The star — who plays driver Sonny Hayes in the upcoming film — filmed scenes for the project at the racing event on Nov. 22
Brad Pitt’s character takes a dramatic tumble in the upcoming Formula 1 film, F1.
The movie — which follows a former F1 driver (Pitt) as he makes a career comeback — filmed several scenes during the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix on Friday, Nov. 22. During one particular moment, Pitt’s character was spotted appearing to faint on the track during a crash scene.
Though the Oscar winner, 60, was on set during the harrowing moment, the scene appeared to be filmed by a stunt double. The actor was also spotted chatting with his stuntman, who was dressed in full racing gear and a helmet camera.
Fan-captured footage shared on X (formerly Twitter) of the stuntman shows him stumbling before hitting the track — with a stunt mat positioned on the ground to brace his fall.
Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes in ‘F1,’ in theaters summer 2025.
Apple TV
A different video also shared on X captured from the crowd shows the stuntman’s fall from a closer angle, along with a smoking car. One other clip, meanwhile, shows a red medical vehicle pulling up to help the onscreen racer.
While it is unclear what part of the movie the scene depicts, Pitt has previously revealed that his character suffers a “horrible crash” early in his career.
Last summer, the actor told Sky Sports F1that in the film, a partnership with Apple Original Films and Formula 1, he plays a “guy who raced in the ’90s” who “has a horrible crash and kind of craps out and disappears and then is racing in other disciplines.”
Rookie Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) “brings [him] in as kind of a Hail Mary and hijinks ensue,” Pitt added at the time.
The film has been shot at real Formula 1 events all over the globe, including races in Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan and Mexico.
Filming at actual racing events, though immersive, poses its own set of difficulties, director Joseph Kosinski previously revealed to Deadline — especially when the film’s leading men are actually behind the wheel.
“We’ve got Brad and Damson actually driving the cars, which is pretty spectacular in itself, but to do that in front of a live audience and at the speeds they’re doing it and figuring out a way to capture it … The logistics of it are unlike anything I’ve done before,” Kosinski told the outlet.
“We’re shooting at the actual Grands Prix,” the director continued. “There are certain aspects of this film where we’re working in very, very tight windows, shooting on the track, between practice and qualifying sessions, in front of hundreds of thousands of people.”
And though he doesn’t appear to be doing all of his own stunts, Pitt trained “for four or five months” to drive in the film, producer Jerry Bruckheimer previously told us.
“He’s an amazing driver,” Bruckheimer told PEOPLE of the F1 star in May. “In fact, some of the F1 drivers said he’s a natural athlete. He really is. He’s amazing in that car.”
F1 will hit theaters on June 27, 2025.
