7 best Brad Pitt movies to watch before 'F1'

Tom's Guide

12 hours ago

Brad Pitt has one of the most eclectic and consistently impressive filmographies in modern Hollywood.
Over the past three decades, he's proven himself to be a versatile and committed performer. From brooding antiheroes and tragic romantics to grizzled war veterans and charming conmen, Pitt's range is as broad as it is compelling.
As 'F1' hits theaters very soon, now's the perfect time to revisit some of his finest work on the big screen before the roar of the engine kicks in.
With an Academy Award for acting under his belt (and another for producing), Pitt has built a legacy that balances commercial appeal with critical acclaim. He's collaborated with some of the most respected directors in the industry — David Fincher, Quentin Tarantino, the Coen Brothers and more — cementing his status not just as a movie star, but as a serious actor with taste.
But with such a long list of iconic roles, narrowing it down to just seven standout movies is no easy feat. Still, we've done our best to highlight the ones that define him or simply showcase him at his absolute best. So, here are the seven best Brad Pitt movies, ranked.
'Fury' is grimy, brutal, and unrelenting. There are no better descriptive words. It's a war movie that drags you through the mud and smoke of World War II with no room for sentimentality. Pitt is at his most hardened playing Don 'Wardaddy' Collier, the battle scarred commander of a Sherman tank and its ragtag crew during the final push into Nazi Germany.
The movie doesn't glorify war so much as expose the psychological toll it takes, leaning into the chaos and moral decay that define combat on the front lines.
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As Wardaddy, Pitt is a quiet force as he tries to keep his men alive while breaking in a new recruit (Logan Lerman) who's clearly unprepared for the horrors ahead. Directed by David Ayer, 'Fury' is packed with mud-caked tension, visceral action, and a strong ensemble that includes Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal, and Michael Peña.
It's arguably one of Pitt's most physically intense roles, and he brings a haunted gravitas that makes the quieter moments hit just as hard as the explosive ones.
Stream it on Prime Video
'12 Monkeys' is strange, gritty and deeply unsettling, in the best possible way. It's a time-travel thriller that leans into paranoia and madness, with Pitt delivering one of the most unhinged performances of his career.
He plays Jeffrey Goines, a mentally unstable activist with a manic edge and unpredictable energy, earning him his first Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
The movie follows Bruce Willis as James Cole, a convict sent back in time to help prevent a deadly virus from wiping out most of humanity. But nothing about the journey is straightforward. Reality blurs, timelines fracture, and nothing is quite what it seems. Terry Gilliam's direction gives the movie a dreamlike, chaotic quality that only adds to the sense of disorientation.
Pitt's twitchy, wide-eyed performance is a standout (equal parts hilarious and disturbing). '12 Monkeys' is the kind of movie that gets under your skin and lingers, and Pitt's turn as Goines is a reminder of how early he proved he could do more than just play the leading man.
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'Inglourious Basterds' is bursting with Quentin Tarantino's signature flair. Set in an alternate version of World War II, it's a revenge fantasy with a wicked sense of humor and a flair for the theatrical. Pitt leans all the way into the absurdity, playing Lt. Aldo Raine, who is a Tennessee-born soldier with a thick drawl, a thirst for Nazi scalps, and zero patience for subtlety.
Raine leads a ragtag group of Jewish-American soldiers known as the Basterds, whose mission is simple: strike fear into the heart of the Third Reich. Pitt plays him with exaggerated charm and no-nonsense bravado, chewing through Tarantino's dialogue like it's made of steak.
Though Christoph Waltz steals many scenes as the chilling Col. Hans Landa, Pitt's performance holds its own as the movie's gruff, darkly comedic anchor.
'Inglourious Basterds' is equal parts war movie, spaghetti Western, and twisted fairy tale, and Pitt is clearly having a blast the entire time. It's not just one of his most entertaining performances but also a reminder of how good he is when he's allowed to go big and let loose.
Stream it on Paramount Plus Premium
It may be a movie about baseball, but 'Moneyball' is anything but conventional. Quietly gripping and surprisingly emotional, it follows Brad Pitt as Billy Beane, the Oakland A's general manager who ditches old-school scouting in favor of a revolutionary data-driven approach.
It's a more restrained performance than we're used to seeing from Pitt, but no less compelling. He plays Beane as a man quietly raging against a system that's left him behind, balancing charm and frustration with impressive nuance. Alongside Jonah Hill's soft-spoken statistician, Pitt turns boardroom negotiations and number-crunching into genuinely tense, character-driven drama.
There are no big sports montages or dramatic locker room speeches here. 'Moneyball' thrives on quiet moments and tough decisions. It's one of Pitt's most mature and layered performances, earning him a well-deserved Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
Whether you care about baseball or not, this is a smart, absorbing character study that proves just how magnetic Pitt can be without ever raising his voice.
Stream it on Prime Video
Set against the fading glow of 1960s Hollywood, 'Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood' gives Brad Pitt one of the coolest, most laid-back roles of his career.
He plays Cliff Booth, a stuntman-turned-sidekick with a mysterious past, a killer smile, and a tendency to steal every scene he's in.
Pitt moves through Tarantino's nostalgic fantasy with his usual effortless charm, turning what could have been a background character into the movie's beating heart. It's no surprise this role finally earned him his first Oscar for acting.
More hangout movie than traditional narrative, 'Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood' thrives on atmosphere and character, and Pitt embodies that perfectly. His chemistry with Leonardo DiCaprio's insecure actor, Rick Dalton, is one of the movie's highlights. It's a love letter to a bygone era, and Pitt feels like he was born to be in it.
Stream it on Fubo TV
Many would argue that 'Fight Club' deserves the No. 1 spot on any Brad Pitt ranking, and honestly, it's hard to blame them. But for me, it lands just shy of the top.
Still, this cult classic remains one of Pitt's most iconic and talked-about performances, and for good reason. As the anarchic, soap-making insomniac Tyler Durden, Pitt is magnetic, dangerous, and completely unhinged.
He plays the role with a chaotic swagger that perfectly contrasts Edward Norton's tightly wound narrator. Together, they create a twisted psychological dynamic that drives the entire movie. Directed by David Fincher, 'Fight Club' is stylish, dark, provocative, and an indictment of consumer culture and toxic masculinity wrapped in sharp visuals and mind-bending twists.
Pitt's performance is incredible, and even decades later, Tyler Durden remains one of cinema's most quoted and recognizable characters. Whether you see him as a symbol of freedom or destruction, Pitt's commitment to the role is what makes 'Fight Club' hit as hard as it does.
Stream it on Hulu
It might not be as flashy or quotable as some of his other roles, but 'Seven' is Brad Pitt at his most gripping, and it's my pick for the top spot.
As Detective David Mills, Pitt plays a young, impulsive cop partnered with Morgan Freeman's world-weary veteran, tasked with tracking a serial killer whose crimes are modeled after the seven deadly sins. What starts as a routine case spirals into something far darker, and Pitt's performance keeps pace with the movie's growing sense of dread.
Directed by David Fincher, 'Seven' is bleak, atmospheric, and utterly relentless. Pitt is cocky and vulnerable, which makes the movie's devastating final act land like a punch to the gut. His breakdown in the final scene is some of the most emotionally charged acting of his career, still burned into the memory of anyone who's seen it.
This isn't just one of the best thrillers of the '90s but one of the best performances Pitt has ever delivered. Period.
Buy/rent on Amazon