It started as a practical joke among friends, a way for superstar Brad Pitt and acclaimed director David Fincher to playfully mess with their inner circle on New Year’s Eve as the year turned to 2000. But the elaborate prank, involving staged Y2K chaos and fake federales with automatic weapons, ultimately left some psychological scars.
What Did Brad Pitt and David Fincher’s Prank Entail?
As per Cracked, on December 31, 1999, Brad Pitt and David Fincher gathered friends at a secluded Mexican resort to celebrate the millennium. But when the clocks struck midnight, instead of toasting champagne, the power and phones suddenly cut out, plunging the party into darkness. Moments later, the lights flipped back on as “government troops,” wielding AK-47s, burst in to arrest one of Pitt’s friends, Mark Gervitz, on fabricated drug charges.
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As described by Pitt,
“They actually drove off with him. They put him in handcuffs. It was one of my best performances…fighting for the guy’s life, you know, you can’t take him screaming. It was a friend of ours, who was always part of the practical jokes, his name is Mark Gervitz. And they threw him in the back of the wagon, cuffed, his fiance is freaking out in tears, and they are driving off with him into the pitch blackness.”
While Pitt seems to remember the incident lightheartedly, it likely terrified Gervitz and his panicked fiancee at the moment. The scenario was expertly staged for authenticity, the power outage replicating feared Y2K glitches, the abrupt arrest playing on corruption rumors about Mexican police. It appeared utterly real and potentially life-threatening.
Even Pitt acknowledges the lasting psychological impact, admitting: “I need a psychologist to tell me why” we took it so far.
Indeed, such an extreme prank, targeting a close friend on what should have been a fun group vacation, seems to reveal a startling lack of empathy and boundaries.
Partnership Between Brad Pitt and David Fincher
Though their friendship bred some controversial practical jokes over the years, the professional collaborations between Brad Pitt and David Fincher have spawned unforgettable cinematic masterpieces. From the critically acclaimed thriller Se7en to the cult classic Fight Club and poignant Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Fincher and Pitt have proven an inspired actor-director pair.
Their three joint films all received Academy Award nominations, cementing the duo as one of modern Hollywood’s most talented creative partnerships, with chemistry extending from set hijinks to silver-screen movie magic. When combining Fincher’s directorial vision with Pitt’s acting prowess, the results are invariably compelling.
Their first collaboration, the 1995 psychological thriller Se7en, was a smash hit that launched both their careers to new heights. 1999’s Fight Club flopped on release but became a cult phenomenon over time. Finally, 2008’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button earned 13 Oscar nominations for its epic tale of a man aging in reverse.
Though wildly different films spanning over a decade, they share the director and star’s brilliant raw creativity. Fincher crafts dark, stylish worlds with complex anti-heroes, perfectly embodied by Pitt’s versatility as a leading man. Their bold risks and commitment to quality storytelling place Fincher and Pitt in a class above typical Hollywood fare.
