Rating: PG-13 | Runtime: 155 minutes
Release Date: June 27th, 2025 (USA)
Studio: Warner Bros. / Apple Original Films
Director(s): Joseph Kosinski
Writer(s): Ehren Kruger / Joseph Kosinski & Ehren Kruger (story)

You just googled these names, didn’t you?

We’ve all seen young upstart Lightning McQueen get accidentally dumped into Radiator Springs to finally learn the lessons of life and racing from grizzled vet Doc Hudson. But what if the down-on-their-luck Rust-eze Racing Team needed to recruit Doc to battle on the Piston Cup circuit thirty years past his prime to steward Lightning and save the company?!

Well, thanks to Joseph Kosinski and Ehren Kruger, the fan-fiction we didn’t know we needed or wanted has arrived. And it’s just as corny as that sounds with everyone from Kerry Condon’s Sally and Callie Cooke’s Guido finding the best versions of themselves thanks to the chaotic shot of energy only a reckless sixty-year-old can provide. I’m pretty sure the filmmakers found their “miracle” and worked backwards to set it up perfectly via the usual new guard meets old guard narrative conflict cinematic history loves.

The real question, though, is whether Apple can legally claim Chris and Liam Hemsworth as stars for that split second montage cut in Abu Dhabi. I’ll await the verdict from the stewards.

---

Damson Idris as Joshua Pearce and Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes in Apple Original Films’ F1 THE MOVIE, premiering December 12, 2025 on Apple TV.