Ford v Ferrari is one of many great movies about auto racing, which went full throttle at the box office and was even nominated for four Oscars, winning two and becoming a modern classic. However, what if I told you there was once a version in the works that would have starred Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise together? According to Pitt himself, it was “this close” to happening. Pitt, who’s currently basking in the glow of the success his racing flick, F1, is enjoying, is spilling the tea on the Ford v. Ferrari that almost was.
Brad Pitt recently engaged in a wide-ranging conversation with The National about the massive success of his 2025 movie release. Pitt casually dropped the bombshell that he and Tom Cruise were originally attached to an early version of Ford v Ferrari over a decade ago. It seems that the two actors were indeed passionate about the project, but it seemingly fell apart due to a major realization on Cruise’s part:
Tom and I, for a while there, were on Ford v Ferrari with Joe [to direct]. This was about 10 years before the guys who actually made it – and made it a great movie. What it came down to is that we both wanted to drive, and he wanted to play Shelby, and I wanted to play Ken Miles. And when Tom realised that Carroll Shelby would not be driving much in the movie, it didn’t come through.
Mission: Impossible front man couldn’t be the guy behind the wheel, he wasn’t all that interested and, honestly, that tracks perfectly with everything we know about the man who straps himself to planes for fun.
That iteration may have fizzled out, but the project was reborn years later with Matt Damon and Christian Bale in the lead roles, both of whom delivered outstanding performances. The James Mangold-directed version earned massive box office success and critical acclaim.
The Legends of the Fall performer, for his part, is gracious about it. He gives props to the final film, calling it “great.” Now, F1 has finally been released, giving Pitt his own high-octane, crowd and critic-pleasing hit, even if our own Eric Eisenberg wasn’t so keen with all the sports movie cliches, which you can read about in CinemaBlend’s F1 review. After nearly four decades in Hollywood, he’s calling it the blockbuster he always hoped to make.
Pitt’s not done dreaming big either, as the Oscar winner told The National he’d love to reunite with Cruise. The last time they worked together was more than 30 years ago on the horror hit Interview with the Vampire. Pitt hinted that a reunion between the two A-listers could happen, maybe even for an F1 sequel that somehow ties into Days of Thunder. Pitt’s well aware the Top Gun star wouldn’t say yes unless there were a steering wheel involved, yet he’s more than ready to “give it a go.”
Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise didn’t appear in Ford v Ferrari, but the roads in Hollywood never really end. They just take sharp turns, and I’m excited and hopeful that an Interview with the Vampire reunion might loop back around, in the form of an F1 sequel.
As for the current F1 film, it’s now playing in theaters. Be sure to check your local listings for showtimes. As for Ford v Ferrari, it’s available streaming to anyone with a Hulu subscription.