Fight Club's original Marla actor reveals she was fired after insulting star Brad Pitt. Released in 1999, director David Fincher's Fight Club follows an unnamed protagonist (Edward Norton) as he struggles to cure his debilitating insomnia. After his doctor refuses to help, he finds increasingly destructive ways to cure his ailment, including faking terminal illnesses to release his emotions at support groups. Brad Pitt stars opposite Norton as Tyler Durden, when the pair cross paths randomly on an airplane, forming a friendship and eventually the fight club. A commentary on toxic masculinity and the limitations it places on expressing healthy emotions and having relationships, Fight Club sees the duo confront their own demons and what drives them. Considered one the greatest cult classics of the '90s, Fight Club includes the legendary performances of Meat Loaf as Fight Club member Bob Paulson and Helena Bonham Carter, as Marla, the narrator and Tyler's love interest.
As it turns out, the original actor slated to play Marla was fired from Fight Club after insulting Brad Pitt, per Variety. Opening up in a new interview, actress and singer Courtney Love reveals she was hired by Fincher to play Pitt's love interest Marla. However, she was let go after a debacle with the prolific actor, who wanted to play Love's late husband and musical legend, Kurt Cobain, in a new film. Here's what Love had to say about her message to Pitt:
I wouldn’t let Brad play Kurt. I went nuclear. I don’t do Faust. Who the f--k do you think are?
Courtney Love & Brad Pitt's Fight Club History Explained
Love, who was romantic partners with Norton at the time, went on to explain what went down between her and Pitt. According to the singer, after being hired for Fight Club, Pitt and director Gus Van Sant approached her to make a film about Kurt Cobain. Love and Cobain had an infamous relationship throughout the '90s, and were married at the time of his tragic death in 1994 at the age of 27. Pitt's pitch did not go over as planned, as Love was insulted by the idea of him playing Cobain, and didn't believe it could work. Love was blunt with Pitt, feeling she wasn't sure if she trusted Pitt and that Pitt didn't actually understand her or Cobain's standings.
After rejecting her co-star's pitch, Love was fired from Fight Club. Although Van Sant ultimately made his Cobain-inspired film Last Days starring Michael Pitt, Love claims this was not the same idea he and Brad had together. Norton had to break the news to Love, though she says he was "sobbing" at the time and complained of having no control over the decision. Fincher called her up and confirmed the news, with Bonham Carter stepping in to take over the role opposite Pitt.
It's difficult to imagine Fight Club without Bonham Carter, who embodied so well the role of the strong-willed yet careless prostitute, Marla. While Fincher has yet to confirm Love's story, and if her firing solely resulted from the conversation with Pitt, it's worth noting Bonham Carter's effortless performance could have been part of the creative pivot. While fans may never know the exact truth, it's fun to speculate what went on behind the scenes of the most beloved films of all time, Fight Club.
Source: Variety