Lewis Hamilton: who is the F1 star as he is set to feature in documentary coming to Apple TV+

Seven time Formula 1 World champion Lewis Hamilton is set to produce a project, which is as yet unnamed.

The project will be directed by the British filmmaker Matt Kay - the director for Little Miss Sumo in 2018 - and Hamilton will co-produce along with Penni Thow, Box to Box Films and One Community.

Box to Box Films are known for their work on the Netflix Formula 1 series Drive to Survive, as well as the Senna and Maradona documentaries.

The series is set to offer full access to Hamilton and his team on and off the track as well as guest interviews.

This new full access project will be released on Apple TV+.

So who is Lewis Hamilton?

Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton is a seven-time Formula 1 World champion and has famously raced with both McLaren Racing and Mercedes AMG Petronas Racing.

The 37-year-old from Stevenage joined the McLaren young driver programme in 1998 and  first came into Formula One in 207 ,where he was partnered with the two-time and defending world champion Fernando Alonso.

Hamilton’s first World Championship title came in just his second year in F1, having come as runner-up in his rookie year, and he has gone on to match Michael Schumacher’s seven World Championship titles record as well as overtaking his race win record.

In 2013, Hamilton made what was then considered a radical move by signing with Mercedes. This team had no real history of success but the changes to regulations in the 2014 season - the beginning of the turbo-hybrid engines - began yet another highly successful era for the Briton.

Between 2017 and 2020, Hamilton went on to win four titles in a row and the most successful British F1 driver ever now has 103 race wins to his name from 288 race starts.

Hamilton is the only black driver to have ever raced in Formula 1 and has been subjected to racism throughout his career.

He is a prominent advocate against racism and campaigns heavily for an increased diversity in motorsport.

The former world champion is also a strong activist for environmental and animal rights and spoke out against Bahrain’s human rights abuses during the allegations of sportwashing.

Over his years in Formula 1, Hamilton has had intense rivalries with many of his peers. His most famous include his own former teammates Fernando Alonso and Nico Rosberg, while his recent championship battle with Max Verstappen in the 2021 season sparked a year of controversies in almost every race and attracted more than just ardent motorsport fans to watch the Grand Prix.

Filmography

Hamilton’s new Apple TV+ project will not be the first time he has featured in film. The 37-year-old has been in the animated hit Cars, and was one of the many guest stars in Zoolander 2.

The seven-time world champion has also been linked as a consultant and possible actor in an upcoming Apple Original Films project which will star Brad Pitt.

The reports on this F1 project say that the American movie star will play a veteran racing driver who comes out of retirement to mentor and train a young driver, while hoping for a final chance at on-track glory.

What’s been said about the project?

On the announcement of the project, Apple TV+ said: “Coming from a working-class family, Lewis succeeded in a sport where the odds were stacked against him but where his talent shone through, allowing him to dominate the sport for over a decade.

“Hamilton is currently the only Black driver to race in the Formula 1 series. He embraced what made him different and his rise to the top of his career has made him fiercely committed to using his platform to influence positive change for future generations.”

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