Brad Pitt has been a movie star since the start of the '90s, making for a unique career of some great box-office successes mixed with some indie films, where his name alone helped get the movies made. In the last decade, his production company has helped bring some unique stories to the screen, like 12 Years a Slave, or Vice, but for most people, he will always be one of the better and most interesting actors in Hollywood.
From Tyler Durden in Fight Club, Rusty Ryan in the Ocean’s movies, Floyd in True Romance, and Jeffrey Goines in 12 Monkeys, to Mickey in Snatch, or Billy Beane in Moneyball, the actor always has something to show, making him one of the most charismatic and kind of chameleonic actors around. Here are Brad Pitt’s 10 highest-grossing films of all time, ranked (according to worldwide box-office numbers by Box Office Mojo).
10 Inglourious Basterds (2009) - 321.4 Million
Inglourious Basterds is Quentin Tarantino’s revision of World War II, creating a unique, evil villain in Hans Landa (and introducing Christoph Waltz to American audiences), and a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers whose plan is to kill Adolf Hitler. Pitt plays Lt. Aldo Raine, the basterds’ leader, and is both intimidating when planning their deaths, and funny when he tries to pass as an Italian movie director, making for one of his best roles ever, as Tarantino knows how to use him well.
About Pitt, director Quentin Tarantino told GQ: “He’s one of the last remaining big-screen movie stars, it’s just a different breed of man. And frankly, I don’t think you can describe exactly what that is because it’s like describing starshine. I noticed it when we were doing Inglourious Basterds. When Brad was in the shot, I didn’t feel like I was looking through the viewfinder of the camera. I felt like I was watching a movie. Just his presence in the four walls of the frame created that impression.”
9 Megamind (2010) - 321.8 Million
Megamind is the animated story of the supervillain of the same name (voiced by Will Ferrell), who, after destroying his hero nemesis, Metro Man (Pitt), has an existential crisis. This animated movie is for the whole family and has some great moments, as the villain becomes the hero when an even bigger bad guy appears in the city. Pitt doesn’t have the biggest of roles, but it is fun hearing his performance in what will probably be his only superhero character. This was the start of a franchise, as there have also been Megamind video games, and there’s going to be a TV series coming to Peacock next year.
8 Se7en (1995) - $327.3 Million
Se7en is one of the most pessimistic, and dark films ever made. This is the story of two detectives, David Mills (Pitt) and William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), as they try to catch a serial killer whose inspiration is the seven deadly sins. This was the first of many collaborations between Pitt and director David Fincher, and might still be the best, as the film has many disgusting scenes and a cruel, heartbreaking ending that probably wouldn’t be made today.
About the film, Pitt told Entertainment Weekly about the condition he put on his contract to do it: “I will do it on one condition — the head stays in the box. Put in the contract that the head stays in the box.” Actually, there was a second thing, too: “He’s got to shoot the killer in the end. He doesn’t do the ‘right’ thing, he does the thing of passion.”
7 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) - $335.8 Million
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button earned Pitt his second Academy Award nomination, and his first for a leading role, and it makes perfect sense, as he has to play many versions of the lead character. This is the story of a man who ages backward, as he’s born as an old man (with a baby’s brain) and spends his whole life aging in reverse.
David Fincher is a master of visual effects, and here, they help the story feel much more believable, as Pitt plays every age of the character’s life, making for one of his most chameleonic performances ever. This film was both a box-office and critics success, and it was the second highest-grossing film in David Fincher’s career. It was nominated for 13 Oscars, winning three.
6 Ocean’s Twelve (2004) - $362.7 Million
Pitt is not an actor who stars in many sequels, so his appearance in Ocean’s Twelve is a good surprise. This is a more experimental, weird film than the first one, as the gang travels all over Europe trying to get the money that Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) is asking from them. This is Rusty’s (and Pitt’s) time to shine, as the character gets a more central role in the film, and has a love-hate story with a beautiful woman (Catherine Zeta-Jones), as Danny Ocean (George Clooney) had in the first movie.
Ocean's Twelve might have a lot more comedy and winking at the audience than the first movie, and all the actors, but especially Pitt, sell it perfectly, making you care about his relationship with Isabel (Zeta-Jones), and the different cons he and the rest of the team are trying to pull. Special mention for both Vincent Cassel and his capoeira-stealing scene; and Julia Roberts for playing Tess, trying to pass as Julia Roberts, and meeting Bruce Willis as himself in the craziest scene in the whole trilogy.
5 Once Upon a Time In… Hollywood (2019) - $377.6 Million
Once Upon a Time In… Hollywood is still the latest Quentin Tarantino film, and has an incredible cast and idea for a film. Pitt plays Cliff Booth, Rick Dalton’s (Leonardo DiCaprio) stunt double, and Margot Robbie plays Sharon Tate in a tale that has many Hollywood stories going on, while also looking at the Manson murders.
Both Pitt and DiCaprio are great in their yin and yang relationship, where the stunt double is much more secure in his own skin than the movie star, and Pitt imbues the role perfectly. He’s all chill, especially when he’s with his dog, unless there’s a stunt to perform, or he’s in danger, fighting his way through real trouble, and making for a unique character: one who earns his living by taking all the risks imaginable and doesn’t mind cracking some skulls and (maybe, probably) killing his wife.
4 Ocean’s Eleven (2001) - $450.7 Million
Ocean’s Eleven is the story of Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and Rusty Ryan (Pitt) and the crew they get together to rob three Las Vegas casinos at the same time. This movie has one of the most stacked casts ever, with actors who have led movies playing fourth and fifth fiddle to Clooney and Pitt (including Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, and Casey Affleck). The cast has kept working, and some of them have even won Academy Awards since.
Directed by Steven Soderbergh, this heist film is one of the coolest, breeziest movies about stealing ever made, and the cast looks like they are having the time of their lives playing these amusing characters, with the group scenes being the funniest of them all.
3 Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005) - $487.2 Million
Mr. and Mrs. Smith is the story of a couple (the Smiths, played by Pitt and Angelina Jolie) who are bored with each other until they discover the other is also an assassin, and they must kill each other. The film is most remembered as the one where the two actors met and fell in love with each other, becoming gossip magazine material for the next decade and getting the moniker of "Brangelina" in the process.
Other than the off-screen gossip, the Doug Liman-directed film has some great action and comedic scenes, both movie stars ooze charisma in every frame, and their chemistry is off the charts, making for a very fun film to watch, even if you don’t know what happened between the actors.
2 Troy (2004) - $497.4 Million
Every couple of decades, movies about Greek mythology and the sword and sandals genre make a comeback in Hollywood. Troy (like Gladiator and 300) was one of the biggest films in the genre. This is an adaptation of Homer’s Iliad, one of the greatest mythology books ever written, back in the 8th century B.C.
The movie is one of the greatest about love and honor, has epic battles, and has an incredible cast; not only Pitt but also Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Diane Krueger, Julie Christie, Peter O’Toole, Brendan Gleeson, Garret Hedlund, and Rose Byrne. Even then, Pitt is the star here, playing Achilles in his most buff role ever, and in full movie star persona. The film revolves around his character, who is such a legend that the rest of the characters feel either completely inspired by him, or totally scared of him.
1 World War Z (2013) - $540.4 Million
World War Z is Brad Pitt’s highest-grossing film of all time. This is the story of Gerry Lane (Pitt), a former United Nations investigator trying to find a solution to a zombie outbreak, taking him to Korea, Israel, and Wales. Audiences loved the film so much that they are still hoping and wondering if the sequel will ever happen.
This was a troubled production, as it took many years to be made, and many writers were hired. And even then, after the shooting was done, they hired Damon Lindelof of Lost fame and Drew Goddard (who adapted The Martian) to rewrite the third act, so they could re-shoot it and add 30 more minutes of film. Those changes made for a much more character-driven, tense ending, and the new third act, plus the mix of Brad Pitt and zombies, made this movie the actor’s biggest box-office success ever.
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