Brad Pitt in the Director’s Chair?

When it comes to being a director, Brad Pitt appears to be one of the lone voices in Hollywood who simply isn’t interested in stepping behind the camera. Despite Angelina Jolie’s occasional nudges towards getting Pitt to direct a motion picture, the actor remains adamant about staying in front of the camera.

In January 2012, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were at the Producer’s Guild Awards. Brad was there to support Angelina, when the question came up as to whether he had any interest in directing his own film. After all, one reporter asked, “Wouldn’t you want to actually be able to tell others what to do for a change?”

Pitt’s answer was short and simple:  “Hell, no. Just not interested.”

Among the circle of Hollywood celebrities who are close to Pitt, he remains the only one who truly shows no sign of wanting to sit in the director’s chair. One of his closest friends, George Clooney, has directed four films, while Ben Affleck has directed two films. Another close friend, Matt Damon, was scheduled to direct a script that he co-wrote with John Krasinski, but he had to drop out, due to some unexpected scheduling conflicts.

On the other hand, Pitt is far from only being an actor. In addition to being inducted into the Producer’s Guild, it should be noted that he produced the film “Moneyball.” This project, which Pitt held near to his heart, literally took years to bring to life. At the same time, Pitt was one of the primary forces behind “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.” Had Pitt not pushed so strongly for the film to get made, it would have probably languished in the state of perpetual limbo, where many Hollywood films find themselves.

It is possible that one of the reasons that Pitt doesn’t have that burning desire to be a director that so many others possess is that he is truly committed to his family. In an interview with “Empire” magazine, Pitt stated that he had absolutely no aspirations to be a director. He claimed that directing would drive him crazy and also drive his family crazy. In addition to that, it would take him three years to do it. Lastly, Pitt enjoys producing and acting.

Having seen the pressures that directing took on Angelia Jolie, Pitt probably didn’t wish to bring that kind of chaos into the house again. After all, just like Jolie, Pitt is a perfectionist, which makes being a director one of the hardest jobs in Hollywood. Pitt has repeatedly stated that he could spend hours on end waiting for just the right moment for a perfect cinematic shot — and that is not how Hollywood wants movies to be made.

Pitt appears to have embraced the role of a successful producer, however. When he first founded the production company, Plan B, it was with Brad Grey and Jennifer Aniston. Then, in 2006, Pitt bought out his partners, obtaining full ownership of the company. In that time, Pitt helped finance such powerful films as “The Departed,” “Kick-Ass,” and the critically acclaimed “The Tree of Life.” Rather than seeing his vision of a project brought to life, Pitt seems to be more interested in simply ensuring that other people have the chance to have their dreams brought to fruition.

Of course, Pitt also enjoys a noticeable charitable presence. He helped create the Make It Right Foundation, which is a nonprofit organization dedicated to financing and constructing new houses in the Ninth Ward in New Orleans. In addition to that particular charity, Pitt is listed as supporting and being active in 35 other charities, with causes ranging from working to end worldwide poverty to ensuring that boys and girls are provided with safe havens to stay off the streets.

In the end, though, it seems as if Pitt’s first love remains in front of the camera. His latest film, “Killing Them Softly,” teams up Pitt with director Andrew Dominik, who also directed “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.” In “Killing Them Softly,” Pitt plays Jackie Cogan, who investigates an armed robbery that takes place during a high-stakes poker game. After that, audiences can expect to see Pitt in “World War Z,” a science fiction-horror movie that Pitt’s Plan B production company also produced. In this film, Pitt plays a United Nations employee who is racing the clock, attempting to stop an outbreak of an epidemic that turns rational human beings into mindless zombies.

So, although Pitt might not ever go behind the cameras, it appears fairly certain that he’ll be a presence in Hollywood for a very long time.