The year is 1999 and two of the most illustrious actors in Hollywood are engulfed in the daze and smoke of marijuana as they pass a joint to each other before gracing the big screening of their film with their winsome presence. Yup, that’s exactly what Brad Pitt and Edward Norton did at the time of their freshly-released box office disaster (which would later go on to become a certified cult classic), Fight Club.
Brad Pitt & Edward Norton Were Stoned & Ready to Go
Years after David Fincher‘s Fight Club flatlined, it went down as one of the most beloved classics in the history of cinema and became a prized possession of the director’s as well. Both its leading men, Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, would thereafter go on to amass the zenith of stardom which was especially the case for the former.
Neither of them, however, had ever imagined that their dark and violent film that wobbled on the edge of nihilism would be hailed so vehemently a decade or so after its fiasco. Especially since they firsthand witnessed the apathetic reactions of viewers when they attended the movie’s original screening at the Venice Film Festival whilst high out of their minds.
“We had the best screening ever, they do this midnight screening – Edward and I, for some reason we thought it would be a good idea to smoke a joint beforehand […] The movie starts, first joke comes up, and it’s crickets; it’s dead silence. Another joke, and it’s just dead silent … this thing is just not translating at all.”
“Edward and I are laughing out loud […] we’re like the obnoxious Americans laughing at our own movie.”
So, while a thick fog of awkward silence blanketed the entirety of the audience, the two actors remained in a bubble of their own thanks to their brilliant idea of smoking up before the screening.
Fight Club – From Box Office Disaster to Cult Classic
Back when Fincher’s anti-capitalistic thriller hit theatres, the audience found little interest in its unconventionally pessimistic storyline and depressing narrative, leaving critics polarized and the studio cleaning up after a poor box office run. Not to mention, the big-screen adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s novel even drummed up some concern about how the satirical drama sent the wrong message to the audience.
Even in terms of its box office collection, 20th Century Studios found itself in quite the pickle after Fight Club‘s underwhelming performance only managed to accrue about $101 million against a production budget of $65 million.
Thanks to the film’s home video release, which granted people the chance to revisit the previously misunderstood spectacle, the Pitt and Norton starrer then found a home in the heart of its viewers with its DVD sales breathing a new life into it.
Fight Club can be rented/purchased on either Apple Tv+ or Amazon Prime Video.
Source: WTF With Marc Maron
