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The anticipated motorsports film F1 will be a petrolhead’s dream, according to producer Jerry Bruckheimer.
In an exclusive interview with The National at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, he said no detail has been spared in his attempt to make F1 a full-throttle experience that captures what it means to be a motor racing driver.
Bruckheimer is renowned for executing complex action blockbusters such as Top Gun: Maverick and Days of Thunder, the latter set in the high-octane world of US Nascar racing.
“F1 has been one of the longest productions because we had to contend with the two Hollywood strikes,” he said. “But the combination of Apple Studios and their technology – they created two special cameras mounted on actual F1 cars for this movie, which is amazing – is going to make this the most accurate racing movie ever made.”
Bruckheimer confirmed that the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is the last race where the film will shoot on location. It is one of several events covered since principal production began in July 2023. “We have already filmed in Miami and Silverstone, home to the British Grand Prix. We also got some footage at Spa, the Belgian Grand Prix, and the Japanese race,” he says. “All in all, we’ve visited about nine tracks and Abu Dhabi is the last one.”
This is the second time F1, premiering in cinemas on June 25, has shot scenes at the Yas Marina Circuit. A source close to the production confirmed to The National that filming also took place at the track in April.
“The Yas Marina Circuit is amazing, and the people in Abu Dhabi have been so gracious and wonderful to us,” Bruckheimer says. “They have welcomed our production with open arms and made everything very easy for us to film here.”
This hospitality was illustrated by a purpose-built 11th garage created for the film, home to the fictional F1 team Apex GP, around which the storyline revolves.
Located at the far end of the Yas Marina Circuit pit lane, adjacent to the Haas F1 team, the garage housed the racing cars – actual F2 models modified to resemble their superior F1 counterparts – in a sleek black livery. The garage signage displayed the names of two characters, Sonny Hayes and Joshua Pearce, played by Brad Pitt and Damson Idris, respectively.
Both actors were spotted in the garage during The National’s brief visit. Idris was clad in the all-white tracksuit and black trainers of the Apex GP team, standing alongside Bruckheimer and director Joseph Kosinski near the official F1 safety car, a black Mercedes-AMG GT.
In the film, Pitt plays Sonny Hayes, a notorious driver lured out of retirement to mentor rookie Joshua Pearce (Idris) for the Apex GP team. The cast also includes Javier Bardem as team owner Ruben, along with Sarah Niles, Kerry Condon and Tobias Menzies.
As co-producer, seven-time F1 champion Sir Lewis Hamilton is one of several real-life drivers making an appearance in the film as himself. Others include Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz Jr, Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso.
Set within the F1 season, Pitt was also photographed in Abu Dhabi wearing the race jumpsuit and in discussions with Sainz and fellow Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.
As the film’s screening draws near, Bruckheimer is confident F1 will resonate with professional drivers, thanks to Hamilton’s contributions.
“Hamilton saw parts of it and gave us critiques on how drivers actually perform various manoeuvres,” he said during last month’s Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix. “The level of specifics he provided was incredible. For example, at Silverstone turn three is taken in second gear, and he could tell just by listening that we had Pitt in third gear. That level of detail is what he’s brought to the movie.”
