With Brad Pitt’s F1 movie set to hit theaters this week, Apple thought it might be a good idea to provide iPhone users with a little bit of an incentive to see the film in theaters. In theory, the plan made sense. In practice, it generated furious backlash from users.
Here’s what went down. On Tuesday afternoon, some iPhone users noticed a push notification from their Wallet app. The notification was, in essence, a promotion whereby users purchasing two tickets to the film on Fandango would be able to do so with a $10 discount. As to why this promotion even exists, recall that Apple is one of the film’s distributors. In turn, the film will ultimately end up as an offering on Apple TV+ following its theatrical run.
U2 all over again – iPhone users aren’t happy
Predictably, Apple’s strategy here generated a lot of backlash. And while it’s possible that we’re only hearing from a very vocal minority, the drama surrounding the incident is large enough that the move seems to have backfired.
Here’s how the promotion appeared on user devices:
Remember, iPhone users don’t appreciate when promotions they didn’t ask for magically appear on their devices. Even when it’s free, it can still be distasteful. As a prime example, remember the uproar when Apple automatically downloaded U2’s Songs of Innocence album to millions of iPhones?
Users felt violated, arguing that Apple’s move reeked of corporate overreach. Keep in mind that this was before streaming became commonplace, and iPhone users, at the time, took their music libraries very seriously. In short, many users were dismayed, if not furious, that an album was added to their iTunes library without their permission.
Responding to the controversy, U2 front man Bono said that the intention behind the partnership was pure, albeit misguided. Bono articulated that the band simply wanted to make its album accessible to swaths of people who might not otherwise be exposed to it.
“We wanted to deliver a pint of milk to people’s front porches, but in a few cases it ended up in their fridge, on their cereal. People were like, ‘I’m dairy-free.’”
Response to the F1 Wallet app notification
Similar to the U2 fiasco, users aren’t happy with the F1 push notification, which is essentially an advertisement. Some iPhone users lamented that avoiding this type of chicanery is precisely why they left Android, only to see it emerge on Apple’s platform. One user on the iOS subreddit sums things up nicely: “I did not pay over $1000 for an iPhone to get advertised at.”
Perusing what people are saying on X reveals more of the same: People blasting Apple for putting ads in their notifications.
To wit, one user on X wrote the following: “I love living in the future where the manufacturer of my phone makes a movie and sends me advertisement push notifications via my wallet.”
Another user writes: “Not a lot of notifications have access to give me notifications. Apple broke that trust so now the wallet app notifications have been disabled.”
How to turn off Wallet app notifications
Indeed, Apple’s move here is particularly frustrating because notifications from the Wallet app are typically useful. I’d personally recommend keeping them on as I imagine Apple won’t try a stunt like this again anytime soon. But if the F1 ordeal left a bad taste in your mouth, here’s how to turn off notifications to ensure you’re not bombarded with another promotional stunt.
Open up the Settings app and then select the Notifications pane. From there, scroll down until you see the Wallet listing. From there, turn the “Allow Notifications” toggle to Off.
Notably, Apple allows more granularity with Wallet app notifications in iOS 26. Specifically, if you go to the Wallet app settings pane in iOS 26, you’ll see an option to toggle off notifications pertaining to “Offers & Promotions.”
We imagine that once iOS 26 ships, this toggle will be turned on by default. What’s more, the fact that this toggle even exists suggests that iPhone users can expect more promotions in the future.
The bigger picture – F1 looks great
Putting the saga surrounding Apple’s questionable marketing tactics aside, F1 looks to be a great movie. If you’re not yet familiar, it’s a sports drama about a Formula One driver – played by Brad Pitt – who’s forced into an early retirement following a brutal crash. Ultimately, he comes back to the sport he loves to help mentor a hotshot new driver.
The movie comes from the same team as Top Gun: Maverick, which is evident from the trailer below.
As we highlighted earlier this month, the early feedback about the movie has been overwhelmingly positive. Of course, nothing is a guarantee until release day comes. But the film, buoyed by Pitt’s star power and Apple’s bank account, might be on track to be the film of the summer.
