Brad Pitt Shares Hilarious 'Beans' Story That Once Cleared the Entire Set

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Brad Pitt is known for playing so many iconic roles that it might be difficult to list the large majority of them without going to his IMDB page, and just start scrolling through what is quite the impressive list.

But even through 30-plus years of making his mark in Hollywood, delivering a dizzying array of standout performances, somehow the conversation always seems to shift to the topic of Pitt eating in movies.

The 61-year-old legend said as much during his hilariously candid July 2 appearance on the New Heights podcast with Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce.

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"Damn, I don't know how I get this [question] — like, people eat, in life," Pitt said with laughter in response to Travis asking about the best food he's eaten on camera.

Brad Pitt attends the photocell of 'Ad Astra' during the 76th Venice Film Festival on August 29, 2019 in Venice, Italy.

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Pitt went on to say that the focus on him eating in movies apparently began after Ocean's Eleven, where his character is frequently seen eating throughout the film, and his notable "eat-acting" skills have snowballed from there, saying, "But of everything I've done, that's what I'm known for."

And that's where things got interesting, which is why everyone should be applauding Travis for bringing up the topic of eating in the first place.

"I'll tell you a story," Pitt began. "I haven't thought about this for years. One of my first movies, I'm doing this little independent film. We're shooting in this little tiny cafe. It's full of the crew, so there's about 60 people in there. It's hot. You can't breathe. And my character hadn't eaten for days and he gets his big plate of beans. First plate of beans and bacon."

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"And, I was all like, method. You know, I'm gonna do this right," Pitt continued with the attention of the already grinning Kelce brothers. "And I just power down this plate of beans."

Following "at least" four takes of doing precisely that, something "hit" Pitt.

"And there was nothing I could do," he explained. "I was stuck in this chair, and nature took its course. And, then there was nothing. I went, 'Oh, great. I got away with it. I got away with that one.'"

"And then, suddenly, the entire crew, the most diabolical something-something descended on the crew in the whole room and they fled the cafe. Fled."

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Getting even a fraction of that aforementioned 60-person crew back together for an especially raw, unfiltered documentary—maybe something called "Pitt vs. Beans"—doesn't seem like it would be the worst idea in the world.

Thankfully for Pitt, but mostly for the countless crews he's worked with ever since, he stated that he began to pace himself whenever it came to eating during a scene following the legendary—but ultimately very unfortunate—beans mishap.

The full episode of Wednesday's New Heights podcast can be found below, with Pitt's appearance beginning at the 60-minute mark.

More specifically, the portion where Pitt spills the beans comes at the 1-hour, 25-minute mark.

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The delighted expressions on the faces of the Kelce brothers as the story begins to unfold is well worth the price of admission.

Related: Glen Powell Describes Making 'The Running Man' With 7 Words

Brad Pitt Shares Hilarious 'Beans' Story That Once Cleared the Entire Set first appeared on Men's Journal on Jul 2, 2025