Brad Pitt has seemingly reached a crossroads in his life. He’s simply too big of a fish to fit in whatever pond you can think of — and with a massive-budget movie and a divorce settlement that seems just as large, Pitt has had some time to contemplate his very, very public personal life.
GQ caught up with the Fight Club star for a cover story that featured him alongside his co-star in the upcoming F1 movie, Damson Idris, and actual seven-time motorsport champion Lewis Hamilton. Sporting a new look, the story naturally veered toward Pitt’s much-discussed interior life — unlike Hamilton and Idris, who have so far managed to keep a tighter lid on their personal affairs. For Brad Pitt, things could not have turned out more chaotic.
In a case of life mimicking art, Pitt’s production of F1 was filled with ups and downs, much like his marriages. In the GQ article, it’s revealed that the star was actually supposed to be in an entirely different car racing movie: Ford v Ferrari. That film was originally set to co-star Mission: Impossible star Tom Cruise, but due to creative differences, it eventually ended up with Christian Bale and Matt Damon in the lead roles.
F1 was no walk in the park either — there was a writer’s strike, then an actor’s strike, and a ballooning budget that attracted quite a bit of bad press. Behind the scenes, Pitt was moving on from his long-term partnership with Angelina Jolie while also facing accusations from his family about his conduct during that period. Serendipitously, the final day of filming in Abu Dhabi reportedly coincided with the day Jolie and Pitt reached a settlement in their long-contentious divorce. Pitt was long-rumored of being abusive in their relationship.
Pitt was open about how he’s been feeling amid the constant media attention. According to him, this has been the case for three decades. When asked if filming his new movie at least provided a refuge from the negative press, Pitt pushed back, saying, “It’s been an annoyance I’ve had to always deal with in different degrees, large and small, as I do the things I really want to do. So, it’s always been this kind of nagging time suck or waste of time, if you let it be that. I don’t know. I don’t know.”
Pitt is clearly trying to manage all the pressures that come with his celebrity status by minimizing what he truly lets in. As for what his actual life is like, he says it is pretty “contained.” What fans see in the headlines, Pitt calls “just a version of my personal life.”
There are very few accomplishments left for the 61-year-old to chase in Hollywood. He’s won the biggest awards, worked with the most visionary directors, and broken all manner of box office records. He’s simply had a harder time figuring out how to deal with the press — and, as reports suggest, maybe even his own family. If he feels he needs to ignore everyone to gain control over that, then that’s what he has to do.
F1 hits theaters June 27.
