Brad Pitt was a sensation as JD in Thelma and Louise. Now his star is rising in Cool World, the steamy Kalifornia and Johnny suede.

What was the weirdest job you ever had?
I chauffeured strippers around. They had flexible hours. And they paid cash.

What’s the strangest thing you ever did?
On the way to LA, when I got to the grand Canyon, I was so excited that I took a photo of myself, with the Canyon behind me.

How do you and Juliette get along?
I think we’re ready. Y’know, to move in. There’s a lot of responsibility that goes with it. We really surprise me. Oh, we fight. Of course we fight. But I’m talking about getting around it.

She’s ten years younger than you.
I don’t see age as a relevant issue. You’ve got to see past the surface, you know? Different people go at different speeds. Juliette, man—I’ve never seen anyone sit in a chair more comfortably.

How do you feel about each other doing love scenes?
I don’t want to do anything that goes against me and Juliette. I mean, they want you to bounce about naked. And it’s just not needed most of the time. Watching two people who love each other—and wondering whether they’re ever gonna get to it—that’s sexy. Nudity—well.

Did you miss her when you were away shooting A River Runs Through It?
Juliette and I talk constantly. I mean, sure I get an ache to see her, but I really value the time away and I really value coming back.

River is, to an extent, about brothers. Got any brothers?
I always had these dreams growing up. I’d wake up in a sweat, crying my head off. Always because something had happened to my brother. But I used to terrorize the kid. I’d lock him outside naked. I’d make him go get things. I’d say, ‘If you can make it by twenty…’ and then, just as he was running down the stairs, I’d say, ‘Twenty-one, too bad, I woulda given you a prize.”

How do you feel about the hype about your stomach after Thelma and Louise?
I just saw it as irrelevant. I thought it was silly.

But JD must have helped you.
Well, he fulfilled a lot of women’s fantasies. Uh-oh. Can I say that? But as soon as you’ve got an image, you’ve got to break it.

Do you get people propositioning you?
No.

Really?
I guess I don’t get out much.

Tell me about Cool World.
It’s like Roger Rabbit on acid, much more twisted. I play a detective who patrols the cartoon world. Cartoons and humans cannot have sex because it would throw off the balance of the world. So my job is to stop them. I know this sounds crazy. Sounded crazy to me as well.

What about River?
Here’s a kid who grows up in a religion, on someone else’s views. But he starts to find contradictions and he self destructs. The guy needs so badly for his family to understand him.

You play a killer in Kalifornia. What’s that like?
It’s dandy! Remember when you were a little kid, and you get with a couple of buddies and you hide behind a tree. Then, when cars go by, you throw eggs at them? Or rocks? That’s what it’s like.

Can you continue to take dangerous roles now you’re a star?
Agents told me not to do Kalifornia. I just knew it was right. Agents—they’re always telling you what you’re worth. And it’s usually a lot more than you feel you’re worth.