Hollywood’s relationship with Formula 1 is entering a new phase with the release of “F1,” a high-octane movie starring Brad Pitt and produced by Lewis Hamilton. The film, hitting theaters June 27 through Apple Original Films and Warner Bros., embeds viewers into the world of Formula 1 by filming during actual race weekends with real teams and drivers. Hamilton, a seven-time world champion now driving for Ferrari, said Pitt impressed him with his driving instincts. “He had a bit of a feel for it already,” he noted.

Pitt takes on the role of Sonny Hayes, a fictional former racing star making a surprise comeback after a career-ending crash decades earlier. He joins the struggling APXGP team, led by a character played by Javier Bardem, and pairs up with a rookie portrayed by Damson Idris. Kerry Condon plays the team’s technical director and Pitt’s romantic interest, tasked with giving him a competitive car. The plot blends intensity, heartbreak, and redemption with track-side thrills and emotional tension.

A scene from “F1 The Movie.”

According to producer Jerry Bruckheimer, Pitt trained for months, starting in Formula 3 machinery before stepping up to faster cars—and performed all of his own driving. “The saddest day for Brad is when he had to step out of the car and we wrapped the movie,” Bruckheimer said. Director Joseph Kosinski, known for “Top Gun: Maverick,” explained that while it’s not a documentary, the goal was authenticity. “We wanted to get right to the edge,” he said, noting that Hamilton helped decide which creative liberties were acceptable.

Some elements, like using a Formula 2 car for Pitt’s scenes or having mid-race helmet chatter, stretch realism. But as Kosinski said, “It’s a movie.” Even F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali defended the film’s approach, stating it would be perceived as “authentic fighting” by most viewers. The script includes accurate jargon—DRS, understeer, Eau Rouge—and even references Ayrton Senna, pleasing die-hard fans.

Javier Bardem as Ruben Cervantes and Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes in “F1 The Movie.”

Sky Sports commentators David Croft and Martin Brundle lend their voices to the film after spending 19 hours recording scenes. Croft said working with Kosinski was a career highlight. Apple exec Eddy Cue added that most U.S. viewers at test screenings had never watched F1 before—but nearly all expressed interest in attending a race after seeing the film.

Peter Crolla, team manager for the upcoming Cadillac F1 team, praised the filmmakers’ dedication. “By the end of 2024 we didn’t even feel there was an F1 movie being filmed. It was like it was literally an 11th team,” he said. Veteran driver Nico Hülkenberg echoed the sentiment, applauding the film’s attention to what drivers endure off-track as well.

Hamilton said his conversations with Pitt during training made a lasting impression. “He’d text me after the test, like, ‘My appreciation for what you drivers do is even higher than it already was.’” That respect for the sport—and desire to reflect it on screen—is what makes “F1” poised to become a defining cultural moment for racing’s growing audience.