Lewis Hamilton says Brad Pitt's age and credibility as an F1 driver were debated at length before the Hollywood blockbuster starring the American actor was given the green light.
Production crews and Pitt are on site this weekend at Silverstone where filming will take place on and off the track, with sequences that will later be blended with real race footage from the British Grand Prix.
A garage on the Silverstone pitlane has been assigned to the fictional team, APRXGP, and fitted out with an array of standard F1 equipment.
Two F2 cars, mocked up to look like F1 machines, will take to the track during special sessions all throughout the weekend, with the 59-year-old Pitt - who plays a veteran F1 driver who returns to the sport to help his team win the championship – taking part in the driving.
"Brad looks like he’s ageing backwards," said Hamilton who is a co-producer on the film. "He looks great for his age.
"Of course that was a big topic at the beginning when we were discussing the first story. But he’s super-fit, he’s been training."
Hamilton said that he wasn't worried about Pitt's age which the producers will seek to minimize on the silver screen.
"At the end of the day, it’s a movie, so there will be a Hollywood element to it that will make it believable," he said.
"I think Brad, he’s such an iconic actor, he’s always done such an incredible job so I can’t tell you how excited I am to have Brad Pitt in Formula 1, it’s incredible.
"I just saw Jerry [Bruckheimer, the film's producer] walking in and I haven’t been to see the garage yet but on the other side I was here a week or two before Austria watching Brad practice and it’s massively exciting to see it all coming together.
"To know that we’re finally starting to film this weekend, there’s nerves naturally because it’s something we’ve been working on for so long, and we want everyone to love it and to really feel that we encapsulate what the essence of this sport is all about."
Hamilton admitted that the project would have likely never seen the light of day during F1's Bernie Ecclestone era. The Briton expressed his gratitude towards commercial rights holder Liberty media for giving the green light to the film and special access to production crews.
"I don’t know if this would have been possible 10-plus years ago when the old management was in place," he said. "They wouldn’t have perhaps seen this as an important step in terms of the sport’s growth.
"But we’ve already seen the great work and impact of the Netflix show and I think this will take it to new heights beyond that.
"There’s so many people that around the world, as you’ve seen already, they’re so excited about this sport wanting to learn more and the fact that we will have all the original characters that are actually on the grid and then Brad, that’s pretty cool."
Hamilton said that so far, he been impressed by Pitt's enthusiasm and efforts behind the wheel.
"We did do a day together at a track in LA and he drove – for someone that hasn’t raced, he’s definitely already got a keen eye," commented the seven-time F1 world champion.
"He loves watching Moto GP so he’s always been a racing enthusiast. And he already has a knack for the lines and he was definitely fully, fully on it, which was good to see."
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