Apple’s big box office bet continues to break records for the company, with F1: The Movie now breaking another milestone this weekend, topping $600 million at the worldwide box office.
This figure beats even the most optimistic expectations ahead of release, which cost Apple about $250 million to make. The film hit buy or rent video on demand on Friday, but a streaming date on Apple TV+ has not yet been announced.
In the film, Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) comes out of retirement to help mentor an up-and-coming driver (Damson Idris) in a back-marker F1 team, APX GP, who needs to get a win to stay funded. The movie shot during real F1 races through the 2023 and 2024 season, and features a series of incredible racing sequences throughout.
F1 is now Brad Pitt’s highest-grossing film ever, albeit not accounting for inflation. Apple has called the movie the year’s most successful original feature, although you can debate whether a movie set in the world of F1 can be deemed an original creation. It also holds a strong 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a Certified Fresh critical reception.
Apple is obviously hoping the strong reception will translate to a big splash on Apple TV+, when the movie streams on the service in the coming months.
However, the company is still yet to announce another wide theatrical release original film, since its retrenchment from cinemas. As of right now, it is producing a handful of original films per year, but they are all destined as straight to streaming releases. Cinema operators are optimistic that the success of F1 will reset Apple’s approach to theatrical, as the industry continues to struggle.