Quentin Tarantino Stopped Brad Pitt From Starring in This R-Rated Superhero Film America Wasn’t Ready For

Brad Pitt and superhero movies don’t exactly go together. The guy’s had a decades-long career, but he’s never thrown on a cape or tights for Marvel or DC. Okay, he did pop up for about half a second as 'Vanisher' in Deadpool 2, and he voiced a blue-headed villain in Megamind. That’s about it. But here’s the twist—Pitt actually came pretty close to diving headfirst into the superhero world back in the late 2000s, and not with some forgettable role either.

How Brad Pitt Nearly Became a Costumed Vigilante (No, Really)

Picture it: the late 2000s, back when superhero movies were still expected to be family-friendly crowd-pleasers—before R-rated comic flicks became (somewhat) mainstream. In walks Kick-Ass, a movie based on Mark Millar and John Romita Jr’s ultra-violent, foul-mouthed comic. When director Matthew Vaughn was putting the film together, he knew he needed an A-lister to help sell the wild premise, especially since his main hero was—let’s be honest—a very average-looking teenager in a wetsuit.

Enter Brad Pitt, Vaughn’s top choice to play Big Daddy—the masked, unhinged, not-even-pretending-he’s-not-Batman father of Hit-Girl. Pitt was a natural fit: he’d already worked with Vaughn on Snatch, he’s got the gravitas, and he understands how to pull off action and comedy without mugging for the camera. In other words, perfect Big Daddy material.

The One Where Tarantino Intervenes

So what happened? In classic Hollywood fashion, timing ruined everything. While Vaughn was locking down his cast, Pitt got an offer he simply couldn’t turn down: Quentin Tarantino wanted him to star as Lt. Aldo Raine in Inglourious Basterds. Unlike Kick-Ass, Tarantino’s film was already generating serious Oscar buzz and promised Pitt more creative space to work with.

Can you blame the guy? If it’s a choice between the wacky, violent world of Kick-Ass and a prestige Tarantino ensemble with a big role, most actors are going to go with the latter. But it’s wild to think how close Pitt came to delivering fatherly wisdom (or threats) in a scraggly wig and bulletproof vest.

The Big Daddy Switch-Up: Enter Nicolas Cage

Pitt’s decision to run with Tarantino left Kick-Ass hanging. Studios were already nervous about the project—the mix of kids, extreme violence, and the kind of swearing you’re not expecting in a 'comic book movie' was making everyone skittish. Without a huge name like Pitt, the film was in danger of falling apart entirely.

This is where things get unexpectedly perfect. Nicolas Cage, absolute king of offbeat and risky career moves, swooped in. Unlike Pitt, Cage is a legit comic book nerd and apparently loved the idea of playing Big Daddy. His enthusiasm gave the movie the credibility it desperately needed—enough to get it financed and keep Vaughn’s vision alive.

In the end, Cage didn’t just 'fill in'—he turned Big Daddy into one of those bizarre, unforgettable movie characters people still talk about today (just for different reasons than Pitt probably would have). The end result: Kick-Ass survived, and Cage got to deliver lines in an Adam West parody voice while wearing a mustache your uncle would envy.

Quick Stats: Kick-Ass At a Glance

• Director: Matthew Vaughn
• Main Cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Grace Moretz, Garrett M. Brown
• Release Year: 2010
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 78%
• IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
• Runtime: 1hr 57min

So, that’s the story—one sliding door in Brad Pitt’s career, one crazy Cage performance, and a superhero movie that somehow made it to theaters by breaking every possible rule. Honestly, I get why Pitt chose Tarantino, but it’s fun to imagine what Kick-Ass would look like with him growling out one-liners in place of Cage’s unhinged dad routine.

Kick-Ass is streaming on Plex, by the way—worth a revisit if you want to see superhero movies at their absolute weirdest.