George Clooney Pranked ‘Wolfs’ Director by Telling Him Brad Pitt Would ‘Never’ Do the Movie: ‘You Have to Work Your Pitch a Little Better’
George Clooney and Brad Pitt are finally back on the big screen together in Jon Watts’ crime thriller “Wolfs.” They last worked together 16 years ago in “Burn After Reading” — but it’s not like they didn’t want to reunite.
“We’ve been looking,” Clooney told me at the “Wolfs” Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday. “We’ve been trying to find something to do.”
More from Variety
They first appeared on screen with each other 23 years ago in the “Ocean’s 11” remake. In “Wolfs,” they play two fixers separately tasked to deal with the same crime involving a young man (Austin Abrams), drugs and the Albanian mob.
“Jon Watts came with this idea,” Pitt said. “This was the first draft, which never happens. We both loved it. He didn’t tell us which character we were supposed to play [but] somehow, we knew.”
Watts, on the other hand, worried that Pitt wasn’t into it thanks to legendary prankster Clooney. “I messed with [Watts],” Clooney recalled. “I told him he’s never going to get [Pitt]…He stayed up all night because I said, ‘You have to work your pitch a little better.’”
About last night…#GeorgeClooney #BradPitt #Wolfs @AppleTV #justforvariety #redcarpet pic.twitter.com/OGjWho7sfm
— Marc Malkin (@marcmalkin) September 19, 2024
The movie features plenty of action, with jokes about Clooney and Pitt not being able to keep up since they’re aging; Clooney is 63 and Pitt is 60.
The two joked that they stopped performing their own stunts decades ago. “Not since 1994,” Pitt said.
Clooney added, “We’re not stupid.”
Pitt exclaimed, “I love a stuntman. Love him.”
Clooney explained, “[The stuntman] puts on the clothes and you say, ‘You look good,’” with Pitt adding, “[I say], ‘Love it. I’ll be in the trailer.’”
“Wolfs” will be in theaters Sept. 20 before it begins streaming on Apple TV+ on Sept. 27.
See more photos from the “Wolfs” premiere below.
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
