Brian Cox Confirms What We Suspected All Along About Troy Co-Star Brad Pitt

"Troy," which was released in 2004 and featured an all-star cast, was a huge epic historical film that centered on the Trojan War referenced in Homer's "Iliad." Perhaps the biggest names at the time attached to "Troy" were Brad Pitt as Achilles, Eric Bana as Hector, and Orlando Bloom as Paris. However, even Brian Cox — whose recent starring role in the hit HBO show "Succession" is perhaps most notable — had a fairly large role as King Agamemnon of Mycenae. Basically, the cast for "Troy" was stacked in only the way that epic films can be.

"Troy" was also moderately successful at the box office, grossing a solid $497 million at the worldwide box office (per Box Office Mojo). Unfortunately, it didn't exactly convince critics of its value, garnering a disappointing 54% on Rotten Tomatoes, with praise going toward its spectacle but criticism being directed at its lack of emotional stakes. Still, even all these years later, "Troy" is a film that is talked about by its stars. In fact, Cox recently talked about his experiences working with Pitt on set, and his feelings are something many fans may have expected.

Brian Cox recently sat down for an interview with Vanity Fair to talk about his long and illustrious career, where he admitted that his role in "Troy" was one of the only ones he pursued. He also admitted that getting to watch Brad Pitt on set every day was an experience in and of itself, believing that the actor was a "beautiful man."

"I remember at one point being agog at Brad," Cox said. "He'd never been in costumes like that... Brad walked on set and my jaw was down because he was so stunningly beautiful. I'm straight but I thought, 'Wow, my God! This guy is stunning.' What chance does one have on the screen against this beautiful, beautiful man?"

Clearly, Cox was as enamored with Pitt as audiences seem to be, and Pitt has continued to enjoy leading roles in Hollywood since "Troy" was released. And given how many scenes Cox and Pitt share in the film, the former likely had a bigger frame of reference than most of the cast on "Troy." Also, the "straight" clarifier is said in a playful way, but it's probably unnecessary given that it's Pitt being talked about, who had already won People's Sexiest Man Alive award twice by the time "Troy" was made.