The Brad Pitt role George Clooney was always jealous of
Long-time friends, regular collaborators, A-list superstars, and respective two-time Academy Award winners they may be, but Brad Pitt and George Clooney often found themselves competing for the same roles during the beginning of their Hollywood careers.
As a pair of exceedingly handsome, charming, and charismatic actors separated in age by just two years, that was always going to be the case. Of course, their individual talents eventually saw both of them ascend to the very top of the industry ladder, even if there’s one role in particular that saw Clooney remain green with envy for years to come.
The part of J.D. in Ridley Scott’s Thelma & Louise helped put Pitt on the map, with the relative unknown capturing attention and imagination through his brief but memorable appearance in the road trip drama. During the casting process, Clooney auditioned for the role no less than five times, only to wind up fuming when he ended up with nothing to show for his repeated efforts.
It was Geena Davis who revealed his discontent, telling Good Morning Britain of Clooney voicing his frustrations: “I happened to be seated next to him on an aeroplane, and he is very gregarious, chatty, and wonderful. And at some point, he said, ‘I hate that Brad Pitt’.”
When she asked why, considering their well-known kindship, Clooney explained that it was “because he got the part”. In response, Davis asked, “Oh, did you want that part?” with her opposite number retorting with a quip of his own: “Couldn’t you tell when I auditioned with you?” As it turned out, Davis couldn’t even recall him being part of the group who got to read with her as the shortlist narrowed.
Speaking at the Telluride Festival, Clooney admitted that he couldn’t even bring himself to watch Thelma & Louise for years: “The funniest thing is, I didn’t watch that movie for a long time, I was really stuck doing a lot of bad TV at that time,” he said. “And I had auditioned and auditioned, and it got right down to Brad and I, and he got it. And I just couldn’t watch that movie for a couple of years.”
Once he could bring himself to see what could have been, the one-time Batman acknowledged Pitt as “the right choice” who was “really good in it,” but not before suggesting that he would have “fucked it up somehow.”
That remains up for debate, but it does raise the question as to whether or not one winning Thelma & Louise over the other has ever been brought up during the decades-long association that’s seen them partner on the Ocean’s trilogy, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Burn After Reading, and the upcoming Wolfs.
