The big picture
- Brad Pitt’s characters are often seen eating on screen, in films such as
Once upon a time… Hollywood and Troy. - Pitt’s habit of snacking while acting gives his characters realism and contributes to personality development.
- Interestingly, films in which Pitt consumes more than 200 calories on screen tend to have higher ratings and higher box office receipts.
Brad Pitt is one of the most popular leading actors in Hollywood. He has won two Oscars (one for Best Supporting Actor for Once upon a time… in Hollywood and one for the production of the winner of the best film, 12 years slave) and was nominated for five more. The legendary actor has given us unforgettable roles in everything from 12 monkeys And The big short film To Fight Club And World War ZAlthough he has taken on a variety of roles, there is a common thread throughout Pitt’s career. In over 60 of his films, Pitt has consistently performed a specific action on screen. The celebrated actor is constantly eating.
Once upon a time in Hollywood
A faded television actor and his stunt double strive for fame and success in the final years of Hollywood’s Golden Age in Los Angeles in 1969.
- Release date
- 24 July 2019
- Duration
- 165 mins
- Main genre
- crime
Brad Pitt constantly snacks on screen
Some observant fans have noticed that many of Pitt’s characters have the common trait of eating in scenes. His snacks range from mundane and typical dishes like a bag of Lay’s potato chips in Se7en or a smoothie in Burning after reading, Among the lesser known – a turkey leg in Troy or, disgustingly, a rat in Interview with a vampirePitt seems to have developed this habit of snacking during his early roles in Cutting class in 1989, in which he eats an apple and a hot dog in various scenes, and Johnny Suede in 1991, where he ate meatloaf, chicken and beans.
The food is usually appropriate for the environment (a baguette in the Set-in-France Inglourious Basterds or a beef stew in The assassination of Jesse James by the coward Robert Ford) and are as culinary diverse as caviar in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and potatoes and ham in Legends of PassionThe only constant is that Pitt doesn’t mind consuming a lot of calories on screen.
Brad Pitt gives several reasons why he constantly eats in films
The actor has provided some explanations for this habit over the years. While doing press work for Once upon a time… in Hollywood in 2019 he said, “I like to keep myself busy, I’m a natural grazer.” But it wasn’t just that Pitt didn’t like being on set with an empty stomach. He also noted that food helps him shape his characters.. For example, for the year 2001 Ocean’s Eleven, Pitt nibbles on various items, including a cheeseburger, shrimp cocktail, fruit salad and ice cream. Pitt said that because his character was “always on the run, always on the move, I thought he could never sit down and eat a proper meal. So he always had to grab something on the go.” That his character is constantly eating is a sign to viewers that this is a busy man who just doesn’t have time for a formal meal.
Related
The 20 best Brad Pitt movies, ranked
From “Thelma & Louise” to “Fight Club” to “Inglourious Basterds”: This is Collider’s ranking of the best Brad Pitt films.
There is also an aspect of realism that is brought into his scenes because he allows his characters to munch. In most real-life situations, people multitask or are fidgety; they rarely just sit still and talk. By incorporating this small activity into his scenes, Pitt makes his acting much more authentic. And he can control his character’s mood simply by showing his eating style, such as desperation in Seven years in Tibet when he was ready to eat dog food. But these nuances and the authenticity he achieves not only help improve his acting. One fan also pointed out that Pitt’s films are more successful when there are several scenes in which he eatsFilms like money ball, Ocean’s ElevenMeet Joe BlackAnd Mr and Mrs Smith All of the films feature Pitt eating over 200 calories on screen, and they happen to have high Rotten Tomato and IMDb ratings and an average domestic box office gross of $143 million. It’s not an exact science, and it could just be a coincidence that Pitt’s eating habits happen to appear in films that were already destined for greatness. But there’s an interesting connection.
Now it has become a fun Easter egg for fans to take a closer look at Pitt’s eating habits. For example, Pitt has eaten a turkey leg in five of his films (Troy, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Cool World, True Romance, And Legends of Passion), and continues to show his penchant for snacks in his latest projects (like his love for wasabi peas in 2022’s High-speed train). At this point, it makes sense that Pitt probably won’t put his food down anytime soon (unless he plays a character who is fasting).
Once upon a time… in Hollywood can currently be streamed on Hulu in the US
Watch on Hulu
