Moneyball (2011)
- During the filming of Moneyball, Brad Pitt improvised one of the most famous lines in the movie.
- Before Brad Pitt was cast, several major A-list stars turned down the lead role because they felt the script was too risky.
- Many of the practical effects used in the climax were achieved without any CGI.
Moneyball is a 2011 American biographical sports drama directed by Bennett Miller. Brad Pitt stars as Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland Athletics who, facing the smallest budget in Major League Baseball, revolutionizes the sport by using sabermetrics โ statistical analysis pioneered by Yale economics graduate Peter Brand, played by Jonah Hill โ to identify undervalued players that traditional scouts have overlooked. The 2002 season depicted in the film saw the A's, assembled from players other teams discarded, win an unprecedented 20 consecutive games.
Brad Pitt's Billy Beane was a restless, anxious presence โ unable to watch his own team play, pacing the stadium corridors and listening to games on the radio, constantly on the phone making trades. Jonah Hill's quiet, brilliant Peter Brand provided the intellectual foundation while Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian's screenplay (adapted from Michael Lewis's book) made baseball statistics genuinely dramatic. Moneyball earned $110 million worldwide on a $50 million budget and received six Academy Award nominations.
