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George Clooney is reflecting on what could have been.
While reminiscing about the early days of his career, the 64-year-old actor recently told The Sunday Times that he vividly remembers his desire to break out of his usual TV roles to become a serious film actor. But just when he thought he was going to get his big break as J.D. in 1991’s Thelma & Louise, Brad Pitt entered the picture.
“I got to the final test for a role in Thelma & Louise,” Clooney recalled of the Ridley Scott-directed film. “And, motherf——, Brad got it.”
“I didn’t watch Thelma & Louise for years because I was annoyed,” he continued. “The part launched his career in film. He was doing sitcoms and crap before, so when it was the thing that could’ve launched me? F—!”
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Now, the two have become longtime friends and have starred in a number of movies together, including Ocean’s Eleven and its sequels. And once Clooney finally brought himself to watch Thelma & Louise, he admitted that Pitt, 61, was the obvious choice for the role.
“He gives me s—,” the Jay Kelly actor said of the F1 star. “But, of course, when I saw it, I was like, ‘Well, it had to be that guy.’ ”
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For his part, Pitt previously recalled that the casting agents “went through a couple of other actors” before officially offering him the part.
“I just thought, I’m the guy for this,” he said in a January 2023 cover interview for W Magazine’s Best Performances issue. “I didn’t get the part at first, and then it came back around, and I didn’t get it again, and I went, ‘Huh. All right. Moving on.’ And then it came back around again … I feel like it was three times.”
He also went on to share insight into the famous love scene that sparked his “entry into the big leagues.”
“Geena [Davis] was so sweet and kind and delicate,” Pitt recalled of his experience filming one of Hollywood’s steamiest sex scenes alongside Davis, who portrayed Thelma Dickinson. “That love scene, I think, went on for two days of shooting. She took care of me.”
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Meanwhile, Davis, 69, said that she remembered being impressed by the fresh-faced actor from the moment she saw his audition.
“He just has ‘it,’ ” she told PEOPLE in February 2020. “I could tell when he was auditioning that he was super talented. He has done so many incredible things over the years.”
She added, “He really is the ‘star’ of the moment, which is fabulous, and it is just great to see.”
