Lewis Hamilton left ‘surprised’ by Brad Pitt after what he saw once filming for the F1 movie started

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Formula 1 is set to take on Hollywood with the new film that stars Brad Pitt and Damson Idris, with help from Lewis Hamilton and an executive producer.

The film has taken footage from the last two F1 seasons and follows the fictional Apex GP team, with Pitt’s character coming back from retirement to help them and their rookie driver played by Idris.

It is the first officially licensed movie by F1 and is designed to broaden the fanbase, as well as give those in the existing fanbase an idea of what the drivers go through when racing.

Hamilton was brought on board as a consultant for the film, with Brad Pitt impressed with how he helped with the accuracy and making adjustments to the script where he saw fit.

Discussing Hamilton’s contribution on set on The Race F1 podcast, director Jerry Bruckheimer revealed that Hamilton was impressed with one aspect of Pitt when he first met him on set.

Lewis Hamilton was impressed by Brad Pitt’s athleticism

Pitt’s enthusiasm for the film was clear to see whenever they were on set, while the actor was also allowed to drive in the actual modified F2 cars used in the film.

Alongside being fairly competent at driving a single seater, Hamilton was also impressed by one other thing about Pitt according to Bruckheimer.

“He [Pitt] was great, he’s a good athlete. And I think even Lewis [Hamilton] was surprised by what a good athlete Brad is. Because don’t forget, he’d done a lot of motorcycle work and riding, so he had really good hand-eye coordination. He was a natural when he got in the car,” said Bruckheimer.

“Damson coming from England, they don’t drive much there. So it was a little more of a learning process for him. But he caught on really quickly.”

F1 movie already receiving critical acclaim

The logistics behind the F1 movie are impressive, with filming taking place on actual race weekends in between practice and qualifying sessions throughout 2023 and 2024.

F1 teams also took to the fictional team well, with Pitt recalling one funny story between Ferrari and Mercedes on the first day of filming.

The production of the film stopped briefly towards the end of 2023 due to the SAG-AFTRA strikes, but would later resume in 2024.

Several F1 drivers make cameos along with Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen, while the onboard car sequences were shot using the camera sensor from the iPhone and modified to fit on the cars.

Critics have already given the movie great reviews, with it currently scoring an 88% on the movie aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.