NOWNESS celebrates Brad Pitt turning 48 today with a series of illustrations of the characters that have made him a household name, from the primal and lusty Tristan Ludlow in Legends of the Fall to the nihilistic, brawny Tyler Durden in Fight Club. Born in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and raised in Springfield, Missouri, Pitt caught his Hollywood break in 1991 when he played a sexy small-time thief in chick-flick Thelma & Louise. Later hits like Babel, Benjamin Button, and most recently Tree of Life brought him critical acclaim that hinged less on his undeniable genetic fortune and more on his diverse acting skills—though he is repeatedly crowned one of the most beautiful men alive, and his correspondingly lengthy list of past flames includes Jennifer Anniston, Gwyneth Paltrow and Thandie Newton. Now a father of six with longtime partner Angelina Jolie, Pitt is also an architecture fiend and a serious philanthropist; The Make It Right Foundation, which he launched after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, helps organize and finance the construction of affordable and sustainable residences in the city he now calls home. We capture some of the swaggering alpha male’s unforgettable moments of self-reflection.
On fate
I'm one of those people you hate because of genetics. It is the truth.
On ambition
I'm gonna design my own fleet of trailers. No! I'm gonna record an album like Jennifer Lopez. It'll be an acoustic version of K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Then maybe I'll design a line of clothes like Puff Daddy, but all in synthetic fur.
On marriage
Being married means I can break wind and eat ice cream in bed.
On fame
Fame makes you feel permanently like a girl walking past construction workers.
On his twins
I dare to say that Vivienne is proving to resemble Angelina in spirit, attitude and physicality. She is quite elegant like her mother. And Knox—he’s a bit of me. He likes music like his dad. But when he was born he looked like Vladimir Putin!
On fatherhood
I'm tough as nails. I’m impervious to poo, snot, urine, vomit. You can’t get me. You cannot break me down.
On facial hair
My beard is staying because it covers my bum-shaped chin!
On family
We’re pretty much building our own soccer team. We’re going to create our own country, go to the World Cup, and dominate!
On architecture
I've always jonesed on it, and been a bit of a junkie for it. It's one of the few art forms that you can be inside, and experience it by being smaller than it, and I have a strict belief that architecture has the ability to lift your soul, that we are susceptible to our surroundings.
On politics
You shouldn't speak until you know what you're talking about. That's why I get uncomfortable with interviews. Reporters ask me what I feel China should do about Tibet. Who cares what I think China should do? I'm a fucking actor! They hand me a script. I act. I'm here for entertainment. Basically, when you whittle everything away, I'm a grown man who puts on makeup.