The 1990s movie that disappointed Brad Pitt: “That frustrated me”
Having collaborated with some of the greatest filmmakers in the current landscape, Brad Pitt has developed an oeuvre that’s brimming with acclaimed gems. Ranging from widely renowned cultural landmarks such as David Fincher’s Fight Club to more recent efforts like Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Pitt has had an excellent run on his way to the top of the industry. However, the actor is often the first to admit that some of his movies should be classified as failures.
On multiple occasions, Pitt has expressed his regrets about starring in films like Troy, which never achieved their true potential. However, the movie that actually made the actor want to break his contract and exit the project was a 1990s box office hit called Interview With the Vampire. Although it grossed more than $220million, Pitt found himself questioning his decision to star in it throughout the torturous production process.
Based on Anne Rice’s eponymous novel, Neil Jordan’s 1994 vampire flick featured Pitt alongside Tom Cruise. It views history through the lens of a vampire, contextualised within the format of a contemporary interview. While the movie received praise for some of its thematic trajectories, it failed to capture the vast scope of the source material and was led astray by poor creative decisions that ended up detracting from the final product.
“I was disappointed with it,” Pitt said while discussing the movie. “Because in the book, it was a guy trying to figure out who he was – if he’s a god or if he’s of the devil. The film focused more on the sensational antics of Lestat, which were done really well, but my character ended up getting dragged place to place and set up for the sensational moments. And it just became a little bit more whiny than a real search. That frustrated me.”
In a separate interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor claimed: “There was no script. I knew the book, and in the book, you have this guy asking, ‘Who am I?’ Which was probably applicable to me at that time. ‘Am I good? Am I of the angels?’ In the book, it is a guy going on this search of discovery. And in the meantime, he has this Lestat character that he’s entranced by and abhors. But then I got the script two weeks before we started shooting.”
Although he considers Interview With the Vampire to be a misstep, it doesn’t take away from Pitt’s incredible work throughout the ’90s. Including Thelma & Louise, Se7en and 12 Monkeys, his work during this decade cemented him as one of the most talented leading men in Hollywood.
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