'F1' Director Reveals 'Scariest' Part of Directing Brad Pitt
F1 director Joseph Kosinski revealed the “scariest” day he experienced filming the high-octane racing picture with star Brad Pitt. Kosinski appeared at a special screening of the film on Oct. 12 at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles alongside Pitt, F1 star Sir Lewis Hamilton, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and co-stars Damson Idris and Sarah Niles.
F1, which hit screens back in June to mixed reviews but massive grosses, follows driver Sonny Hayes (Pitt) as mounts a comeback to save the waning team of his former associate (Javier Bardem). The movie is most notable for having shot its white-knuckle driving scenes during actual F1 races, including the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Kosinski Revealed 'Scariest' Part of Marathon Shoot
Speaking on Sunday, Kosinski revealed that the Las Vegas sequences were the “scariest” he had to accomplish for the blockbuster. "The scariest part was definitely Las Vegas. That race—it's at night, it's cold, the tires don't have a lot of grip, and Brad did not have the opportunity to practice that track at all before the shoot because it only exists those three days out of the year."
Because the Las Vegas Grand Prix is a street-circuit race, the track doesn’t come equipped with the same safety barriers and run-off areas that a typical F1 track does. That means one wrong move would have sent Pitt careening. "I would say Vegas was really where I was crossing my fingers because again, it was so cold and the tires don't have a lot of grip, and if he made one mistake, he'd be in the wall," Kosinski continued.
'By Far the Most Dangerous Thing We Did'
"It was by far the most dangerous thing we did," he added. However, Kosinski said, "I never felt like we were being irresponsible.” Pitt “came through with flying colors, even though [his character] crashes in the film. On the shoot day, he was great…"Luckily, Brad and Damson actually had a lot of natural talent, so we had a lot to work with. They were really, really good drivers, and you can see that when you see the film."
Kosinski ended the panel on a hopeful note, saying he’d “love” to make an F1 sequel if the money is there. "Based on the reception of the film, I would love to see what adventures Sonny Hayes is going on to next, and I think the audience would, too. So we're actually gonna start talking about that very soon, start kind of coming up with, 'What could that next chapter of his story be?'"