Latest news with #F1:TheMovie
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
McLaren boss offers actor Brad Pitt a second chance to hit 322kmh
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Actor Brad Pitt stars as a washed up Formula One driver who gets one last shot at redemption in F1: The Movie. LONDON - Brad Pitt's F1 movie is topping the box office charts worldwide but the Hollywood A-lister is not done with Formula One, or racing. Like his fictional big screen character Sonny Hayes, Pitt has been offered a second chance to don race overalls and lap at 322kmh. McLaren F1 chief executive Zak Brown told Reuters on July 2 that Pitt had a standing offer to 'come out and play' – and expected the 61-year-old not only to take him up on it but also take his passion for racing further. Pitt drove a Formula One car for the first time with McLaren at Austin's Circuit of the Americas in June, after driving F2 cars disguised as F1 cars for the movie, and has been raving about the experience ever since. He did have one regret, however. 'Ask me how fast I went. Three mph short of 200mph (322kmh),' Pitt said, at the New York premiere. 'I want to go back. I want to hit 200.' Brown indicated that it could be arranged. 'He did a great job, he can drive a race car,' he said, at a McLaren event for the team's army of fans in London's Trafalgar Square, with title-chasing drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. 'I've traded notes with him, it was the time of his life. I feel like he's a racer now, so anytime he wants to come out and play he's more than welcome to. And that's a standing offer.' McLaren boss Zak Brown was speaking at a team event for fans in London's Trafalgar Square on July 2. PHOTO: REUTERS When asked if he expected Pitt to take him up on it, Brown replied: 'I wouldn't be surprised looking at the level of enthusiasm that he had. I sent him his data, he wanted to understand and learn. So yeah, I bet he will.' 'I wouldn't be surprised if one day you saw Brad Pitt racing some sort of sports car,' said Brown. 'Paul Newman always used to say he was a racing driver, and an actor in his spare time. "He (Pitt) is clearly in good physical shape. He had no physical limitations." Pitt would not be the first Hollywood heartthrob to go racing for real. Patrick Dempsey, star of medical drama Grey's Anatomy, has raced Porsches at Le Mans as did the late Paul Newman, who also founded Newman/Haas Racing. REUTERS
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Gareth Bale ‘tables £40m offer to complete takeover of hometown team Cardiff'… less than half what he cost Real Madrid
GARETH BALE has tabled a £40million bid to buy his beloved hometown club Cardiff City, according to reports. A consortium led by Bale has been in the market to buy a football team, having already been linked with a failed 3 Cardiff is the subject of takeover interest from local lad Gareth Bale Current Cardiff owner Vincent Tan, who resides in Malaysia, is open to selling the Welsh club - who were relegated from the Championship to League One in May. Talks are taking place behind the scenes between Cardiff and a US-based private equity group, reports And now an official bid, worth less than HALF of the £86million paid by Real Madrid to Tottenham for Bale in 2013, has been submitted. The spoke publicly for the first time about his plans to take over the League One club at the European premiere of F1: The Movie in London at the end of June. READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS Bale, 35, said: "We are interested in getting Cardiff . It's my home club, it's where I grew up and my uncle used to play for them. "To be involved with an ownership group would be a dream come true. I would love to be able to be a part of growing Cardiff and taking it to the Premier League where it belongs." Bale was born in the Welsh capital in 1989 and his uncle Chris Pike was a prolific striker at The Bluebirds between his nephew's birth-year and 1993. Cardiff have reportedly already rejected an undisclosed first bid made by the Bale-led consortium. Most read in Football 3 Current owner Vincent Tan has admitted he would be open to selling If the price is right Credit: Getty CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Divisive owner Tan, who became the majority owner in 2010, has invested £200m on his way to Cardiff descending to the third tier for the first time in more than 20 years. That means the new £40m offer is likely to be fiercely rejected, even if it indicates a level of intent by Bale's team. Arsenal announce new five-year contract for Myles Lewis-Skelly after Real Madrid eyed shock free transfer It comes just weeks after his former Madrid and Spurs team-mate Swansea City for a reported £1m. Bale retired from football two years ago after a stellar career in which he won five Champions Leagues with Madrid and 111 caps for his country. Cardiff, who were relegated from the Championship last season after finishing rock bottom, have just appointed I would love to take Cardiff back to the Premier League where it belongs Gareth Bale Sky Sports Barry-Murphy has been hired after a disastrous season which saw the club cycle through Erol Bulut, Omer Riza, and Aaron Ramsey (interim) as managers. Wales ' greatest-ever player earned an eye-watering £600,000-per-week during his time at Madrid, but also set himself up for well into retirement with a series of business moves. Bale opened his bar 'Elevens' in Cardiff in 2017, before building on that success by combining his next pub venture with his love of golf to open Par 59 five years later. He has since opened a second Par 59 venue in Bristol, while he has also made a "significant investment" in Penderyn Distillery. 3
