According to one of the real-life Beebe’s contemporaries, Ed Cloues, and his remarks to the Philadelphia Inquirer, however, that’s not the man he knew.
In the interview, Ed Cloues explained that while Leo Beebe was just as tough as his portrayal in Ford v Ferrari, the actual person was not the despicable character he was made out to be and that he knew how to bring the best out of people, not cut them down for his own benefit.
Even though Enzo Ferrari and his high-performance sports car brand are made out to be Ford’s biggest competition in the movie, the film’s actual villain is Leo Beebe, who’s portrayed by a convincing Josh Lucas.