For the time being, Sir Lewis Hamilton appears to have zero intentions of retiring until he earns that eighth world championship title with Mercedes โ and racking up however many more records for the history books between now and then โ but the Formula 1 star does have a vision of what life will resemble beyond the grid, and it involves his own production company.
In a recent interview, the British racing talent revealed that heโd set up his latest venture with talent outfit Cooper: an investment and talent advisory helmed by Hamiltonโs manager Penni Thow, which specialises in entertainment, media, fashion, and of course, sports.
Dubbed Dawn Apollo Films (โApollo is the Greek god of sunlight, music and poetryโฆ โDawnโ because it is a time of other-worldliness and light, symbolises new beginnings.โ), hereโs what F1โs GOAT in the making had to say about the matterโฆ
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โIโve always been into movies. I watch a lot. I find it a real escape. There are a lot of movies I find inspiring and Iโve always dreamed of one day doing something in this space,โ Hamilton explained to Deadline.
โThe question was often asked whether I would act. Iโve been very fortunate to be an F1 driver so I never really had time to dedicate to the craft of acting but a dream of mine has been to story-tell.โ
Lewis Hamilton added: โI sat down with my team, and I asked: โWhat would it take for us to start a production company?โ And I went around and I met a range of producers and filmmakers in LA just to gain knowledge. One of them was Jeffrey Katzenberg.โ
โThe goal is to make impactful stories and ultimately to inspire people through movies and storytelling. A big part of the new company will be about social impact, community and causes. Thatโs very important to me.โ
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Lewis Hamilton currently has two major projects in the works with Apple: a highly-anticipated Formula 1 movie starring Brad Pitt and directed by Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick), which heโs producing, as well as a feature-length documentary about his career produced by Box To Box Films (Drive To Survive).
Fun fact, at one stage, Hamilton was actually on track to make an appearance in Kosinskiโs Top Gun: Maverick.
โI was trying to get in Top Gun because Iโm a massive fanโฆ I had an opportunity to do it and I couldnโt do it. I didnโt have time to do any filming,โ Hamilton previously stated.
By all accounts, he was taking the entire endeavour quite seriously. Even going so far as to enlist the services of an entertainment agent and seek out an acting coach. But as you can imagine, the race calendar always got in the way of pursuing screen stardom.
โI auditioned for a movie a while ago and it took one day to learn the role. I had a fashion show in Paris and I probably had maybe four or five shows to go to, so in between.โ
โItโs super heavy-loaded and Iโm trying to take days out to give myself some time back, so I can be the best that I can be here [in the Formula 1]. So it is just trying to find a balance.โ
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But like we said before, thereโs still plenty of fight left in this dog (and plenty of races to be won).
โMy main focus and my core job is still motor racing,โ assured Sir Lewis Hamilton.
โIโm 37. Iโm very focused on my health: on my body, my mind, and my spiritual well-being. Iโm very conscious of other great athletes who spend their whole lives as I have, focused on their sport, and when they come to the end they might not necessarily have had the right people around them to help structure the course ahead for them.โ
โIโve spoken to people who have said: โLookโฆ when I stopped it all came crashing down. I wasnโt prepared to do other things. I hadnโt taken time to learn any other crafts, other skills. I donโt know what my other passions are, so, I didnโt really focus on trying to understand what those are and create pillars.โโ
โSo, when I do stop racing โ which I donโt plan on doing for a while; I still feel Iโm in a good place โ I want it to be seamless. I want to be able to move on to fully focus on Dawn Apollo Films and to be able to jump in at a similar level to what Iโve been used to.โ