Scottish Sun
3 hours ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Gareth Bale ‘tables £40m offer to complete takeover of hometown team Cardiff'… less than half what he cost Real Madrid
But the current owner won't go down without a fight BALE OUT Gareth Bale 'tables £40m offer to complete takeover of hometown team Cardiff'… less than half what he cost Real Madrid GARETH BALE has tabled a £40million bid to buy his beloved hometown club Cardiff City, according to reports. A consortium led by Bale has been in the market to buy a football team, having already been linked with a failed move to takeover at Plymouth Argyle. 3 Cardiff is the subject of takeover interest from local lad Gareth Bale Current Cardiff owner Vincent Tan, who resides in Malaysia, is open to selling the Welsh club - who were relegated from the Championship to League One in May. Talks are taking place behind the scenes between Cardiff and a US-based private equity group, reports The Times. And now an official bid, worth less than HALF of the £86million paid by Real Madrid to Tottenham for Bale in 2013, has been submitted. The Wales legend spoke publicly for the first time about his plans to take over the League One club at the European premiere of F1: The Movie in London at the end of June. READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS UNSPORTING GESTURE Arsenal target Gyokeres 'dumps model girlfriend to sever Portugal ties' Bale, 35, said: "We are interested in getting Cardiff. It's my home club, it's where I grew up and my uncle used to play for them. "To be involved with an ownership group would be a dream come true. I would love to be able to be a part of growing Cardiff and taking it to the Premier League where it belongs." Bale was born in the Welsh capital in 1989 and his uncle Chris Pike was a prolific striker at The Bluebirds between his nephew's birth-year and 1993. Cardiff have reportedly already rejected an undisclosed first bid made by the Bale-led consortium. 3 Current owner Vincent Tan has admitted he would be open to selling If the price is right Credit: Getty CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Divisive owner Tan, who became the majority owner in 2010, has invested £200m on his way to Cardiff descending to the third tier for the first time in more than 20 years. That means the new £40m offer is likely to be fiercely rejected, even if it indicates a level of intent by Bale's team. Arsenal announce new five-year contract for Myles Lewis-Skelly after Real Madrid eyed shock free transfer It comes just weeks after his former Madrid and Spurs team-mate Luka Modric bought a minority stake in local rivals Swansea City for a reported £1m. Bale retired from football two years ago after a stellar career in which he won five Champions Leagues with Madrid and 111 caps for his country. Cardiff, who were relegated from the Championship last season after finishing rock bottom, have just appointed Brian Barry-Murphy as their new manager. I would love to take Cardiff back to the Premier League where it belongs Gareth Bale Barry-Murphy has been hired after a disastrous season which saw the club cycle through Erol Bulut, Omer Riza, and Aaron Ramsey (interim) as managers. Wales' greatest-ever player earned an eye-watering £600,000-per-week during his time at Madrid, but also set himself up for well into retirement with a series of business moves. Bale opened his bar 'Elevens' in Cardiff in 2017, before building on that success by combining his next pub venture with his love of golf to open Par 59 five years later. He has since opened a second Par 59 venue in Bristol, while he has also made a "significant investment" in Penderyn Distillery. 3 TRANSFER NEWS LIVE - KEEP UP WITH ALL THE LATEST FROM A BUSY SUMMER WINDOW
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Brad Pitt, 'F1' director Joseph Kosinski hail filming during Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as 'unprecedented endeavour'
