Brad Pitt Says Maestro Is One of the Best Movies This Decade

Speaking on the New Heights podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce, Pitt called Cooper's Leonard Bernstein biopic "probably one of the best movies of this decade," while also throwing in a few jabs about Cooper's longtime streak of Oscar losses and, of course, his taste in football teams.

"He's been nominated like 18 times for the Oscars," Pitt joked. "If he doesn't get it, it's OK. He's used to it. He's a Philadelphia Eagles fan."

(To clarify, Cooper's actual nomination count sits at 12—not 18 or 19,000—but the point stands: the Academy loves nominating him, not awarding him.)

Pitt was giving Cooper an award at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival when he delivered that line, and while it was all in good fun, it came with genuine admiration for Maestro—Cooper's second directing effort, which was nominated for seven Oscars, including:

• Best Picture
• Best Actor (Bradley Cooper)
• Best Actress (Carey Mulligan)

Of course, Maestro walked away with exactly zero wins, continuing Cooper's prestigious losing streak.

That didn't stop Pitt from calling it one of the standout films of the 2020s—though given how this decade's going, that might not be the compliment it sounds like.

Cooper, for his part, has said he'd rather see the Eagles win a Super Bowl than get an Oscar. Mission accomplished.

"I think he was happy this year," Pitt said of the game. "He gracefully let me hurt."

While Pitt was technically promoting his upcoming racing drama F1, he spent a fair amount of the interview getting nostalgic about sports movies. He listed Hoosiers, The Natural, and his own Moneyball as high points of the genre, and claimed F1 hits similar emotional territory.

"It's an amazing metaphor for a lifetime," he said. "I feel like we really got it right in Moneyball, and I think this one does that too on a really big level."

Cooper, meanwhile, is back in the director's chair for a Hollywood meta-comedy called Is This Thing On? — where he'll not only star and produce, but also serve as B camera operator, because apparently the man can't sit still.

And yes, he's still comparing filmmaking to football. Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, Cooper explained:

"It's all about creating a culture... Same thing in a movie set. If one of the 11 messes up, the whole thing's screwing up."

So, to recap: Brad Pitt says Maestro deserves more love, Cooper still doesn't have an Oscar, and the only trophy he really cares about is shaped like a football. Welcome to Hollywood, 2025.