MOVIE NEWS – Brad Pitt floors it again as F1 roars onto Rotten Tomatoes’ leaderboard with an adrenaline jolt. Joseph Kosinski, director of Top Gun: Maverick, brings full-throttle energy to a sports drama that critics are calling the ultimate big-screen thrill ride. Forget your seatbelt—this is one movie that’s going pedal to the metal this summer!

Brad Pitt’s highly anticipated sports drama F1 is set to roar into theaters this weekend, and the film’s Rotten Tomatoes score has critics predicting a blockbuster finish. Certified Fresh at 88%, the movie’s rating has jumped 10 points since last week’s already-impressive debut, making it clear that Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) knows how to bring the heat. Kosinski’s latest delivers pure racing spectacle, big-screen thrills, and a dose of Pitt’s signature charm.

“I found myself, at times, digging my nails into the arms of my chair,” wrote William Mullally (The National), admitting that “few movies literally place me on the edge of my seat, and F1 was one of them.” Sheraz Farooqi (CinemaDebate) was just as impressed: “F1 is a directing masterclass by Joseph Kosinski. If you loved Top Gun Maverick’s kinetic pacing and fluid style, you’ll love this film. Strong sound design, cinematography, score, and performances all around create one of the best films of 2025.”

Pitt stars as Sonny Hayes, a former Formula One driver turned New York City cabbie, lured out of retirement to mentor rookie Joshua “Noah” Pearce (Damson Idris) for the Apex Grand Prix team. Releasing the same weekend as the Austrian Grand Prix, Julian Roman (MovieWeb) admits the plot is “formulaic” (pun intended), but insists it’s a wild, big-screen adrenaline rush: “F1 succeeds in its primary goal of bringing the thrills of elite motorsport racing to the silver screen, as Brad Pitt kicks asphalt in a pedal-to-the-metal summer blockbuster that’ll get your adrenaline pumping.”

F1: The Summer Blockbuster That Checks All the Boxes

With Javier Bardem, Shea Whigham, Kerry Condon, and Kim Bodnia rounding out the cast, F1 is projected to pull in $35–40 million in its opening weekend—a modest start against a $200 million budget, but just the beginning for this global spectacle. Those are only domestic numbers; international audiences are expected to put the pedal down and drive box office numbers even higher, with Zach Pope calling it “everything you want in a summer blockbuster.”

Cary Darling (Houston Chronicle) calls F1 the perfect cool-down for a sweltering, stress-filled summer: “In what’s turning into a long, hot summer full of unnerving news in the wider world, F1: The Movie offers a refuge of air-conditioned escapism. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”

Of course, not every critic is blown away, but with an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes, F1 is leaving naysayers in the dust. Catch this turbo-charged thrill ride from Warner Bros. Pictures and Apple Original Films when it hits theaters June 27.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes