Brad Pitt Ranks This Actor with Brando, Nicholson, and Pacino as the Greatest of His Generation!

Brad Pitt does not hesitate to describe David Thewlis, known for his role as Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter series, as one of the most skilled actors of his generation. The American actor, impressed by Thewlis’s career, is lavish in his praise of Thewlis’s performance in the film “Naked,” long before he joined the wizarding world.

In a past interview highlighted by Far Out Magazine and FilmStarts, Brad Pitt calls David Thewlis “almost the greatest of our generation,” adding: “I think what he did in Naked is as good as some of our best: Brando, Nicholson, Pacino. I really think he is in that league.”

An Award-Winning Performance

In “Naked,” Thewlis plays Johnny Fletcher, a cynical and philosophical outsider, lost in a bleak and hopeless London. British director Mike Leigh explores the wandering life of this complex character, seemingly devoid of any hope. This role earned Thewlis the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993, while Leigh received the Best Director Award.

Interestingly, in “Naked,” Johnny describes himself as “a former werewolf,” years before Thewlis would portray the werewolf Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter films (from the third installment, “The Prisoner of Azkaban,” to the last, “The Deathly Hallows: Part 2,” with the exception of “The Goblet of Fire”).

Pitt and Thewlis: The Collaboration

Brad Pitt and David Thewlis, both born in 1963 and celebrating their 60th birthdays this year, finally worked together on the film “Seven Years in Tibet” directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, released in 1997. Interestingly, this film led to Brad Pitt being banned from China for 16 years due to the government’s criticism of the film’s perceived pro-Tibetan stance.

“Naked” is available to rediscover on VOD, DVD, and Blu-ray. Similarly, “Seven Years in Tibet,” which you can find the trailer for below.