Do we like Brad Pitt?
Our score: 7 out of 10. A clean harm record with real support for LGBTQ+ rights, held back by a contested family-court saga and a charity project that left homeowners with faulty houses.
Pitt was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and grew up in Springfield, Missouri, where he was into sport, debate and school musicals. He left the University of Missouri two credits short of a degree and moved to Los Angeles. Bit parts followed, then Thelma & Louise in 1991 made him a star, and he's been one ever since.
The big saga is the split from Angelina Jolie. She filed for divorce in 2016, and after eight years they reached a settlement in December 2024. The winery they co-owned is still being fought over: Pitt sued first, and in 2024 a judge reportedly dismissed five of his seven claims, though two survive.
Then there's the 2016 private plane incident. Jolie's 2022 court filing alleged it was worse than first reported, and Pitt's lawyer said he would not own up to anything he didn't do. The FBI closed its inquiry in 2016 without charges, and LA County child services reportedly cleared him at the time. Nothing here has been proven in court, so it stays an allegation.
The latest chapter is petty-lawyer stuff. In an August 2026 hearing, Pitt's side argued Jolie's film earnings would put her claims of coercion and economic leverage in context. Jolie's side said it was irrelevant and that she has largely paused her career. It reads like two sides still stuck in court, and no judge has settled who is right.
On the harm test, he's clean in what I found. In 2008 he reportedly gave $100,000 to the No on 8 campaign against California's gay marriage ban. In 2016 he told T magazine he couldn't see Trump being in charge, and asked “What does he even mean, take our country back?” I found nothing on trans issues either way, and no sign he keeps harmful company.
The good deeds come with a wrinkle. His Make It Right foundation set out to rebuild post-Katrina homes in New Orleans, but residents sued in 2018 over faulty construction like mould and leaks. It settled for $20.5 million in 2022, and Pitt said he hoped the community could move forward. Good intentions, patchy delivery.