8 Embarrassingly Bad Movie Auditions Starring Famous Actors

3. Brad Pitt (Backdraft)

Role? Brian McCaffrey

Did he get the part? No.

Today, Brad Pitt is a reliable leading man and a proven box-office draw, but in the very early 90s, he was neither, as proved by a completely unconvincing audition for a role that eventually went to William Baldwin.

It's only a brief clip, but from start to end, Pitt looks utterly confused by the whole thing, failing to deliver his lines with any sense of flow and seemingly not understanding what the hell he's even saying.

His vacant expression didn't help either, and here, he's a far cry from the engaging, charismatic Brad Pitt we've come to know and appreciate in everything from Inglourious Basterds to Fight Club.

Fortunately, he landed a breakout role in Thelma & Louise shortly after, a part that, funnily enough, was originally intended for William Baldwin, who had to drop out to star in Backdraft.

We're sure Pitt is not ruing how things played out at all.

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.