Esteban Ocon traveled over Europe in his van with his father Laurent when he was eleven years old, competing in every significant go-karting competition in the hopes of one day making it to Formula One.
Around this time, Ocon discovered another passion: Marvel movies.
Esteban’s father had placed a tiny screen in front of the passenger seat so he could be amused for up to twelve hours a day on lengthy travels. The only DVDs he owned were the Tobey Maguire-starring “Spider-Man” original motion pictures and the Hugh Jackman-starring “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”
“That was it, really,” Ocon said. “The love started there.”
Since then, Ocon’s main way to decompress from the demands of racing has been to watch the steadily expanding Marvel film franchise.
“You are into the story so much, and you kind of dream about it,” Ocon said. “There is nothing else. It’s complete disconnection.”
This weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix will bring Ocon’s passion for the team full circle. His Alpine F1 car, which is owned by the team, will compete in races with a Marvel-themed livery to promote the movie “Deadpool & Wolverine,” starring Ryan Reynolds.
Over the weekend, Ocon, teammate Pierre Gasly, and the Alpine pit crew will all be dressed in red overalls reminiscent of Deadpool. Ocon will accessorize his ensemble with a helmet bearing the same name.
‘A better version of ourselves’
It would be accurate to call Ocon a Marvel superfan.
He believes he has seen the first one. “Spider-Man” movies 40 to 45 times. “I know all the dialogue!” Ocon said proudly. It’s a badge of honor.
The enormous amount resulted from his father’s lengthy car rides, during which he had to erect a temporary “door” between himself and the passenger seat in order to keep his attention from wandering off during the movie. Sometimes, after a long day, he would beg Esteban to turn it off if he truly needed to concentrate on driving.
For Ocon, it is much simpler now. Throughout the Formula One season, he continues to make lengthy trips throughout the globe, but he never leaves home without his iPad filled with Marvel films or television shows. “I am aware of them all,” he said. Even in the Disney Plus era, where there is more content than ever, Ocon said, “There’s not enough coming out for me.”
The idea of superheroes attempting to push the boundaries of what is considered to be humanly possible has always captivated Ocon, even as an adult. He makes comparisons between himself and other elite athletes.
My kind of Spa weekend 🟡🔴 pic.twitter.com/JG3B0J8a6M
— Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) July 25, 2024
“Athletes are trying to be superheroes in some cases,” Ocon said. “I guess this is why I love the hero movies, where they have power, how they are different to who we are. They are just a better version of ourselves.”
Ocon still considers the “Spider-Man” movies his favorites. A moment he immediately mentions with glee is in 2021’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” where the three Spider-Man actors (Maguire, Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield) appear together. He’s met Holland on multiple occasions, including after last year’s Monaco Grand Prix, where the actor waved the checkered flag and Ocon finished on the podium. “Iron Man,” “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and “Deadpool” are also among his favorites for the mark they left on him.
While Ocon finds enough of entertainment, there might not be enough Marvel releases to watch all the time. “Sometimes I watch YouTube videos of people building the armor of Iron Man,” Ocon said. “It’s not quite there yet, but honestly, some people are doing incredible armor. It’s insane.”
Oh, so seeing in-depth YouTube videos is the extent of this fandom? Ocon chuckled. “There are people that are really experts about the movies, and they read into all the little hidden things for me to pick up because I’ve missed maybe at the cinema,” Ocon said. He’s become a master of spotting the easter eggs as a result, especially in the more recent movies.
“Also with my family, when we go and see a movie, and they stand up at the end to leave, I’m like, ‘No! There are two or three credit scenes!’” Ocon said. “They’re like, ‘How do you know?’ ‘Because I already checked!’”
Meeting your superheroes
Ocon previously intended to race a “Deadpool” helmet design long before Ryan Reynolds’ potential investment in Alpine was known. Ocon then found himself emailing one of Hollywood’s biggest actors about the team and his work in the simulator in June 2023, following the announcement of the arrangement for Reynolds and his Wrexham co-owner Rob McElhenney to take shares in the squad.
“I had no idea that he was going to come at the time, being an investor,” Ocon said. “To just meet with him, that was insane. That’s really one thing that will stay with me forever.”
Although it is said that you should never meet your heroes, Ocon claimed that after their first encounter at the Las Vegas Grand Prix last year, Reynolds “made this sentence a lie.” He even showed Deadpool his helmet design, and he enjoyed telling stories about his time spent working on the movies.
Maximum Effort for the Vegas GP! Let’s goooo ⚔️🔥 @VancityReynolds @deadpoolmovie pic.twitter.com/BJsfa80SSG
— Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) November 15, 2023
“He’s super, super chill, super humble person, and really funny, really clever,” Ocon said. “And he came on a Thursday in Vegas. On a Thursday! Have you ever seen a celebrity turning up on a Thursday? I’ve never seen one.”
Ocon is right. For race day, most celebrities save their appearances.“He was interested in the tech, seeing the guys, how they were working. It was brilliant.”
Though it is odd to imagine Formula One drivers experiencing stardom, Ocon said that he had a sneaking suspicion of it when he first met Reynolds and Holland. “You don’t want to act awkward!” he said. “You just want to be normal. But no, you just realize they’re like us. We just talked about normal things that we liked, what are their hobbies, what do they do.
“I’m interested in a lot of things, so I’m asking them questions on how they prepare, what’s their background. Some things I would not know. But it’s then just a normal conversation that we would have together.”
The one Marvel film actor Ocon would most like to meet now is Robert Downey Jr. “He’s incredible, an incredible actor in whatever he does,” Ocon said. “In ‘Sherlock Holmes,’ he’s mega. I would love to meet him.”
The way to watch Marvel films
I had to admit something to Ocon as we sat down. He was going to share his passion for Marvel with someone who, although traveling by air for 11 days last year (263 hours), did not view many movies. That is enough time to see every Marvel movie three times.
In fact, my Marvel movie count is a paltry five: “Deadpool,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Black Widow,” “Thor: Ragnarok” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Ocon was bemused by the last two. “How did you understand the story with ‘Thor: Ragnarok?!’” Ocon said. “It’s quite difficult to understand!” I admitted there may have been some post-film Googling.
I am aware that there is a lot of discussion on the “correct method” to see all 33 Marvel movies, but how should someone who is new to the franchise like myself approach it?
“You need to watch them how they came out,” Ocon said. “I would start the way I have done, basically, so ‘Spider-Man 1’, then you go through all the ‘X-Men,’ ‘Fantastic Four,’ then ‘Iron Man.’ Then you get your way through there.
“Some people would contradict me and say you should watch it in the chronological order of the MCU, so ‘Captain America’ first. But I would prefer release order. If you watch it in that order, it will make sense.”
Ocon is eager to see where Marvel’s filmography will take them next. Other than “The Dark Knight” trilogy, he does not really care for the DC Comics films since he thinks Marvel has done a better job of staying true to its history while successfully incorporating both serious and humorous themes.
“I’ve seen it all,” Ocon said. “I’ve seen the serious ‘Spider-Man 1,’ very emotional. Then you see and have those funny times since ‘Spider-Man 3’ where they start dancing, and that’s a meme on social media. You kind of see how the world has evolved through that as well. I would say it was very well played. It strikes a balance.”
By the end of the conversation, Ocon had persuaded me to learn more about the Marvel universe, and he even acknowledged that the breadth of his knowledge had surprised him.
“We spoke for 20 minutes!” Ocon said, eyes widening, looking at the timestamp on my phone. “I’ve never spoken for more than five minutes to anyone about Marvel. I realize when I speak, I know too much about it!”
