Documentary About Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda to Be Directed by James Erskine, WestEnd Films Handling World Sales

WestEnd Films has boarded world sales on James Erskine’s “Lauda,” a feature documentary about three-time Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda. WestEnd will launch sales at the Toronto Film Festival, where it will unveil first footage to buyers.

“Lauda,” which is in production, tells the story of his rise to the pinnacle of motorsport and near-fatal 1976 crash, and his return to racing. Beyond the track, he reinvented himself as an entrepreneur and airline founder, fighting to uncover the truth behind the fatal air crash that nearly destroyed his airline.

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It will include previously unheard interviews with Lauda himself, alongside his family, rivals and some of the biggest names in Formula One.

Contributors include Lauda’s son Mathias Lauda, Daniel Brühl, who portrayed Lauda in “Rush,” four-time F1 World Champion Alain Prost, 2016 F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg, six-time F1 Grand Prix winner Kimi Antonelli, 1978 F1 World Champion Mario Andretti, two-time F1 World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi, former McLaren chairman and team principal Ron Dennis, and Mercedes F1 Team principal and CEO Toto Wolff.

The film is produced by Esther Randall for Noah Media Group in association with New Black Films.

Executive producers include Gernot Schaffler, nine-time Formula One Grand Prix winner Mark Webber, Catherine Quantschnigg and Myriam Weil for Federation Studios.

It will be released by Sky in the U.K., ORF in Austria and Canal+ in France.

Key heads of department include editor Arturo Calvete, director of photography Chris Openshaw and BAFTA-nominated composer Francis Macdonald.

Erskine’s documentaries include “Copa 71,” the story of the pioneering 1971 Women’s World Cup; “Billie,” about jazz legend Billie Holiday; “The Battle of the Sexes,” chronicling the landmark tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs; and “Sachin: A Billion Dreams,” about Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar.

Erskine said: “Niki Lauda’s story contains perhaps the greatest survival — and the greatest comeback — in sporting history. He life is, in many ways, the story of F1 over the last half century, but it is also much more than that. Niki lived many lives: three-time World Champion, airline founder, entrepreneur, pilot, mentor and survivor. Our film will tell his story in a prismatic rather than linear way, weaving together Niki the man, Niki the racing driver and the aviation story that would define the second half of his life.”

Randall said: “What drew me to Niki’s story was not just his remarkable achievements, but the strength of character behind them. Niki faced adversity with honesty, integrity and unwavering courage. These are the kinds of human stories Noah has always sought to tell. Working with James [Erskine] together with those who knew him best has been an honor, and we hope the film captures the qualities that made him such an exceptional and enduring figure.”

Maya Amsellem, managing director of WestEnd Films, said: “Niki Lauda’s story has everything: extraordinary sporting achievement, fierce rivalry, survival, reinvention and a personality unlike anyone else in Formula One. At a moment when the sport is reaching an enormous new global audience, ‘Lauda’ has the potential to travel far beyond the traditional sports documentary space. James is an exceptional filmmaker who will create a definitive, cinematic portrait of a true icon.”