Filmmaker also drops hints about a possible followups to ‘F1’ and ‘Top Gun’<\/p>\n
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Published Jan 10, 2026 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 2\u00a0hours ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 4 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n As he travelled to Formula 1 races around the world to shoot last summer\u2019s high-speed drama, F1: The Movie director Joseph Kosinski<\/a> faced no shortage of challenges.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.<\/p>\n SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authors<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Keeping his leading men, Brad Pitt and Damson Idris, safe in the driver\u2019s seat as they whirled around racetracks at speeds of up to 180 miles-per-hour was at the top of his list.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n But as Kosinski filmed F1 at actual Formula 1 races like Silverstone \u2014 home of the British Grand Prix \u2014 and at the Hungaroring near Budapest; as well as Spa Francorchamps in Belgium; Japan\u2019s Suzuka track; and Abu Dhabi\u2019s Yas Marina circuit, one track proved to be a bigger challenge than the others.<\/p>\n \u201cThe one that I go back to is Las Vegas. It\u2019s a track that only exists for a few nights out of the year,\u201d Kosinski, 51, says in a video call from Los Angeles. \u201cBrad and Damson were not able to practise before the shoot. They gave us one, 15-minute slot in the middle of the night to shoot our sequence.\u201d<\/p>\n Racing around the Vegas Strip for one of the movie\u2019s most thrilling sequences was very dangerous, Kosinski says.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was freezing cold, the tires had no grip \u2026 If they had a mix up in a corner, they\u2019d end up going into a wall,\u201d he explains. \u201cBut the whole cast and crew came together, the technology we developed worked and we were able to pull off a very important scene in a very tight time constraint and do it safely. So that\u2019s the one where I think I was really holding my breath the whole time we were shooting it.\u201d<\/p>\n Your Midday Sun<\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Made in partnership with Formula 1 and its 10 teams, F1 was a global box office hit, becoming the highest-grossing film in Pitt\u2019s 30-plus year career as an actor as well as the biggest movie ever for Apple Original Films.<\/p>\n The film, which recently made its streaming debut on Apple TV<\/a>, was a big winner at last weekend\u2019s Critics Choice Awards, taking home prizes for best sound and best editing. It is also up for two Golden Globes this weekend, nominated in the best cinematic achievement and best musical score categories.<\/p>\n But the creative team knew early on that they had a hit when they showed it to actual F1 drivers in early test screenings.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir response made me realize that all the hard work paid off,\u201d Kosinski says.<\/p>\n Kosinski didn\u2019t want to make the movie unless he could do it the hard way<\/p>\n F1 casts Pitt as Sonny Hayes, a washed-up race car driver who is lured out of retirement by an old friend (played by Javier Bardem) to mentor a hotshot rookie racer (Idris). Kerry Condon and Tobias Menzies appear in supporting roles, while real-life F1 champ Lewis Hamilton and Hollywood legend Jerry Bruckheimer<\/a> hop onboard as a producer.<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Kosinski says that the world of Formula 1 is so drama-filled that it became the perfect jumping-off point for a comeback story that is, at its core, about redemption. But he had to do it for real.<\/p>\n Like his work on Top Gun: Maverick<\/a>, in which Tom Cruise and his castmates flew actual planes, Kosinski shot F1 using practical effects. Pitt and Idris both had to learn to drive real race cars and cameras were placed inside the vehicles to give viewers the feeling that they were actually driving along the tracks.<\/p>\n Eschewing CGI for practical effects and shooting at actual races was the only way to go in order to make the movie as authentic as possible, Kosinski says.<\/p>\n \u201cAudiences appreciate it when it\u2019s done for real,\u201d he explains. \u201cObviously, we have all these incredible tools that are available to us today, but there\u2019s nothing like capturing something completely in camera, especially when it comes to a sport like Formula 1.\u201d<\/p>\n We apologize, but this video has failed to load.<\/p>\n Play Video<\/p>\n Pitt and Idris trained for months to drive the cars and they shot during real Grand Prix weekends.<\/p>\n Advertisement 5<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t fake that,\u201d Kosinski says. \u201cThere\u2019s something about practical, real photography that makes it feel more real and makes the story resonate more.\u201d<\/p>\n Not giving in to fakery was something he learned working with Cruise on Maverick, which also was a box office juggernaut when it was released into theatres in the summer of 2022.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also more fun, he says of the highly technical production.<\/p>\n \u201cI do this because I love filmmaking. Being able to travel around the world, following this sport, going to all these different tracks, it was an experience I\u2019ll never forget and hopefully audiences appreciate that when they watch the film,\u201d Kosinski says.<\/p>\n With F1 likely racing towards Oscar nominations later this month, the filmmaker is now eyeing possible follow-up stories for Sonny Hayes.<\/p>\n One dream project that won\u2019t be happening is an F1 crossover with Cruise\u2019s Days of Thunder. Kosinski mused about that \u201cdream\u201d possibility in earlier interviews, but it involves two different studios.<\/p>\n Advertisement 6<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n But he is thinking about the next chapter for Sonny Hayes.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is that next dragon that he wants to slay? We\u2019ve got some fun ideas about what that could be,\u201d he says. \u201cIt takes years to make these ideas come to life, but we\u2019re having fun now just dreaming that up.\u201d<\/p>\n Also on the horizon, a reunion with Cruise on another Top Gun movie.<\/p>\n \u201cEhren Kruger, who is the writer on F1 and one of the screenwriters of Maverick, is over his laptop as we speak, typing away on a very ambitious idea. So that\u2019s another one that\u2019s in the hopper that we\u2019re working on.\u201d<\/p>\n F1 is now streaming on Apple TV<\/a>.<\/p>\n mdaniell@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n Brad Pitt races at 180 m.p.h. in F1 movie: ‘He’s a naturally gifted driver’<\/p>\n <\/a> Jerry Bruckheimer hails Brad Pitt as the perfect driver for ‘F1’<\/p>\n <\/a> Joseph Kosinski on putting Brad Pitt in the driver’s seat for ‘F1’<\/p>\n![\"Director](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/joseph-kosinski-brad-pitt-f1.jpg\")
Director Joseph Kosinski and Brad Pitt on the set of “F1: The Movie,” now streaming on Apple TV. Photo by Scott Garfield \/Apple Original FilmsArticle content<\/p>\n![\"Toronto](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/20.3.0\/websites\/images\/identity\/logo-identity-tsun.svg\"){kind=logo}
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Brad Pitt and director Joseph Kosinski on the set of \u201cF1: The Movie\u201d at Britain\u2019s Silverstone Circuit in Northampton, England. Photo by Dan Mullan \/Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Loading...\"](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/20.3.0\/websites\/images\/common\/icon-spinner-animated.svg\"){kind=icon}
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Damson Idris and Brad Pitt in \u201cF1.\u201d Photo by Apple Films\/ Warner Bros.<\/p>\n![\"F1](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/rev-1-F1-T2-0070_High_Res_JPEG1-scaled.jpeg\")
Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes in \u201cF1.\u201d Photo by Apple Films\/ Warner Bros.<\/p>\n![\"Brad](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Brad-Pitt-F1.jpg\")
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