Brad Pitt Explains Why So Many People Think He's 'Egotistical'

Brad Pitt is one of the most well-known actors and producers in Hollywood, having been in the entertainment industry for over 35 years. The notable actor has starred in blockbuster hits like "Fight Club," "Troy," and "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood," and has won many accolades throughout his decorated career including three Golden Globe Awards and two Oscars. He has also made countless headlines for his highly publicized, drama-filled relationship with Angelina Jolie, which the public couldn't get enough of.

While Pitt has many reasons to be confident — it seems he has unintentionally built himself a reputation for being conceited and self-absorbed. In a candid interview with GQ, the A-lister shared that he has difficulty putting names to and remembering faces, especially when he's in social situations like parties and gatherings. Pitt worries he has come off as someone who is self-absorbed and egotistical. The actor explained that while he tries his best to remember the people he meets, they often became even more offended when he asks them where they met to jog his memory. 

Brad Pitt opened up about his experience in an interview with Esquire where he said: "You get this thing, like, 'You're being egotistical. You're being conceited.' But it's a mystery to me, man. I can't grasp a face and yet I come from such a design/aesthetic point of view. I am going to get it tested."

The acclaimed actor shared that he believes he has prosopagnosia, a neurological disorder also known as face blindness, where someone cannot recognize the face of the people they meet (via NIH). The GQ interviewer shared with Pitt that she believes her husband may also suffer from the condition, to which he replied, "Nobody believes me! I wanna meet another."

Although people have a hard time believing the actor, the condition is not as rare as you may think. A 2023 study found that one in 33 people can meet the criteria for prosopagnosia. 

Brad Pitt continues to have a thriving career by starring in and producing movies, but he has admitted that the worry of how people perceive his inability to recognize them causes him to stay at home. Dr. Leah Croll, an assistant professor of neurology at Temple University Hospital, told Good Morning America it is "a very real syndrome. . . Because it is such an abstract concept and really hard even for medical professionals to understand, it can feel like people are sort of faking it." She explains that it's common for people to worry about coming off as "aloof" or uninterested in others.

Per the National Library of Medicine, there are several effects of long-term prosopagnosia, including people beginning to isolate themselves from others, experiencing a loss of self-confidence, and having to begin depending more on others. While there is currently no treatment for the condition, people with prosopagnosia can take steps to make recognizing faces easier (via NHS).