Why Didn’t Brad Pitt & Tom Cruise’s Ford v Ferrari Materialize? (Photo Credit – Instagram)
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Brad Pitt’s Formula One sports drama F1, directed by Top Gun: Maverick helmer Joseph Kosinski, is now racing through theatres, and critics and moviegoers have given it the green flag. When fans talk about entertaining films set in the high-octane world of car racing, James Mangold’s 2019 biographical sports drama Ford v Ferrari often takes pole position.
But did you know another version of the acclaimed film, starring Matt Damon and Christian Bale in the lead roles, was supposed to star Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise? And surprisingly, it wasn’t just budget concerns that prevented that version from moving forward.
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Joseph Kosinski Says Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise were originally gonna star in Ford v Ferrari pic.twitter.com/W93zywgp9N
— 🖤 Physical Media Forever 🖤 (@VHSDVDBLURAY4K) July 2, 2025
Why Tom Cruise & Brad Pitt’s Ford v Ferrari Movie Didn’t Happen
It was previously reported that Joseph Kosinski wanted to bring together the two iconic Hollywood actors, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, for his own version of the Ford v Ferrari movie. However, according to Variety, the studio reportedly rejected the project due to budget concerns. But that wasn’t the only reason it was stalled.
As per a recent report by The National, Brad Pitt revealed that nearly a decade before James Mangold’s Ford v Ferrari, he and Tom Cruise were in talks to star in another version, which was to be directed by Joseph Kosinski.
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Pitt further shared that he was interested in playing Ken Miles (later played by Christian Bale), and Tom Cruise was set to portray Carroll Shelby (the role eventually played by Matt Damon). Interestingly, when Tom Cruise realized that his character, Carroll Shelby, would not drive much in the movie, that project never materialized.
Although it would have been a treat to see Cruise and Pitt sharing screen space again (after the 1994 gothic horror film Interview with the Vampire), the final Ford v Ferrari movie turned out to be really good, with terrific performances by both Damon and Bale.
Directed by James Mangold, the film tells the story of how a determined American automotive designer, Carroll Shelby (played by Matt Damon), and the gifted English race car driver Ken Miles (played by Christian Bale) join forces to build a revolutionary racing car to beat the reigning champion, Ferrari, at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966.
![FORD v FERRARI | Official Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zyYgDtY2AMY/hqdefault.jpg)