Brad Pitt has said he hit a point in his career where he was chasing interesting movies and “failing to live as interesting a life”.

The Hollywood heartthrob, 55, said for the last 15 years he has weighed up parts by asking himself: “If I’m gonna do the role, what can I bring to it that someone else can’t?”

Discussing how he answers the question, he told GQ: “Well, it’s about bringing my personal experience, my personal humour, my personal, um, embarrassments, and my personal pains.

“When I watch (Christian) Bale or (Tom) Hardy, I can’t do what they do. I love watching them. And I couldn’t step into that role.

“I want to do the same thing on my end.”

He continued: “Leo (DiCaprio) and I were having this conversation the other day.

“I hit this point in the late 90s or early 2000s, where I realised I was chasing these interesting (roles), yet I was failing to live as interesting a life as I thought I could.

“There was just too much emphasis on finding interesting characters. I went, ‘F*** me, man. Live an interesting life and the rest will take care of itself’.”

Pitt – who is back this year in films Ad Astra and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood – suggested getting older has also changed his priorities.

The star, who split from ex-wife Angelina Jolie in 2016, said: “How you become more aware of time, and you’ve had more experience, good and bad, with people.

“And your own wins and losses – the older you get, they don’t seem like so much of a win or so much of a loss.

“Who you spend your time with, how you spend time – it has just become much more important to me.”