The film focuses on Steve McQueen's passion for race-car driving and his efforts to create a film about it. The result, Le Mans, was a box-office disappointment. McQueen, who did many of his own motorcycle and car driving stunts, drove a Porsche with a broken left foot to finish second at 12 Hours of Sebring.
The documentary interweaves newly discovered material and McQueen's private recordings with interviews with surviving members of the production team to reveal the true story of how the film was made. The documentary depicts McQueen's efforts to set up his own production company, Solar Productions, and with the collaboration of a new Hollywood company named Cinema Center Films, film the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in the summer of 1970. Cinema Center Films invested $6 million ($50 million today) in the movie, the largest budget ever for a McQueen film. John Sturges, who had worked with McQueen in The Magnificent Seven and The Great Escape, directed the film. Alan Trustman, McQueen's most trusted writer, was initially chosen to write the script. In the documentary, Hal Hamilton exclaims, "We had the star, we had the drivers. We had an incredible array of technical support, we had everything. Except a script." Haig Altounian, McQueen's chief mechanic, said, "We were winging it."
Cinema Center Films took over the production after a few months and suspended it for two weeks. They called Robert Redford to see if he would replace McQueen and considered shutting down the film. Eventually, Cinema Center and McQueen struck a deal in which he gave up his salary, his percentage of any profits, and control of the film. However, further problems led Sturges to walk out, saying, "I am too old and too rich to put up with this shit." McQueen fell out with Trustman and fired him. McQueen and producer Robert Relyea then had a falling out, and television director Lee H. Katzin took over.
Several serious car crashes occurred during filming. Derek Bell was almost killed when the Ferrari 512 he was driving caught fire. He suffered minor burns. A second accident, involving driver David Piper, was more serious. Doctors amputated Piper's leg, and according to the documentary, he and McQueen never saw each other again. Off-screen, McQueen crashed a personal car, injuring Mario Iscovich, his personal assistant, and the film's female lead, Louise Edlind. Iscovich took the blame for the accident and left the set.
While filming, McQueen discovered he was on Charles Manson's kill list. Fearing for his life, McQueen attempted to get a gun to protect himself. His marriage to Neile Adams McQueen was falling apart. Gabriel Clarke says, "after years of quietly tolerating Steve's innumerable indiscretions, Neile revealed that she had had an affair of her own".
The documentary suggests that the disasters on set and financial problems had a significant effect on McQueen, contributing to the collapse of his business empire and marriage. The movie turned out to be a creative and box-office disappointment but retains a reputation among auto sports fans for its documentary-like authenticity. McQueen did not attend the premiere and never raced in a car again.
During pre-production of Steve McQueen: The Man & Le Mans, it was rumored that over a million feet of film was shot during production of Le Mans. This footage was nicknamed 'the holy grail'. Directors Gabriel Clarke and John McKenna located 400 to 600 boxes of film in an abandoned New Jersey warehouse. The rushes came without sound, but the filmmakers ensured that every engine sound was authentic. Researchers also located a Swiss "making-of" documentary and hours of Super 8mm home movie footage shot by driver Paul Blancpain during the race.
The documentary cast includes many involved in race car driving and/or production of the original film, or part of McQueen's life. This includes Neile Adams, McQueen's wife; Chad McQueen, McQueen and Adams' son; Derek Bell, a future five-time Le Mans winner; Jonathan Williams, a professional racing driver; David Piper, professional racing driver; Siegfried Rauch, the actor cast as McQueen's nemesis; Louise Edlind Friberg, the lead actress; Alan Trustman, the former scriptwriter; Peter Samuelson; and Craig Relyea.