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Earlier this week, I got to sit down and talk with Brad Pitt about his new movie Ad Astra. In James Gray’s sci-fi film, which Pitt also produced through his production company Plan B, Pitt plays astronaut Roy McBride, who is tasked with trying to communicate with his missing father when his father’s work threatens all life on Earth. It’s a surprisingly emotional and somber picture with one of Pitt’s best performances as he portrays a stoic, reserved man coming to grips with his past and his weaknesses.

During our conversation, we jumped around a lot (getting to interview Pitt is a rare opportunity and there’s a lot I wanted to talk about). We discussed the challenges in getting Ad Astra made, the most rewarding part of being a producer, what he’s producing right now that he’s really excited about, if he’s seen the extended cut of Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, his thoughts on releasing a Criterion edition of the extended cut of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, his hope that he and Fincher will still get to make World War Z 2, looking back at Fight Club twenty years later, working with Amazon on the adaptation of The Underground Railroad, and more.

Check out the full interview above. Ad Astra opens this Friday and also stars Tommy Lee Jones, Liv Tyler, Ruth Negga, and Donald Sutherland. Look for my interviews with Jones and director James Gray in the days ahead.

Here’s the official synopsis for Ad Astra: