Brad Pitt is facing renewed online scrutiny as a resurfaced Instagram reel has reignited long-standing controversy surrounding several of his early roles.
This includes an on-screen kiss with an 11-year-old Kirsten Dunst, a sex scene filmed when he was 24 with a 14-year-old actress on Dallas and his highly publicized relationship with Juliette Lewis, who was 17 while he was 27.
The compilation, which has gone viral across TikTok and Instagram, highlights moments from Pitt’s career that many modern viewers say would be considered inappropriate, or outright unacceptable, by today’s industry standards.
None of the incidents have ever resulted in accusations of criminal wrongdoing and Pitt has never been accused of sexual misconduct in these situations.
In the scene, Pitt, who did not write the scene or improvise, was playing a role and taking direction.
Still, as clips resurface, the ethics of Hollywood’s past casting and directing choices are being questioned.
In Interview With the Vampire (1994), Pitt’s character shares a brief kiss on the lips with Claudia (Dunst), who was a preteen. At the time, Pitt was 31.
Brad Pitt is facing renewed online scrutiny as a resurfaced Instagram reel has reignited long-standing controversy surrounding several of his early-career roles; seen in 1994
In multiple promotional interviews from the 1990s, Dunst made clear she was uncomfortable with the scene.
‘I hated [the kiss] so much because Brad was like my older brother on set, and it’s kind of like kissing your brother,’ she told Entertainment Tonight in 1994. ‘It’s weird because he’s an older guy and I had to kiss him on the lips, so it was gross.’
In another interview, Dunst corrected an interviewer who joked she must have enjoyed kissing Pitt, who is 20 years her senior.
‘I mean, I’m 12! He’s like 31 now. He’s like a man, so why would I like kissing him?’ she shot back.
She went on to point out the age difference, again, before musing that Pitt was ‘not exactly a boy’ anymore.
Dunst has repeatedly described Pitt as ‘sweet’ and ‘like a brother,’ and has never suggested Pitt acted inappropriately toward her off-camera or that the kiss was his idea.
The discomfort, she said, arose from being a child performing a romantic gesture toward an adult man.
Under the post, social media users reacted strongly to the resurfaced clips.
This includes an on-screen kiss with an 11-year-old Kirsten Dunst when he was 31 (pictured together in their 1994 film Interview With the Vampire
In multiple promotional interviews from the 1990s, Dunst made clear she was uncomfortable with the scene
‘It seems pretty clearly wrong to direct a 27-year-old actor to make out with an 11-year-old onscreen,’ one wrote.
Another added: ‘Totally unnecessary for the scene.’
‘Just gaslit a child out of her own intuitive knowing,’ a third scoffed.
A fourth insisted: ‘The 90s were so damn crazy and damaging to women.’
One Reddit user reflected on how scenes like this affected young viewers.
‘I remember feeling JEALOUS as a kid – like, ‘she’s so lucky.’ It normalized older men kissing young girls,’ the explained.
Before becoming a film star, Pitt appeared in four episodes of Dallas in the late 1980s as Randy, the boyfriend of Charlotte, played by Shalane McCall, who was 14 at the time; seen in 1988
Last year, Dunst reflected on her breakout role in the 1994 gothic horror alongside Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas, Christian Bale and Pitt.
One of few females on a predominantly male set, Dunst had celebrated her eleventh birthday by the time she filmed her first scene as Claudia, a young vampire who is forced to grow in a child’s body.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Dunst insists she was ‘treated like a princess. Yes, it was a virtually all-male set, but everyone was very gentle and kind, and nothing ever felt weird. Brad was like an older brother to me.’
Before becoming a film star, Pitt appeared in four episodes of Dallas in the late 1980s as Randy, the boyfriend of Charlotte, played by Shalane McCall, who was 14 at the time.
While speaking about their love scene, Pitt fondly remembered having ‘to roll around in the hay in a barn’ and ‘frolicking’ (seen in 1988)
While speaking about their love scene in 2023, Pitt fondly remembered it to People.
‘I had to roll around in the hay in a barn. I don’t think I had a line. I was just rolling and frolicking,’ he said.
In October 1989, at age 17, McCall married Trent Valladares and stepped away from Hollywood entirely.
Pitt has also faced renewed attention over his late 1980s relationship with actress Juliette Lewis.
Pitt has also faced renewed attention over his late 1980s relationship with actress Juliette Lewis; seen in 1991
Pitt was 27 when the pair began dating; Lewis was 17.
Lewis has never accused Pitt of misconduct. The two lived together and worked together on Kalifornia (1993).
In a later interview with Vanity Fair, Pitt reflected on the depth of his feelings:
‘I still love the woman. There’s some real genius there. I had a great time with her. It was one of the greatest relationships I’ve ever been in.’
He added that despite the intensity, love does not ‘conquer all.’
Lewis once said in an interview during their relationship: ‘We’re so in love. We never get bored of each other.’
While the relationship was widely publicized at the time, modern viewers have flagged the age gap as concerning.
Pitt was 27 when the pair began dating; Lewis was 17 (pictured in 1991)
As audiences revisit older Hollywood films and interviews, scenes involving minors and adults, especially romantic or sexualized moments, are being reassessed under contemporary ethical standards.
Critics argue the industry historically placed child actors in inappropriate situations, often normalizing dynamics that would be widely condemned today.
Supporters note that 1980s and 1990s Hollywood operated under different norms and that adult actors like Pitt performed scenes that were written and directed by others, with legal guardians and studios approving all content.
Still, the widespread reaction to these resurfaced interviews highlights a broader conversation about child safety on sets, power dynamics between adult actors and minors and and whether Hollywood has sufficiently evolved.
Brad Pitt has not publicly addressed the viral reel or the renewed debate.
The Daily Mail reached out to Pitt’s representatives, but they have no comment.