Actor Brad Pitt and director Joseph Kosinski have praised their experience filming ' The Movie' during the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, describing it as a landmark moment in motorsport cinema. Actor Brad Pitt and director Joseph Kosinski have praised their experience filming 'F1: The Movie' during the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, describing it as a landmark moment in motorsport cinema. A newly released promotional video by the Abu Dhabi Film Commission and Creative Media Authority sheds light on the project's ambitious production inside one of Formula 1's most iconic venues, Yas Marina Circuit. The production team, including Pitt and co-star Damson Idris, spent a cumulative 29 days shooting in Abu Dhabi across three phases, working alongside local production company Epic Films, according to Variety. Notably, the crew filmed during live racing at multiple Formula 1 events, including the British Grand Prix, the Rolex 24 at Daytona, and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, making F1 one of the first feature films to integrate actual race-day footage from a Formula 1 event. Joseph Kosinski, best known for 'Top Gun: Maverick', praised Yas Marina Circuit as an "ideal place to film," citing its visual uniqueness and high production value. "It's such a distinct setting in such a beautiful location," he said in the video, as quoted by Variety. Kosinski also noted the unprecedented cooperation of all ten Formula 1 teams, allowing the filmmakers to shoot scenes during a live race. "To have all ten teams allow us to shoot a scene for an hour -- that was a really incredible experience," he added, as quoted by Variety. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo by Taboola by Taboola Brad Pitt, who also serves as a producer on the film, described the venture into the Formula 1 world as "just amazing." He emphasised the realism of the production setup and said, "We had every car in their team. It was like creating an 11th team on the grid." Tim Bampton, executive producer on the film, underscored the complexity of integrating a fictional team into an actual pit lane. "Bringing in a major movie production to create an 11th team in the pit lane was a really unprecedented endeavour," Bampton said, as quoted by Variety. 'F1: The Movie' premiered in the Middle East at Yas Marina Circuit on June 26 and has seen strong box office results, especially in the United Arab Emirates. The film recorded a USD 2.7 million opening in the UAE, marking the biggest ever regional debut for a Brad Pitt film and for an Apple-backed title in the market. The success of F1 aligns with Abu Dhabi's ongoing strategy to attract large-scale international film productions. The emirate recently enhanced its film rebate scheme, offering up to 50 per cent reimbursement on qualified below-the-line expenditures starting January. Abu Dhabi has previously hosted major Hollywood blockbusters, including 'Dune: Part Two', 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens', 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One', and 'Furious 7', alongside major Bollywood productions like 'Tiger Zinda Hai' and 'Vikram Vedha'.
New York Times
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
What are the 10 best sports movies of the 21st century? (Plus: MoneyCall wants yours!)
Welcome back to MoneyCall, The Athletic's weekly sports business cheat sheet. (Want to receive MoneyCall in your email every Wednesday? Easy sign-up here.) Name-dropped today: Brad Pitt, Michele Kang, George Costanza, Joey Chestnut, Jason Kirk, Caitlin Clark, Ndamukong Suh, Red Panda, Bobby Bonilla and more. Let's go: The Top 10 Sports Movies of the 21st Century (and does 'F1: The Movie' reach the 21st century sports movie pantheon?) 'F1: The Movie' is a smash hit. Advertisement It had the biggest opening weekend (~$146M) of any movie in Brad Pitt's entire career, and it *just* missed knocking out 'Creed III' as the highest-grossing U.S. opening weekend for any sports movie ever. Why? As with TV's 'Drive to Survive,' F1 makes for the kind of glitzy visuals and hyper-aggressive soundscapes that prove popular in the summer, with a mega-marketing push from Apple. (Even the cars' tires are co-stars.) Two questions: 1) Will we see copycats, like we did with 'Drive to Survive?' If anything, 'F1' is a bit derivative of modern sports movies. Meanwhile, like DTS, F1's unique elements are hard to replicate with other sports. Given that opening-weekend showing, it shouldn't surprise you to hear that a sequel is in development. 2) Is it one of the best sports movies of the 21st century? Our two F1 reporters wouldn't go that far (and neither will I), but that question nicely coincides with The New York Times' buzzy 'Best Movies of the 21st Century' list. I picked mine just for sports movies, not listed in any particular order (and only features, not documentaries): (My hottest take of all: 2014's 'Whiplash' is really a sports movie — J.K. Simmons' Terence Fletcher is the scariest coach in movie history — and if you watch it that way, it takes the film to a new level.) Let's have some mid-summer fun: Pick your own 10 favorite sports movies of the 21st century here, then drop any unlisted personal favorites (or gripes about my list above) in the comments section below. WNBA to reach 18 teams in 2030. Plus: NCAA needs geography lessons Big talkers from the sports business industry: WNBA expansion mania: Adding Cleveland in 2028. Detroit in 2029. Philadelphia in 2030. That's on top of Golden State launching this season and Toronto and Portland launching next season. It's a lot. Here's the stat of the week: $50M: What Golden State and Toronto paid in expansion fees in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Advertisement $75M: What Portland paid in 2024. $250M: