Lewis Hamilton Confirms the F1 Movie Sequel Is in Active Development

Lewis Hamilton confirmed that a sequel to “F1” (the Brad Pitt-led racing film also known as “Apex” during production) is in active development. The first draft of the script is complete. Director Joseph Kosinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer are both attached and in active discussions about the direction of the follow-up. Hamilton, who served as a producer on the original film, has been in meetings with both about what the sequel could achieve that the first film didn’t.

“I know what we could do better,” Hamilton said, a statement that carries different weight coming from someone with seven world championships. The implication is that the first film met its goals but left room for improvement, and that Hamilton sees the sequel as an opportunity to push the authenticity and storytelling further.

What the First Film Established

“F1” starred Brad Pitt as a retired driver returning to the sport, directed by Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) and produced by Bruckheimer (Top Gun, Pirates of the Caribbean). Hamilton’s production involvement gave the film something most racing movies lack: credibility at the technical level. Real cars on real circuits during actual Grand Prix weekends. The racing sequences were shot during live F1 events, which meant the production had to work within the constraints of the sport’s schedule, regulations, and safety protocols.

The result was a film where the on-track footage felt visceral in a way that CGI-heavy racing films can’t replicate. The cars sounded right. The speed looked right. The physical forces visible on the actors’ faces during cockpit shots were real, not simulated. For a motorsport audience that has spent decades watching Hollywood get racing wrong (the Fast and Furious franchise treats physics as a suggestion rather than a law), that authenticity was the primary selling point.

The challenge the film faced was balancing technical credibility with mainstream accessibility. A film that satisfies hardcore F1 fans might alienate casual audiences. A film that simplifies the sport for mainstream appeal might bore the core audience. Early reviews suggested the film threaded that needle well enough to succeed commercially, though some critics noted that the dramatic arc felt familiar compared to the innovation of the racing sequences.

Hamilton’s Expanding Media Ambitions

Hamilton’s role in the sequel is producer, not actor. He has been explicit that he’s not angling for a bigger on-camera presence. “I prefer working behind the scenes,” he said, a preference that reflects how he views the relationship between his racing career and his creative work. The racing provides credibility. The producing provides creative control. Combining the two would dilute both.

Beyond the F1 sequel, Hamilton’s production company, Dawn Apollo Films, has a five-year plan that includes a television series, at least one documentary, and multiple projects that haven’t been publicly announced. The company represents Hamilton’s post-racing identity in a way that’s more substantive than the typical athlete-transitions-to-Hollywood story. Hamilton isn’t licensing his name to someone else’s project. He’s building infrastructure.

The five-year timeline suggests Hamilton is thinking about Dawn Apollo Films as a business, not a vanity project. Production companies that survive beyond their founder’s fame do so because they develop institutional capabilities: relationships with writers, directors, and distributors, a pipeline of projects at various stages of development, and a reputation for delivering commercially viable content on time and on budget. Hamilton appears to be building all of that.

The Sequel’s Unique Challenge

The first F1 film had the advantage of novelty. No major studio had produced a serious Formula 1 film with this level of access, talent, and budget. The sequel doesn’t have that advantage. Audiences have already seen Brad Pitt in an F1 car. They’ve already experienced the sound design and the cockpit cameras. The second film needs to justify its existence through story rather than spectacle, which is a harder problem to solve.

Kosinski’s track record with sequels is relevant. Top Gun: Maverick succeeded by deepening the emotional stakes of the original while advancing the aerial sequences beyond what the 1986 film could achieve with its-era technology. If Kosinski applies the same approach to the F1 sequel (deeper character work, more technically ambitious racing sequences, and a story that builds on the first film’s foundation rather than repeating it), the formula has proven effective.

The production logistics will again require shooting during live Grand Prix weekends, which constrains the timeline. The F1 calendar runs from March through December with minimal gaps. Finding shooting windows that align with circuit access agreements, team cooperation, and the actors’ availability is a scheduling puzzle that most film productions never face. That constraint is also what made the first film’s racing footage irreplaceable: it was captured in conditions that can’t be recreated on a closed set.

What to Watch For

No release date has been announced. The first draft of the script is complete, which places the project in early development. Assuming a production timeline similar to the first film (which required multiple race weekends across two seasons for on-track footage), the sequel is likely two to three years from release at minimum.

Hamilton’s statement that he “knows what we could do better” suggests the sequel will address specific shortcomings of the first film rather than simply repeating its formula with a new plot. Whether that means more technical depth for the F1 audience, more emotional complexity for the mainstream audience, or both, will determine whether the sequel justifies the franchise’s continued existence. Given the track records of Hamilton, Kosinski, and Bruckheimer, the odds are favorable.