With Speculations of Playing Lewis Hamilton in F1 Movie, Damson Idris Opens Up on His Role

The teaser for the upcoming F1 movie starring Brad Pitt is finally out, and its release coincided with the British GP weekend which Lewis Hamilton won. With most of the spotlight on the seven-time World Champion, there were speculations as to whether Damson Idris (Pitt’s co-star) is playing Hamilton in the movie or not. The teaser too, added fuel to rumors of the same and Idris has come out to open up about his role.

The first thing that stands out from Idris’ revelation is that his character is not based on a real-life F1 driver. “Joshua Pearce is a young rookie from East London. He’s a rookie at a fictional team at the back of the grid,” he said in F1 Briefing’s YouTube video.

“Brad Pitt’s character Sonny Hayes comes in. And basically tries to uplift us and get us through the season.”

Brad Pitt stars in the first teaser trailer for F1.

Joseph Kosinski’s new Formula 1 movie arrives in theaters and IMAX in Summer 2025. pic.twitter.com/z1xxsTzpvb

— Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) July 7, 2024

Previously, many assumed that the storyline would center around Hamilton given he is also the producer of this movie. The script was believed to be similar to the Briton’s real-life rookie campaign, where as a young black driver, he had to compete with two-time World Champion teammate Fernando Alonso at McLaren.

However, Idris speaking about his character puts these rumors to bed. The teaser also gave an idea and essence of what the racing scenes would look like. Pitt’s character Hayes joins APXGP (the fictional team) to help Pearce and the rest of the outfit get out of the slump they find themselves in.

The movie – also titled F1 – may not involve Hamilton’s story. But Idris reveals how the Mercedes driver has still been an inspiration for him.

Hamilton’s legacy “incredibly inspiring” for Idris

Hamilton has inspired countless budding racing drivers around the world with his 104 F1 race wins and seven World Championships. He has also made a mark off the racing track, as evidenced by Idris’s words.

“Just hearing Lewis talk and seeing a fantastic legacy. It is incredibly inspiring no matter what art form you’re in. This is a fantastic driver that’s just persevered and overcame adversity in so many different ways,” Idris said in the same interview.

Hamilton also comes from humble beginnings which is why Idris respects him even more. He wishes to achieve a similar amount of success to what Hamilton has achieved in his field.