Succession’s Brian Cox revisited his decades-long, storied career in a recent video feature with Vanity Fair this week, and there’s one particular memory that stands apart from the rest.
On the set of the 2004 period film Troy, Cox recounted being absolutely enchanted by cast-mate Brad Pitt, who played the legendary Greek warrior Achilles. While Cox noted that he’d worked with Pitt before—when the two had done classic theater together and they “were always without pants”— this time, he recalled being “agog at Brad, ‘cause he’d never been in costumes like that.”
“I mean, I’m straight, but I just thought, ‘Wow! My God, this guy is stunning!’” Cox said. “What chance does one have sharing the screen with this beautiful, beautiful man?”
Cox went on to say that seeing Pitt dressed in costume as Achilles for the first time literally had his jaw dropping: “My jaw was down because he was so stunningly beautiful.” For his own part, Pitt may not have particularly fond memories of Troy, as he previously suggested to the New York Times Magazine in 2019 that he had been pressured to join the movie. At the very least, Cox himself recalled having a “great experience” working on the epic film, which also starred Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, and Sean Bean.
In fact, according to Cox, his role as Agamemnon in Troy was “the only part I’ve ever pursued” in his career. “I’ve always allowed it to fall out the way it fell out,” he said of his approach to seeking roles. “[But] I knew the part was available and I knew I was dead right for the role.”
While the 75-year-old has made it clear he isn’t exactly one for vulnerability—in his own words, he is “too old, too tired, and too talented for any of that shit”—I’m glad he was able to be vulnerable about Pitt’s making him just a teensy bit horny.