F1 News
Team bosses praise 'enormous' affect of Brad Pitt's upcoming F1 film
Team bosses James Vowles (Williams), Fred Vasseur (Ferrari) and Andy Cowell (Aston Martin) have praised the effect of Formula 1's new upcoming film. The blockbuster, starring Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem and Damson Idris, will be released in June 2025. Speaking in the press conference, the selected team bosses were asked about the highly anticipated film and shared some complementary viewpoints.
Highly regarded director of Top Gun Maverick, Joseph Kosinski, is at the helm of the film simply titled 'F1.' The captivating trailer was released just yesterday and follows Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt), A former driver who finds himself back in action when he returns to Formula 1 racing to take on the sport's top competition.
"An example would be Top Gun, and if you look at what that did, it was enormous," Williams boss James Vowles began when asked about his expectation for the film, citing Neftlix's Drive to Survive as a launching pad. "Netflix has been transformative – and it’s not because they are filming over there in the corner. They really have transformed who we are as a sport and where we are today in the business, and we wouldn’t be the business we are without them. My opinion is that the film will open us to a different and larger market, and that’s why we’re all excited about it."
Vowles: They are 'fundamentally replicating our sport'
"From what I’ve seen in the trailers, especially when you sit and watch what they have been doing with it, they’re doing everything to make it look like there’s not an extra gear they’ve added or an accelerator you can push harder. They’re fundamentally trying to replicate our sport in film, and that’s what I connected to when I went through it."
Vasseur: The quality is 'magic'
Adding to Vowles' viewpoint, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur stated that the move will help the sport continue to attract new audiences, as did Netflix after the introduction of Drive to Survive in 2018. "As James said, I’m already convinced Netflix has helped a lot over the last years. If you go back to 2018 or 2019, F1 was absolutely not in the same shape. Netflix helped us massively on this journey, and I hope this movie will do the same because it’s the best way to attract new audiences. F1 today is targeting a new audience—more female, younger—the same as what we had with Netflix. And from the quality of what I’ve seen so far, it was something magic, it’s good."
Cowell: We are reaching a 'broader cross-section of people'
Aston Martin's Andy Cowell agreed with his fellow bosses, who both featured heavily in the most recent Drive to Survive season released at the beginning of this month. "The work Netflix has done has made these two celebrities! [laughs] The O2 launch as well, a different style of event, a different way of reaching people. So events, and entertainment, in addition to the 24 races, provide that opportunity to reach a broader cross-section of people and it’s the business we’re in, so completely support it." Cowell concluded.
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels too!