Apple Hits Top Gear: New Racing Drama Speeds to $144M Worldwide Opening

Apple just hit a major milestone with its newest movie, “F1,” which made a huge $144 million around the world in its first weekend. In the U.S. and Canada, it earned $55.6 million, according to box office numbers reported on Sunday, June 29.

This is a big deal for Apple. They’ve been making movies for a few years now, but their track record in theaters hasn’t been great. They’ve had some hits on streaming, like “CODA,” which won an Oscar in 2021, but most of their films didn’t do much in cinemas.

Some of Apple’s earlier movies, like “Argylle,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” and the expensive historical dramas “Napoleon” and “Killers of the Flower Moon,” didn’t get much love in theaters. Instead, people mostly watched those at home on Apple TV+.

“F1” is different. It’s Apple’s first real try at making a summer blockbuster — the kind of movie that’s meant to fill up theaters. Apple got the rights to the film after a bidding war and teamed up with Warner Bros. to get it into cinemas. The movie stars Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, and Kerry Condon. It was directed by Joseph Kosinski, who also made “Top Gun: Maverick,” and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer.

The movie cost more than $200 million to make, so it still has a way to go before making a profit. But this opening weekend gave Apple a strong start.

“The film’s outstanding debut reflects both the excitement of Formula 1 and the deeply emotional and entertaining story crafted by the entire cast and creative team,” said Zack Van Amburg, who runs Apple’s video division with Jamie Erlicht. “Their dedication and innovation have fueled an unforgettable cinematic experience.”

Racing movies usually don’t do so well. “Rush” and “Ferrari,” for example, didn’t really catch on with audiences. But “F1” had some big advantages. It used the growing popularity of Formula 1, helped by the Netflix show “Drive to Survive”, to attract fans. And like “Top Gun: Maverick,” it went for that intense, real-feel action style. The filmmakers even put IMAX cameras inside the race cars to put viewers right in the action.

That move worked. More than half of the money the movie made came from IMAX and large-format screens. IMAX has even given “F1” a three-week run, which is a big deal since those screens are in high demand during summer.

The movie also performed well overseas, where Formula 1 has an even bigger fan base. Jeffrey Goldstein from Warner Bros. said Brad Pitt helped drive the movie’s appeal. “We came up with multiple campaigns based on where you are in the world,” he said. “We planned for an audience-winner: Screen the movie and get it out there. People talking about this movie drove this movie.”

Reviews have been good too, and audiences gave it an “A” on CinemaScore. That means the movie could stick around and keep making money, even with new movies like “Jurassic World Rebirth” coming out soon.

Paul Dergarabedian, who works at the data company Comscore, said Warner Bros. played a big part in making “F1” feel like a real event. “For Apple, this demonstrates to them the prestige factor of having a big theatrical release,” he said. “It elevates their brand.”

While “F1” had a great weekend, other films struggled. “M3gan 2.0” only made $10.2 million, which is much lower than the first movie’s $30.4 million debut in 2022. Still, because it only cost $25 million to make, it could still be profitable. There’s also a spinoff called “Soulm8te” coming next year.

“How to Train Your Dragon” dropped to second place after leading the box office for two weekends. It made $19.4 million this time and has now earned over $200 million in the U.S.

Pixar’s new film “Elio” is still having a hard time. It made $10.7 million in its second weekend, and its total is only $42.2 million after two weeks.

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