Founded in 1902, Triumph is not only one of the world's oldest and most recognised motorcycle brands, their ruggedly handsome machines possess a natural screen presence that has seen them star in a host of movies spanning seven decades. Cast alongside everyone from Brando to Bond, Triumph's Hollywood debut was appropriately titled, "The Wild One".
1950 Triumph Thunderbird 6T with co-star Marlon Brando in "The Wild One" (1953)
The Wild One, featuring Marlon Brando riding his personally owned Triumph Thunderbird, was the original outlaw biker movie, and the first to examine American motorcycle gang violence. It terrified film censors in the UK, who banned screening of the title for 14 years, finally granting it an "X" certificate in 1967. It was eventually classified "PG" (Parental Guidance) in 1988 and remains in that classification today. There was some consternation amongst Triumph executives about the negative publicity at the time, but modernist marketeers would soon taste the delicious appeal of forbidden fruit.
1955 Triumph TR5 Trophy with owner James Dean (1955)
Approximately six months before his tragic death at the age of 24, Hollywood actor James Dean acquired a Triumph TR5 Trophy. He modified the machine to give it the appearance of the bike belonging to his idol, Marlon Brando, and was often seen cruising the streets with Ursula Andress riding pillion. Although Dean's Triumph didn't make a screen appearance, it was the subject of many well-known photographs taken alongside its famous owner - usually dressed in his Schott "Perfecto" motorcycle jacket (another of Brando's influences).
Icons of rebellion: James Dean, his Triumph and his Perfecto (1955)
The posthumous release of "Rebel Without A Cause" gained Dean icon status, particularly amongst America's youth. His controversial image led to some High Schools banning leather motorcycle jackets from being worn, given their rebellious connotations. His untimely death created a growing appetite for a new Hollywood bad-boy, and it is an extraordinary co-incidence that he'd already met the man who would follow in his tracks. Whilst living in New York, Dean stored his motorcycles in a Greenwich Village garage, where he would share his love of bikes with a young part-time mechanic who worked there - the budding actor, Steve McQueen.
1961 Triumph TR6 Trophy in The Great Escape (1963)
Triumph produced the TR6 Trophy from 1956 to 1973. The competition variant, popularly known as the "desert sled", won numerous competitions throughout the late 1950s and 1960s. It was a model that Steve McQueen was familiar with, having raced one in a cross-country National Championship competition, along with his close friend and stuntman Bud Ekins, just three months before filming of The Great Escape commenced. The famous motorcycle jump in the film was performed by Ekins on a 1961 TR6 Trophy that had been disguised as a German BMW R75. You can read more about this motorcycle here.
1966 Triumph Bonneville 650 on the set of Bullitt (1968)
Steve McQueen's love affair with Triumph Motorcycles continued, and they were often seen on set together, but never again on screen. The partnerships between Triumph and the Hollywood greats, Brando, Dean and McQueen, are difficult acts to follow, but the brand continued to put in star performances throughout the following decades, enhancing the roles of cinema's leading men... and ladies.
1965 Triumph T100C Tiger ridden by Ann Margret (1966)
In 1965, Swedish-American actress, Ann Margret, starred alongside Steve McQueen in The Cincinnati Kid". Perhaps his interest in Triumph motorcycles rubbed off on her, as the following year she appeared astride a 500cc Tiger in the 1966 sex-comedy, "The Swinger". Margret went on to appear in advertisements for the motorcycle company, and maybe her connection with the brand had an influence on her lifelong friend, Elvis Presley, with whom she'd had a relationship since filming "Viva Las Vegas" in 1963.
1967 Triumph 650 Bonneville ‘Desert Sled’ starring in "Stay Away Joe" (1968)
The Bonneville traces its roots back to 1956 when a Triumph-engined streamliner set a world speed record of 214.40 mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, and in 1958 the company named a model in honour of the achievement. In 1965, Elvis Presley bought nine Bonnevilles as gifts for his entourage of close friends, known as the Memphis Mafia, and three years later he co-starred with a Bonneville 'Desert Sled' in the comedy western, "Stay Away Joe". In 2024, Triumph announced the launch of a Bonneville T120 Elvis Presley Special Edition to commemorate the Memphis Mafia machines (view here). Sadly, Triumph's comercial success and cinematic career faded during the 1970s, and it was 15 years before the Bonneville made a comeback, in the 1982 romantic drama, "An Officer and a Gentleman".
1981 Triumph T140E Bonneville and co-star Richard Gere (1982)
Paramount Pictures and Triumph Motorcycles decided upon a joint marketing initiative for "An Officer and a Gentleman". It was agreed that cinemas showing the film would be promoted at their local Triumph dealer, and T140E Triumph Bonnevilles supplied by the dealer would be displayed in the cinema's foyers. Although the movie was a great success, it didn't revive the fortunes of the motorcycle company, which went into bankruptcy the following year. The brand and manufacturing rights were bought by 40 year old housing magnate, John Bloor, for just £150,000. He spent 7 years rebuilding the business from the ground up, before unveiling the new company's first model in 1990. The brand rediscovered its sex appeal, and an opportunity arose to relaunch its move career in the extraordinary form of Playboy model and Baywatch Babe, Pamela Anderson.
1995 Triumph Thunderbird 900 and Pamel Anderson in "Barb Wire" (1996)
The Triumph Thunderbird 900 was launched in 1995 to coincide with the reintroduction of the brand to the US market. It was the first of the new breed of Triumph motorcycles to be given retro styling, designed to produce a nostalgia-fuelled appeal to an audience that respected the history of the brand, and named after the model that first appeared on screen with Marlon Brando in 1953. Whilst "Barb Wire" was a box-office bomb, the Thunderbird was a great success. By 2000, the company was profitable, and the following year relaunched another legendary model, the Bonneville.
Triumph is once again a great British brand, and the filmography listed below is proof that it has restored its movie star status.
1999 Triumph Speed Triple 955i and Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible II" (2000)
2004 Triumph 865cc Bonneville Scrambler and Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible III" (2005)
1956 Triumph T110 Tiger and Brad Pitt in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008)
Triumph Street Triple R and Angelina Jolie in "Salt" (2010)
2013 Triumph Thruxton 900 and Tom Cruise in "The Edge of Tomorrow" (2014)
2014 Triumph Scrambler 900 and Chris Pratt in "Jurassic World" (2015)
2019 Triumph Scrambler 1200 and Daniel Craig in "No Time To Die" (2020)
Click here to read more about Triumph and view their range of motorcycles.