"Artificial" Brad Pitt Scams French Woman Out of $850,000

Brad Pitt has commented on the use of his AI-generated images to scam a French woman out of nearly a million dollars.

Brad Pitt has commented on the use of his AI-generated images to scam a French woman out of nearly a million dollars.

"It's awful that scammers take advantage of fans' strong connection with celebrities," Pitt said through his representative, warning others who might find themselves in a similar situation.

The actor's team released a statement after it was revealed that a scammer posing as Pitt deceived a 53-year-old French woman named Anne. The fraudster convinced her they were in a romantic relationship and swindled $850,000 by asking for money to cover medical expenses, sharing AI-generated photos of Pitt on a hospital bed.

The story and fake images quickly went viral, prompting Pitt to issue an official statement through his representative, calling the incident "awful."

"It's awful! Do not respond to unsolicited online messages, especially from actors who do not have social media," Pitt said.

According to the British outlet The Times, Anne told the French TV channel TF1 that the scam began when a woman claiming to be Pitt's mother contacted her. The message read: "My son needs a woman like you."

Although Anne was initially skeptical, she continued the conversation. Later, a person posing as Brad Pitt messaged her directly.

"At first, I thought it was fake, it was ridiculous," Anne recalled. "But I'm not used to social media and didn’t understand what was happening."

At first, Anne transferred about €10,000 (approximately $10,300) to the scammer to pay "customs fees" for gifts he claimed to have sent her.

"There are so few men who write such things," Anne said. "I liked the person I was talking to. He knew how to talk to women, and it was always done very professionally."

Later, Anne confided in the scammer that she had recently divorced. She then sent him $800,000 after he claimed to have kidney cancer and needed a loan because his bank accounts were frozen due to his divorce from Angelina Jolie.

The scammer even sent Anne AI-generated images of Pitt to convince her of his authenticity.

However, things changed when Anne learned that the real Brad Pitt was dating Ines de Ramon. She tried to confront the scammer, but he denied the reports. After seeing more articles about Pitt’s new relationship, Anne realized she had been scammed.

She filed a lawsuit, and the police have begun an investigation.

"I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm?" Anne said during an appearance on Sept à huit. "I've never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell."