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Rapidly evolving camera technology has enabled some incredible movies. A recent high point was 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, which featured breathtaking footage captured from IMAX cameras attached to the outside of fighter jets, or even crammed into their cabins. Well this same team is now setting its sights on Formula 1, and 2025’s “F1” promises incredible on-track race footage.

To capture footage of a fictional team competing in real F1 Grands Prix, the filmmakers needed the FIA’s full cooperation. And they got it. Formula One’s sanctioning body is obviously very excited about the publicity. In fact, the FIA launched the recent teaser trailer on its own YouTube channel.

The team behind this film include producer Jerry Bruckheimer (Top Gun, Pirates of the Caribbean) and director Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick, Tron: Legacy). The FIA allowed them to film during the 2023 Hungarian, Belgian, Italian, Dutch, Japanese, Mexico City, Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix. But the film first made a splash when Brad Pitt arrived on pit lane at the British Grand Prix.

Actor Brad Pitt walks past F1 cars while filming a movie
Brad Pitt filming ‘F1’ at British Grand Prix | Christian Bruna/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

The filmmakers collaborated with Mercedes-AMG F1 team and Carlin Motorsport to build a special Formula 2 car with an F1 aero package and IMAX camera mounts which Brad Pitt has used to film multiple hot laps. And the in-car footage in the first teaser trailer is jaw-dropping. I hope the plot and acting will be up to par. But the racing scenes alone will make it a worth catching this on the big screen.

What about the plot? It’s pretty incredible 60-year-old Brad Pitt can complete hot laps in an F2 car. But even so, playing a current F1 driver would be a hard sell. In the movie, he’ll play American driver Sonny Hayes who raced in the 1990s until a horrible crash forced him to retire. He is racing in “other disciplines” (note that the film shot scenes at the 24 Hours of Daytona) until his old friend, a team principal named Ruben (Javier Bardem) asks him to come back for a season and mentor a young driver named Joshua (Damson Idris).

The teaser trailer starts with Pitt talking to team member Kate (Kerry Condon) in a bar. He says, “Okay, Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston, now McLaren all have us beat on the straights. Our shot is battling in the turns. We need to build our car for combat.” Then the teaser continues with heart pounding in-car footage set to Queen’s We Will Rock You. Can you tell I’m excited? Check it out below:

One interesting bit of trivia is that ESPN incorrectly revealed the film’s title as Apex. But the trailer reveals the team central to the film will be the “Expensify Apex Grand Prix” team. Or APXGP for short. And Hitting the Apex was a documentary about Moto GP motorcycle racing, narrated by Brad Pitt. Pitt has been a racing enthusiast for years.

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Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.