for showing “remarkable” trust during the filming process at Grand Prix weekends.
Having acted as a producer on the Apple Original Films motion picture – alongside Pitt and Jerry Bruckheimer – Hamilton was involved from the early stages of the film, which tells the story of former F1 driver Sonny Hayes (played by Pitt) as he makes a comeback to partner rookie team mate Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) at the fictional APXGP team.
MUST-SEE: Watch the captivating trailer for Apple Original Films’ upcoming ‘F1’ movie
Director Joseph Kosinski has given an insight into the training that Pitt and Idris undertook in order to drive the cars, with Hamilton having been keen early on to gauge Pitt’s abilities behind the wheel.
“Brad and Damson are both driving in this film and in order to get them into these race cars, it required months, literally months of training,” said Kosinski, who has directed films including Top Gun: Maverick.
Watch the thrilling new trailer for Apple Original Films’ movie ‘F1’
“But the first day was really fun. It was me, Brad and Lewis Hamilton at the track together, all of us jumping in cars and driving each other around in sports cars, which was one of those things, I’ll never forget having Lewis Hamilton as your driving instructor.
“But what we learned and what Lewis was really interested [in] was seeing, did Brad know how to drive, right? Because if Brad can’t drive, this whole film wasn’t going to work.
“And what Lewis was very happy to discover was that Brad had a lot of just natural ability right from the start, and I don’t know where he got that or if he was born with it, and he rides motorcycles, which I think has something to do with it, but he’s just a very talented, naturally gifted driver, which for Lewis after that first meeting gave him a lot of confidence that we might have a shot at pulling this off.
Tickets on sale for fan-first premiere screenings of Apple Original Films’ movie ‘F1’
“He’s just had that natural feel for grip in the car and what we’re doing on this film is dangerous. So yeah, you have to be fearless, and when you see Brad driving, that’s not acting.
“He’s really concentrating on keeping that car on the track and out of the wall during all those scenes. So that’s something that you just can’t fake, I think. I hope the audience feels that when they watch the movie.”
Brad Pitt and Damson Idris undertook «months of training» for their roles in the ‘F1’ movie
Kosinski has also acknowledged Hamilton’s input in terms of understanding the narrative, the Briton having experience of the situations facing both drivers depicted in the film.
“Lewis was instrumental in not only the technical aspects obviously, but in the real kind of formulative stage of the movie, formulating this narrative,” Kosinski explained. “We tell the story of Sonny Hayes, who’s kind of [a] veteran racer, and then Joshua Pierce, who’s a rookie.
“Lewis has been both. He’s been the rookie almost winning his first season in Formula 1 and now with seven World Championships. He’s kind of seen it all.
“So his perspective on shaping the narrative of these two characters and kind of giving me real insight into what it is that drives him, what makes these guys want to do this day in day out, it was really, really helpful. We couldn’t have made this film without him.”
REVEALED: Check out the global artwork for the new ‘F1’ movie
And when asked what the biggest thrill was for him in making the movie, Kosinski credited the role of the other drivers on the grid, with shooting for F1 having taken place in real-time during Grand Prix weekends.
“There’s so many [highlights],” the director continued. “It’s hard to pick one, but I’ll say working alongside Lewis and all the other drivers on the grid and having them embrace us, because certainly asking to be part of that family and that world and to say, you’re making a movie, there’s going to be some reticence there.
Check out the drivers’ reactions to the new trailer for the upcoming ‘F1’ movie
“But when they saw how determined we were to make it authentic and represent their sport in the absolute best way we could, to have them embrace us and to be able to have them play themselves in the film, to be able to shoot on the track alongside them showed a level of trust that was really remarkable.
“So I would say that working with the drivers and the teams, there’s just no way this film would exist without that. So I’m really grateful for that.
“They all tend to be very handsome, charming, and good on camera, and just great friendly guys. You can see how they all got to where they are, and we’re again really gracious and they’re great in the movie, so I can’t wait for you to see ‘em.”
F1 Fantasy – just one day to go to create your 2025 team for Australia– sign up now.
RACE TICKETS – AUSTRALIA
Don’t miss your chance to be at the first Grand Prix of 2025 and experience the season-opener in Melbourne…