Brad Pitt has always had a taste for stories that dig deep beneath the surface, and for him, there’s nothing better than sports movie.
Fresh off the buzz surrounding his latest project, F1, a $200 million racing film that’s already generating serious momentum, the Oscar-winning actor opened up about why he’s drawn to this genre time and again.
In a candid conversation with Jason and Travis Kelce on the New Heights podcast, Pitt reflected on the power of sports storytelling and why he keeps coming back to it.
“I love a sports movie when they work… it’s the greatest,” he said. “I look back at Gene Hackman in Hoosiers and [Robert] Redford in The Natural — there’s something more there. Sports, for me, even one game is an entire lifetime.”
Pitt, who starred in Moneyball — widely regarded as one of the best sports films of the modern era — explained that it’s not just the action on the field (or the racetrack) that matters, but the emotion behind it.
“We watch you guys, we watch your fate. We watch how you deal with adversity, how you fight through it — and it’s really an amazing metaphor for a lifetime,” Pitt said to the Kelce brothers, both NFL Super Bowl champions. “When we get it right in these sports movies, and I felt like we really got it right in Moneyball, it’s a beautiful addition to that lexicon.”
Now, Pitt believes F1 has earned its place in that same conversation. “This one does too on a really big level. The racing is probably the most visceral racing experience you’ll ever have. But like all great sports movies, when they’re great, there’s also a story. You’re moved by it. And we’re funny as f** too. So, we’ve got that, but there’s also this kind of spiritual ending to it all. I’m really proud of that.”
With F1 pushing cinematic boundaries, it’s clear Brad Pitt isn’t just making sports movies; he’s helping redefine what they can be.
Outside of the film talk, Pitt also shared his admiration for the new wave of actors. He said, “They enjoy it more. We were more uptight back then. Now it’s like, ‘We can be artists in different arenas. Let’s do it and enjoy it.“
With that being said, there is no denying that for Pitt, sports films aren’t just entertainment, they’re life lessons. And by the looks of it, he’s just getting started.
