Culture

The Deepest And Most Artful Quotes From Brad Pitt’s New ‘GQ’ Profile, Ranked

"I've never heard anyone laugh bigger than an African mother who's lost nine family members."

by Meg Watson  4 May 2017
Brad Pitt

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Brad Pitt is one of those people who’s more or less synonymous with the idea of celebrity. He occupies a mythic space in US popular culture that straddles tabloid headlines and relationship scandals and Arty Film and summer blockbuster. He’s probably one of the first names you guess in Celebrity Heads when you know you’re a famous white American dude — which, considering the sheer number of people in that category, is a pretty big achievement.

Now, in the wake of a particularly tumultuous time for the actor which has included a divorce from Angelina Jolie, speculation of family violence and drinking problems, Pitt has sat down for a lengthy chat with GQ‘s Michael Paterniti. It’s the first time he’s openly discussed any of the above with the media, and he has gone all out.

The resulting cover story is an exceptionally raw and methodical unpacking of Pitt’s personal life and professional craft. After the past few months’ intrigue and gossip mongering, it frankly feels a little surreal.

The accompanying photos by Ryan McGinley certainly add to that impression:

Before I break down specific parts of the interview you should be across, it’s important you know the general vibe of where it all takes place. Paterniti is in Pitt’s LA home with a faithful dog named Jacques who is farting all over his feet. Pitt sits before the writer in a flannel shirt and skinny jeans sipping coffee and talking in detail about the process of making matcha.

They talk about serious things; Pitt frankly discusses a drinking problem he has overcome, and the fear he has for his kids who are engulfed in a rabid media cycle fuelled by his actions. But the interview also frequently veers into grand, abstract spheres about life and art and politics. Pitt quotes David Foster Wallace and Picasso and Winston Churchill. The accompanying photoshoot took place in national parks all over the country; Pitt holds himself up by the suspenders and screams into an arid forest at night, he gazes forlornly at the camera while laying in the snow in tight-fitting salmon wool, he stands in a swamp holding a white jacket over his head before tumbling head-first down a sand dune.

This is what I am here for. This is the weird, seemingly open and vulnerable but also totally constructed celebrity shit I love. Here are the best bits:

When He Dwells On Weakness

For me this period has really been about looking at my weaknesses and failures and owning my side of the street. I’m an asshole when it comes to this need for justice. I don’t know where it comes from, this hollow quest for justice for some perceived slight. I can drill on that for days and years. It’s done me no good whatsoever. It’s such a silly idea, the idea that the world is fair. And this is coming from a guy who hit the lottery, I’m well aware of that. I hit the lottery, and I still would waste my time on those hollow pursuits.

In the end, you find: I am those things I don’t like. That is a part of me. I can’t deny that. I have to accept that. And in fact, I have to embrace that. I need to face that and take care of that. Because by denying it, I deny myself. I am those mistakes. For me every misstep has been a step toward epiphany, understanding, some kind of joy. Yeah, the avoidance of pain is a real mistake. It’s the real missing out on life. It’s those very things that shape us, those very things that offer growth, that make the world a better place, oddly enough, ironically. That make us better.

When He Talks About Manual Labour

I’m making everything. I’m working with clay, plaster, rebar, wood. Just trying to learn the materials. You know, I surprise myself. But it’s a very, very lonely occupation. There’s a lot of manual labor, which is good for me right now. A lot of lugging clay around, chopping and moving and cleaning up after yourself. But I surprise myself. Yesterday I wasn’t settled. I had a lotta chaotic thoughts — trying to make sense of where we are at this time — and the thing I was doing wasn’t controlled and balanced and perfect. It came out chaotic. I find vernacular in what you can make, rather than giving a speech. I find voice there, that I need.

When He Deconstructs Patriarchal Masculinity

It’s a different world [now]. We know more, we’re more focused on psychology. I come from a place where, you know, it’s strength if we get a bruise or cut or ailment we don’t discuss it, we just deal with it. We just go on. The downside of that is it’s the same with our emotion. I’m personally very retarded when it comes to taking inventory of my emotions. I’m much better at covering up.

I grew up with a Father-knows-best/war mentality — the father is all-powerful, super strong — instead of really knowing the man and his own self-doubt and struggles. And it’s hit me smack in the face with our divorce: I gotta be more. I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven’t been great at it.

When He Defines Pain With An African Mother

I’m kind of done playing [characters in pain]. I think it was more pain tourism. It was still an avoidance in some way. I’ve never heard anyone laugh bigger than an African mother who’s lost nine family members. What is that? I just got R&B for the first time. R&B comes from great pain, but it’s a celebration. To me, it’s embracing what’s left. It’s that African woman being able to laugh much more boisterously than I’ve ever been able to.

When He Loves Frank Ocean And R&B

I’ve been listening to a lot of Frank Ocean. I find this young man so special. Talk about getting to the raw truth. He’s painfully honest. He’s very, very special. I can’t find a bad one. And of great irony to me: [I’ve been listening to] Marvin Gaye’s Here, My Dear [Gaye’s touchstone album about divorce]. And that kind of sent me down a road.

Paterniti then asks him what has brought him “immense joy” recently.

It’s an elusive thing. It’s been a more painful week than normal — just certain things have come up — but I see joy out the window, and I can see the silhouette of palms and an expression on one of my kids’ faces, a parting smile, or finding some, you know, moment of bliss with the clay. You know, it’s everywhere, it’s got to be found. It’s the laughter of the African mother in my experience — it’s got to come from the blues, to get R&B. That’ll be in my book.

When Brad Pitt Makes Fire

I get up every morning and I make a fire. When I go to bed, I make a fire, just because — it makes me feel life. I just feel life in this house.

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Read the full interview here.

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Image by Ryan McGinley for GQ.