Brad Pitt has been Hollywood’s golden boy for decades, charming audiences with his smoldering looks, effortless cool, and undeniable talent.
But while his acting skills are legendary, there’s one thing about his performances that you might not have consciously noticed — until now. And once you do, you’ll never unsee it…
Brad Pitt actually has two habits that have received a lot of attention lately – one is quite well-known, while the other, somewhat stranger (and perhaps unhygienic?), hasn’t been discussed as much. But let’s start with the first one.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but the fact is that Brad Pitt’s characters are often seen eating onscreen in movies. In fact, the Oscar-winning actor has been spotted munching in over 60 films throughout his career.
From Ocean’s Eleven to Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Brad Pitt has turned snacking into an art form. He devours shrimp, chows down on nachos, and sips drinks like a man who never had lunch.
But why? Is he just always hungry? Or is there a method behind the munching?
The snack king of Hollywood
One of the most famous examples of Pitt’s eating obsession is his role as Rusty Ryan in Ocean’s Eleven. In the multiple takes needed to film the scene where Rusty and Linus are spying on Tess as she comes down the stairs, Brad Pitt ended up eating 40 shrimp from a shrimp cocktail.
Throughout the film, he’s constantly seen chewing on something — burgers, ice cream, you name it. Fans speculate that Rusty’s never-ending snacking was a clever way to show how busy and on-the-go he was, always planning the next big heist while barely stopping to breathe.
And over the years, the actor has shared a few reasons behind this habit.
If we take Brad Pitt’s character in Ocean’s Eleven, the actor says that Rusty Ryan ”was always on the run, always on the move, I figured he could never sit down and have a proper meal. So he always had to grab something on the run.”
His character’s constant eating suggests to viewers that he’s a busy man who doesn’t have time for a proper meal – exactly what many creative fans have speculated.
But this isn’t just a one-time thing. If you start paying attention, you’ll see Pitt eating in almost every movie he’s in. He licks peanut butter off a spoon in Meet Joe Black, bites into a juicy steak in Legends of the Fall, and munches on potato chips in Moneyball. Even in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, his character, Cliff Booth, casually eats mac and cheese straight out of the pot.
The reason behind the habit
So, is Brad Pitt just a guy who loves to eat? According to the actor himself, there’s actually some thought behind it. In 2011, Brad Pitt shared with NPR that his character’s snacking in Moneyball was meant to reflect his intense drive and “need to accomplish something.”
Caroline Liem, a casting director and professor at Pace Performing Arts, suggests one reason Brad Pitt’s eating scenes stand out is because he’s just really, really good at it. “He’s the Laurence Olivier of eating!” she told Washington Post.
According to Liem, even skilled actors can mess up eating scenes – either by taking too big a bite or tiny ones that give away multiple takes. But not Pitt.
“He makes it look like an actual human being eating, and you don’t get that a lot,” Liem says. “He’s just one with food.”
Fabio Parasecoli, a professor at NYU who’s studied food in film, thinks Brad might not actually eat more than other actors. “That’s possible,” he says.
But, unless it’s a food-centered film like Chef or Big Night, most eating in movies is barely noticed. “Food is so embedded in scenes of everyday life, so you don’t notice it — but it’s there,” he adds.
Sharing his own perspective on the ongoing habit, Pitt acknowledged that it helps him stay occupied during filming: “I like to busy myself, I’m a grazer by nature.”
Brad Pitt’s hygiene habits
Now that we’ve covered Brad Pitt’s on-screen food indulgence, let’s move on. Because there’s another real-life habit of Pitt’s that has fans talking.
While he may love eating on camera, his offscreen hygiene habits are, well… a little different.
In 2009, while filming Inglourious Basterds, Pitt shocked his co-star Eli Roth with an unusual hygiene tip. Roth recalled an unforgettable moment when Pitt turned to him and said, “Damn, you’re ripe.” Roth admitted he hadn’t had time to shower, to which Pitt casually replied, “Baby wipes, man. Baby wipes.”
”He said, ‘Baby wipes, man, baby wipes. I got six kids. All you’ve got to do is just take them, a couple quick wipes under the pits. Man, I’m getting p***ed on all day. I don’t have time to take a shower’,” Eli Roth revealed.
Yes, you read that right. Brad Pitt, one of the most famous men on the planet, reportedly sometimes relies on baby wipes instead of showers.
It’s also been speculated that he’s completely given up soap and deodorant, replacing them with a homemade alternative due to environmental concerns.
Some might call Brad Pitt’s shower habits ”disgusting,” but he doesn’t seem to be alone in his relaxed attitude toward showers and baths. In fact, many people, celebrities or not, have their own routines when it comes to personal hygiene, and it’s not uncommon for some to prioritize it differently than others.
Hollywood’s hygiene controversy
Believe it or not, Brad Pitt isn’t the only A-lister with unconventional hygiene habits. Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher confessed on the Armchair Expert podcast that they only bathe their kids when dirt is visible. And Jake Gyllenhaal? He once told Vanity Fair, “More and more, I find bathing to be less necessary.”
However, Brad Pitt’s shower habits seem to have caused some issues with his ex-wife Angelina Jolie and even his children, according to gossip magazines. Despite being known as one of the most well-groomed men in Hollywood and spending a year developing his own skincare line before launching it two years ago, there are rumors that he was ”lackadaisical” about his own routine.
But all that appears to have changed when his new girlfriend, 35-year-old Ines de Ramon, came into the picture.
”He’s really reformed for Ines,” an insider claimed to In Touch. ”Brad used to be quite lackadaisical about taking showers and washing his hair, and only wanted to use soap and water when he did shower and refusing to use deodorant or cologne.
”He’d often go a day or two without bathing, which is astonishing given he’s such a huge sex symbol, but with Ines, it’s a different story.”
What Brad Pitt really smells like
Knowing the truth about what Brad Pitt actually smells like is, of course, hard to pin down. However, one person who’s had the chance to experience his scent up close and even talked about it is Laura Simpson, a long-time friend of actress Jennifer Lawrence. In 2014, Simpson shared her experience attending the Oscars as Lawrence’s date on MySpace.
She offered an outsider’s perspective on Hollywood, including the moment she found out what one of the biggest stars, Brad Pitt, smelled like.
“Brad Pitt smells incredible,” Simpson wrote. “Like nothing I’ve ever encountered. Eventually, we ask what cologne he’s wearing, and he says, ‘I don’t wear cologne, it’s just my natural scent, I guess.’ I choose to ignore that, though, because it would be too unfair to the rest of us.”
So, whether it’s his on-screen munching or his off-screen hygiene habits, Brad Pitt continues to be an enigma — one that keeps fans and critics alike talking. From his constant snacking to his unconventional approach to personal care, the actor’s quirks only add to the mystique that makes him Hollywood’s golden boy.
And who knows? Maybe his next film will feature even more of his signature snacking, or perhaps a fresh take on his now-famous scent. Whatever it is, we’re sure to be paying attention—just like we always have. So, what’s your take on the man behind the munching? Share your thoughts with us!
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