Brad Pitt Nearly Led This Cult Hit — Nolan Never Thought It’d Blow Minds (Photo Credit – Instagram)
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Back in 2000, no one had any idea that Memento, a low-budget film about memory loss and revenge told in reverse, would become one of the most defining thrillers of its era. It was writer-director Christopher Nolan’s second feature, but it was the one that kickstarted his Hollywood legacy.
Guy Pearce, playing Leonard Shelby, has tattooed clues all over his body. Viewers, meanwhile, were trying to mentally commit the film’s timeline to memory. It confused minds, played tricks with chronology, and somehow became a cult favorite. But did you know Brad Pitt nearly played Leonard? And even Nolan didn’t think the flick would cause such disarray.
Brad Pitt’s Close Call But Still ‘Memento’ Got Rolling Anyway
Before Memento became film-school gold and Christopher Nolan’s calling card, it was just a strange little script floating around with no real home and no big names attached. Christopher Nolan, whose only prior directing credit was a shoestring indie called Following, was knocking on doors with a film that played out backwards. It wasn’t exactly the kind of thing studios were throwing money at.
Then came Brad Pitt. In the late ’90s, he was at the height of his fame, post-Fight Club, pre-Troy, and fully in the Hollywood limelight. According to Nolan, Pitt actually read the script and met with him to discuss the role of Leonard Shelby.
The director recalled in a past interview, as per Far Outt Magazine, “Truthfully he did read the script. I mean that’s where the story comes from, is he read the script and he met with me about it when he didn’t have any reason to know who I was or anything about it. And nothing came of it.”
So why didn’t Pitt take the role? No one knows exactly. Maybe scheduling. Maybe it wasn’t the right time. Nolan added (Per Yahoo UK), “And I think really that’s how it came to Guy Pearce’s attention, and you know, he sort of got the ball rolling.” Pearce stepped in and completely nailed the role.
Memento’s path to production wasn’t easy. With a modest $9 million budget and a script that zigzagged through time, many weren’t sure if it would land with audiences. Nolan didn’t think it would trip people up, though. “Amnesia is such a part of film noir. I just saw it as part of a movie I wanted to see,” he said in a 2011 chat with MTV (via Slash Film). “So I didn’t anticipate how much it would spin some heads. I never anticipated that at all.”
Yet, it did. Memento hit the indie scene like a sharp left hook. It raked in over $39 million (Box Office Mojo reported) and earned two Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing. And Pitt? Though he didn’t land the part, his brief brush with the project helped push it forward. Strangely, he did play a part in bringing Memento to life just offscreen.
