Next week, one of our biggest movie stars hits theaters in one of the summer’s biggest movies. F1: The Movie, starring Brad Pitt, is out June 27 and it’s the kind of role only someone as huge as Pitt could play. Pitt has been one of the top movie stars in the world for decades. Rising to stardom in the early 1990s, he quickly jumped to leading man status and has never looked back since.
Pitt has had an incredibly varied career, making films in seemingly every genre imaginable. He’s been in romances, fantasy epics, crime thrillers, sports movies, you name it. He’s also made more than a few sci-fi films, which is our specialty here on io9. So, with Pitt on the mind thanks to his latest (decidedly non-sci-fi) movie coming out, here are our rankings of Brad Pitt’s sci-fi roles.
But, first, a clarification. As we said, Pitt has made a lot of movies, many of which straddle the line between genres. Just so you aren’t reading this article all day, we decided to be a little more strict in our classifications. So, for example, many of Pitt’s roles are almost on the edge of genre. Crime movies with spy elements, non-fiction characters in fantasy stories, and hyper-realistic settings. All of which kind of fit io9, but won’t be considered here. That includes Spy Game, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Inglourious Basterds, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Tree of Life, The Lost City, and Bullet Train. We’ve also decided not to count a few of Pitt’s films that are very much genre, but lack sci-fi elements. That takes Seven and Troy off the list. So, what’s on it? Here we go.
Pitt in Meet Joe Black – Fox
9. Deadpool 2
Pitt’s blink and you’ll miss it cameo as Vanisher, one of the members of X-Force, is absolutely hilarious but not big enough to rank highly here.
8. Meet Joe Black
In Meet Joe Black, Pitt plays the personification of Death, who then learns to live and love. It’s a strong, memorable, stoic performance in a rather dull movie. Not Pitt’s fault and not a terrible movie, merely lacking in comparison to some of his other work.
7. Cool World
One of Pitt’s earliest noteworthy starring roles sees him as the hard-nosed detective of a cartoon world. It’s a fun movie with a solid performance.
Pitt in World War Z – Paramount
6. World War Z
In a case of the movie being better than the performance, Pitt plays the lead in this story of a global zombie outbreak. It’s a solid movie with lots of action and effects, which forced Pitt into a by-the-book performance. It’s not his best work, but the scope of the movie brings it up a notch.
5. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Playing a man who ages in reverse, this big, bold production is maybe a little bit too much. Pitt is amazing in it though, using visual effects to really give us a fully formed, wild performance… in a just okay movie.
4. Ad Astra
Just because, compared to several of these other films, it’s a little underrated, we’re putting Ad Astra higher than most would expect. Pitt plays an astronaut who travels deep into space looking for his lost father in a poignant, exciting film with a nuanced lead performance.
Pitt in Fight Club – Fox
3. Fight Club
Shock of shocks! Fight Club might be our favorite movie of the bunch but, we’re talking Brad Pitt roles. And as incredible as Pitt is as the unforgettable Tyler Durden, it really is a two-hander of a movie with Edward Norton, which just meant we ranked it a tiny bit lower.
2. Interview with the Vampire
As the eternal vampire Louis, Pitt shared the screen of this 1994 film with Tom Cruise, making up one of the most beautiful casts of the era. And it’s saying something that when paired up with a star as big as Cruise at the time, Pitt’s charisma and talent may just overshadow him.
1. 12 Monkeys
Pitt received his first Oscar nomation for his role in this film, a twisty, turny, sci-fi mindfuck from director Terry Gilliam. It’s not the biggest role, but damned if it isn’t unforgettable as Pitt just seems to be having the most fun he’s ever had on screen.
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