Long before his latest racing venture, F1, hit theaters last week, Brad Pitt almost teamed up with Tom Cruise on a different high-octane project. Pitt disclosed in a recent interview with the publication The National that he and Cruise were originally slated to star in Ford v Ferrari, a decade before its eventual production. Pitt reminisced about their near collaboration on the critically acclaimed racing drama. "Tom and I, for a while there, were on Ford v Ferrari with Joe [to direct]," Pitt stated, referring to an earlier iteration of the film. "This was about 10 years before the guys who actually made it — and made it a great movie." The duo's departure from the project stemmed from their mutual desire for significant on-screen driving.
Pitt explained, "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." The deal ultimately fell through, he added, when Cruise, who aimed to portray Carroll Shelby, realised that the character would not feature prominently behind the wheel. Christian Bale and Matt Damon ultimately took on the roles of Ken Miles and Carroll Shelby, respectively, under the direction of James Mangold.
Pitt recently expressed his desire to reunite with his co-star from Interview With the Vampire. Pitt also addressed speculation regarding a potential F1 sequel. While his character, Sonny Hayes, departs Formula One racing by the film's conclusion, Pitt admitted, "I would want to drive again, selfishly speaking." He notably expressed interest in a follow-up to Cruise's 1990 racing classic, Days of Thunder, which recently turned 35. Recently, Cruise revealed that he plans on exploring a sequel to the NASCAR racing movie.
