Ol’ Opie Taylor is at it again.  Ron Howard’s upcoming movie, Rush tells the larger than life true story of Formula One racecar drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda as they battled for the 1976 F1 Championship.  By the looks of the trailer, cast, and what we already know of the plot, you shouldn’t have to be a racing fan to enjoy Howard’s latest project.

The script was penned by Peter Morgan, whose screenwriting credits include A Beautiful Mind, Frost/Nixon, The last King of Scotland and The Queen, which earned him an Oscar nomination.  Morgan’s Rush screenplay tells the story of Lauda, who nearly died in a fiery crash at the Nurburgring, only to return two weeks later and compete again against his rival - Hunt (Daniel Bruhl).  From Jalopnik:      

“Hunt makes a perfect addition to the story, as he was pretty much the most drugged-out sex fiend to ever grace a race track, let alone win a Formula One world championship. He had a record of sleeping with 33 airline stewardesses in 14 days. Chris Hemsworth (the guy who plays Thor) will play him.”

Howard, who has collaborated with Morgan previously on Frost/Nixon and A Beautiful Mind, also boasts directorial chops from Apollo 13, Cinderella Man, The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. 

In addition to featuring working replicas of the racecars used in the 1976 F1 season, Howard chose to use as many original cars as possible, including Mario Andretti’s Lotus 77, two McLaren M23s, two Ferrari 312Ts and two Tyrrell P34s.   

Rush opens September, 20 in the U.S. 

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