Lewis Hamilton remark aimed at Brad Pitt left Hollywood star 'unimpressed' at private meal
Brad Pitt was left 'not impressed' after a conversation with Lewis Hamilton, with the F1 movie eventually having to be rewritten following the encounter
Toto Wolff has disclosed how Lewis Hamilton bluntly told Brad Pitt that he was "much too old" to portray a Formula One driver battling for World Championships on the big screen. The brutal conversation, which left the Hollywood legend "not impressed", ultimately forced a rewrite of the script for the upcoming project.
Originally, Pitt's character - a seasoned racer called Sonny Hayes - for the F1 film was meant to challenge the sport's elite for a championship title. But in the final version, he stages a comeback to Grand Prix racing in his 50s, driving for the faltering fictional outfit APX GP alongside rising star Joshua Pearce, portrayed by Damson Idris.
This dramatic shift came about following a meal with Wolff, Hamilton and others during the project's early development.
Speaking at the Autosport Business Exchange New York, Wolff recalled: "So at the beginning, you know... I am lucky.
"I'm seeing lots of people who have a big media profile, but there was one dinner that we organised with Joe, who is the director, and Jerry Bruckheimer, Lewis, Brad Pitt, Susie [Wolff] and I.
"We had dinner at our place in Oxford, and suddenly the door opens and there's Brad Pitt in the driveway and he says, 'Thank you for having me for dinner.' So that was a bit of a surreal experience."
Wolff continued: "The initial concept was him (Pitt's character, Hayes) being a driver and fighting for a World Championship.
"And then Lewis said, 'That's not going to go; you're much too old for a Formula One driver.' And Brad was not impressed by it. He felt that he was in his prime to be a Formula One driver.
"How they adapted the script was fantastic because it was credible. His role was credible."
The F1 film, with Hamilton acting as executive producer, proved to be a genuine triumph, wowing reviewers, sparking enthusiasm amongst a fresh wave of supporters and smashing box office records, establishing itself as the most commercially successful sports movie ever made, raking in £467million ($628m) globally.
The response from influential paddock personalities was encouraging as well.
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"We looked at - all of the F1 drivers and the team principals - we looked at it at the premiere in Monaco around the grand prix, and we liked it," Wolff explained.
"There was nothing that was not to be liked. It's good entertainment, and the revenue that the movie has been generating is phenomenal."