F1 The Movie debuted as the #1 movie at the global box office when it opened last June, and it went on to gross over $630 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing sports film of all time.
It was also last year's biggest original feature, delivering the biggest opening for an original live-action film in the US in the last five years, as well as Brad Pitt's highest-grossing feature to date. The film received an A CinemaScore, along with an impressive 97% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes (where it was "Certified Fresh" with critics with 82%).
Oh, and it recently landed an Oscar nomination for Best Picture!
Typically, a movie that successful is almost guaranteed to get a sequel, but F1 The Movie 2 still hasn't been announced. F1, however, has since entered into a new partnership with Apple TV to stream all 24 races on the platform, starting with the Australian Grand Prix next month.
Apple TV held a press event in Santa Monica yesterday, and executive Eddy Cue was joined on stage by Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
"I got one last question that they asked," Cue started. "It’s my favourite question of all, and it’s kind of a boomerang because both of us will answer: 'Is there going to be another Formula 1 movie given the success and how great the first movie was?'"
Domenicali responded, "Stay tuned. We’re going to tell you something more in the future. Never say never. But we need to digest more the success of this movie because it was something unique. And if you want to think of a new one, it has to be really, very, very good."
"Therefore, if this will happen, it will not be for next year," he continued. "But maybe next year we’re going to be here [at the press day], and hopefully we have something more to announce [then]."
Cue chimed in to shift focus back to the sport's upcoming launch on Apple TV. "I’ve got a great announcement for it. We’ve got 24 F1 movies this year on Apple TV," he teased. "I don’t know the ending, and so it is the best unscripted drama that there could be in the world."
"One of the first things that you’re going to notice is 4k and Dolby. You say, 'Well, 4k has been in existence,' but most 4k gets compressed a lot. If you’ve ever watched one of our Major League Baseball games, you’re amazed at the quality and resolution you see when you’re watching on TV. You’re going to see that for the first time in Formula 1," Cue concluded.
Asked about the future of F1 in general, Domenicali stated, "The future of F1 has to be bright because it’s up to us and we need to think big because we moved the sport not only as it was in the past on the track, but we’re moving the sport in a different cultural dimension. It’s a matter of expanding our content."
An F1: The Movie sequel would certainly be a good start in that respect. It's hard to say what direction a follow-up would head in, and Formula 1 is likely eager to ensure this year's sweeping regulation changes are a success before inviting a film crew back to set.
Stay tuned for updates on the F1: The Movie franchise as we have them.