The American actor has recently opened up about his inability to recognize people's faces, claiming that he suffers from an undiagnosed face blindness condition known as prosopagnosia.
In an interview with GQ, the Fight Club actor briefly shared his battle with prosopagnosia or 'face blindness', a neurological disorder that causes difficulties in recognizing people's faces. Brad Pitt also gave a glimpse into his struggle with daily social interactions and how he feels 'ashamed' when he is unable to rack his brain trying to remember his friends' faces in social settings.
The 12 Years A Slave producer also said people were not convinced of his condition, telling the magazine:
'Nobody believes me!'
Brad Pitt has been struggling with prosopagnosia for years
Throughout his career, Pitt has been regarded as a 'cool' guy by his co-stars, such as Cate Blanchett, Julia Robert, and Julia Ormond. In the same interview with GQ, Pitt admitted that many people perceive him as being 'remote and aloof, inaccessible, self-absorbed'.
While Pitt hasn't undergone any formal test of prosopagnosia, the Once Upon A Time In Hollywood star speculated he had been coping with the condition since 2013. In another interview with Esquire in 2013, Pitt said that he was considered as being 'conceited' or 'egotistical' given his inability to remember people's faces, and would soon be going to get tested for the inconvenient condition. He explained:
'So many people hate me because they think I'm disrespecting them. But it's a mystery to me, man. I can't grasp a face and yet I come from such a design/aesthetic point of view. I am going to get it tested.'
The difficulties in social interaction caused by prosopagnosia are the main reason why Brad Pitt prefers to stay home, as reported by People.
Prosopagnosia is a real condition with serious consequences
Like Brad Pitt, people suffering from prosopagnosia typically shun social interactions, which can eventually lead to social anxiety disorder. One in 50 people has the disorder, according to the Prosopagnosia Research Center.
According to research conducted by The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the symptoms of prosopagnosia will depend on the disorder's severity. While some people can have difficulty recognizing a familiar face, some others may even struggle to recognize their own face. Prosopagnosia is classified into two types, developmental and acquired. While developmental refers to genetic brain injury and hereditary disease, acquired refers to those who have the condition as a result of brain injuries or neurodegenerative diseases like a stroke. Given Pitt's claim that he'd been battling face blindness since 2013, it's likely the 58-year-old actor falls into the latter category.
Dr. Leah Croll, assistant professor of neurology at Temple University Hospital, told Good Morning America that prosopagnosia is a very 'normal problem'. Regarding Brad Pitt's case, she said:
'I think that Brad Pitt is experiencing something that many patients experience which is this funny feeling that something is off, but they're not quite sure what it is or where to go for help. So someone thinking that Brad Pitt story sounds familiar to them or that they're having similar symptoms, I would recommend they go see a neurologist and get formally tested and evaluated.'
Apart from Brad Pitt, another celebrity who has spoken about having facial blindness is Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak.
