News broke on Deadline.com that Timothée Chalamet has signed on to star in High Side, a motorcycle heist movie directed by James Mangold. The headline called it “motocross.” The article said his character was an ex-MotoGP racer. Then, in the next breath, it mentioned he had a motocross career. So… which is it?
Because MotoGP and motocross are about as different as IndyCar and the Baja 1000.
MotoGP is the pinnacle of road racing: 220 mph, prototype bikes, world-class circuits like Mugello and Jerez. Motocross is all about dirt, big air, rhythm sections, and thirty-minute motos that grind you down as much as they lift you up. Both are brutal. Both demand freakish levels of talent and toughness. But they’re not interchangeable, and it makes a difference. Is Chalamet supposed to be a road racer who crashed out at Assen, or a dirt prodigy who scrubbed one jump too low? Right now, it’s not clear.
What we do know is the film’s premise: Billy (Chalamet) is a former racer, haunted by a career-ending crash, who gets pulled back into danger when his estranged brother ropes him into a series of bank robberies—on motorcycles. It’s a classic Hollywood move: instead of focusing on the drama already baked into racing, layer in a heist to make it more palatable for the general public. They’re aiming to draw in new fans a la F1 Netflix series style—drama with a dash of motorsport.
And yet, part of me can’t help but be excited. A movie with “MotoGP” anywhere near the logline is already a win for visibility. The sport doesn’t get enough mainstream shine in the U.S. Compare it to Formula 1, which exploded after Drive to Survive. Imagine a new wave of fans discovering the intensity of two wheels, even if their gateway is a pulpy blockbuster.
As for Chalamet, I’ll admit, I’m skeptical he can sell the physicality of a top-level racer. These guys are wiry, twitchy bundles of muscle memory, forged in a way that’s hard to fake. Plus, he doesn’t have a single real-life American to base his character on at the moment. And it’s hard to deny that the characteristics, cultural expressions, et al vastly differ between the countries represented on-piste. That said, if he pulls it off, that’s a net gain for the sport. If he doesn’t…At least the stunt doubles will put on a show.
For now, I’m cautiously optimistic. As surely many a moto fanatic will be doing, I’ll be rolling my eyes if the movie doesn’t manage to maintain accuracy (in just the engine sounds alone) to the sport, whichever one they decide it will be. And I’ll be looking for the little nuances and easter eggs planted into this picture that let the audience know this story was written by true enthusiasts.
Nonetheless, I’ll also be buying a ticket. Because no matter how Hollywood dresses it up, seeing motorcycles on the big screen—fast, dangerous, and center stage—is something we don’t get nearly enough of.