What the three ownership groups announced on Monday paid. That's 3X the fee from just a year ago! By the time those three new teams take the court, their team valuations could easily have doubled. The Valkyries, for example, were just valued at $500M by Sportico. (Related: How much of that jump from $75M to $250M can be attributed to the Caitlin Clark Effect? Anecdotally, I would say a lot. But don't take my speculative word for it: Get an amazing just-published deep-dive here from my colleagues Ben Pickman and Sabreena Merchant on Clark's billion-dollar value to the league.) MLB, ESPN renew talks: ESPN was never going to keep paying MLB $550M for its rights package, but after the initial tensions cooled off, both sides clearly see the value of talking through a path forward — MLB needs the additional national exposure, ESPN needs … the local game rights for its new streaming service? Club World Cup x weather: Zoom out — the bigger issue with the heat (and myriad storm delays) is what this foreshadows for the World Cup next summer, across the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Pac-12 adds Texas State: The conference needed an eighth football team to remain FBS-eligible, and even the ninth-best major college football team in Texas is still giving your inaccurately named league a footprint in TEXAS. NHL, union sign new CBA: Expanding the regular season to 84 games got the headlines, but the end of the delightful (if possibly overhyped) emergency backup goalie ('EBUG') system is the quirky detail I'm lamenting. Other current obsessions: Michele Kang taking over managing Lyon (and signing Lily Johannes to the women's side!) … Randy Moss returning to ESPN … Al Hilal toppling Man City at the Club World Cup … Cadillac's F1 startup … NBA Draft fashion reviews … the George Costanza bobblehead bubble … Joey Chestnut back at the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4th … get well soon, Red Panda … How does an NFL legend think about business opportunties? The Athletic's newest podcast 'No Free Lunch,' hosted by football legend Ndamukong Suh, launched yesterday (check it out here). I had a few Qs for my new teammate Suh that he was nice enough to answer: What makes for a good podcast? It's about real, honest conversations — no filters, just raw truth and transparency. We want our guests' stories to be relatable to everyone, showing the human side of success and struggle. And most importantly, every episode should give you something valuable to learn for your own life. Advertisement What is a recent/current sports business storyline you find fascinating? The dynamic around the NFL's management council and player compensation is fascinating. Whether you call it collusion or strategic business, it's a prime example of maximizing profit by minimizing costs. Every business aims to widen that spread, and NFL owners are no different. Ultimately, though, the responsibility falls to the NFL Players Association. It's on them to be a strong, unified union and negotiate for better terms. At the end of the day, it's a business. Watch the first episode here: Data Point: 1,293,526 That's the number of WNBA All-Star votes Caitlin Clark got, the most any player has ever received (breaking her own record, set a year ago). AND YET! Clark was only the ninth-highest vote-getter *just among guards* from WNBA players themselves, highlighting the not-concerning-at-all disconnect between Clark's frenzied fan following and her complicated status with her peers. Ratings Watch: 534,000 That's the number of fans who tuned in for the NHL Draft on Friday night, up 6 percent from last year's Friday night draft, per SBJ's ratings guru Austin Karp. Brands of the Week Adidas, American Eagle, Battle Sports, Chipotle, DSW, Electronic Arts, Lululemon and Red Bull. As my colleague Jason Kirk noted in his must-read Until Saturday college football newsletter: 'Just some of the companies in the Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith business.' Bobby Bonilla Day tribute: $112,600,000 That's what the Milwaukee Bucks will pay Damian Lillard over the next five years not to play for the team, the largest the largest 'waive-and-stretch' deal in NBA history (and ironically announced ON Bobby Bonilla Day). Can you beat Dan in Connections: Sports Edition? Today: Puzzle #282 Dan's time: 0:29 (Today's puzzle includes my favorite game of all time.) Great business-adjacent reads for your downtime or commute: In a perfect postscript to last week's MoneyCall lead item about Cooper Flagg and New Balance, don't miss this behind-the-scenes reporting on how that deal went down. Two more: (1) The most fascinating case study in the business of college sports right now is … Sacramento State. (Free idea for the Pac-12: Charge Sac St. $10M a year to be in the league.) (2) Another smart column from my colleague Asli Pelit from her 'Down to Business' series on women's soccer, globally: Players as media companies. Back next Wednesday! Celebrate July 4th by texting this link to friends or colleagues asking for their 21st century sports movie recs. And, as always, give a (free!) try to MoneyCall and all The Athletic's other newsletters.
