A 53-year-old French woman learned the hard way that even fake Brad Pitt comes with baggage, falling for a catfishing scam where “Brad” needed cash to recover from his split with Angelina Jolie.
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The U.K. newspaper The Times and French outlets like AFP have reported on the story of a woman, identified only as Anne, who shared her experience with French television network TF1.
However, the interview was later removed from TF1’s website following a wave of online ridicule triggered by the coverage. Images allegedly used in the scam were widely circulated online, where the victim was promptly roasted by the entire internet.
I leave you with this image. A 53 yo Frenchwoman called Anne was scammed of almost a million dollars by a catfisher pretending to be Brad Pitt. "Brad" sent her poems and promised her undying love — but needed money for an operation because his divorce to Angelina wiped him out. pic.twitter.com/OtmkmmF5eu
— vbspurs (@vbspurs) January 14, 2025
Anne allegedly revealed to the French station that she was initially approached online by someone claiming to be Pitt’s mother.
“It’s a woman like you that my son needs,” fake Brad’s fake mom told Anne, The Times reported.
Although skeptical, the woman stayed in touch and was later contacted by someone pretending to be the actor.
“At first I said to myself that it was fake, that it’s ridiculous,” Anne admitted to TF1.
However, the sweet allure of one day being held in Pitt’s arms was simply too much for the middle-aged maven to resist.
“I’m not used to social media and I didn’t really understand what was happening to me,” she explained.
The woman initially transferred nearly €10,000 after the fraudulent account claimed she needed to cover customs fees to receive gifts “Brad” allegedly sent her, according to her reported interview.
Anne Describes How She Was Seduced by ‘Brad Pitt’, ‘He Knew How to Talk to Women’
Anne detailed how she was slowly seduced by the scammer masquerading as Pitt.
“There are so few men who write you this kind of thing,” Anne explained. “I liked the man I was talking to. He knew how to talk to women; it was always very well done.”
Hoping Brad would put a ring on it, Anne revealed to the scammer that she had recently finalized her divorce. She then promptly sent nearly her entire €775,000 settlement—approximately $798,000. The con artist (imitating Pitt) claimed he was battling kidney cancer and needed a loan because his bank accounts had been frozen due to ongoing divorce proceedings with Jolie.
Reportedly, Anne received AI-generated images depicting Pitt’s face superimposed on men lying in hospital beds.
After learning about Pitt’s relationship with Ines De Ramon, Anne reportedly received messages from the scammers denying the reports.
However, as The Times later revealed, Anne told TF1 that she eventually read more about Pitt and De Ramon. She realized that she had been deceived and perhaps divorcing and sending all of her money to someone she had never met might have been something of a mistake.
Anne has filed a lawsuit, prompting authorities to launch a police investigation, according to reports.
TF1 has taken down the interview. The Times reported that the decision was made to shield her from a “wave of harassment” online.