14 DAY TRIAL // There’s unwanted attention and then there’s really unwanted attention: celebrities have to cope with the former from fans and the paparazzi on a daily basis, but every once in a while, things can get completely out of control. Actor Brad Pitt was punched in the face by a man at a movie premiere, Us Weekly reports.
It wasn’t his movie that he had stepped out for, but that of longtime partner and fiancée Angelina Jolie, who stars as Maleficent in Disney’s live-action film of the same name.
The film has already had its premiere in many locations and, just hours ago, it also got one at the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood. Angelina was accompanied on the red carpet by both Brad and their children, in what can best be described as a rare instance when they pose as a family at events of this type.
Above is a photo snapped on the occasion: true to style, Angelina wore black, her favorite color, which also happens to go with her character in the movie.
Us Weekly reports that the premiere was ruined by an incident in which “a man suddenly jumped the barrier and ran up to the 12 Years a Slave actor while he was walking down the carpet.” The man made “contact” with Pitt’s face, with some eyewitness even swearing that he punched him.
As per the same report, Pitt left the premiere “a little tense, […] trying to shepherd his kids through the lobby and towards the back door: [he] was like ‘Keep tight. Stay together’.”
The attacker was immediately cuffed by police officers and then escorted off the property. He was later identified as known “prankster” Vitalii Sediuk, but there’s no word yet on whether he’d be facing charges for his latest stunt.
The name might not ring a bell on the spot but some of his recent “feats” might: Sediuk is the same man who tried to kiss Will Smith at a movie premiere a couple of years back, and was slapped for the attempt. This was his first stunt that got international media attention, mostly because many believed Smith had overreacted.
Then, Sediuk moved on to “greater” things: he crashed the Grammys and actually managed to make his way up on stage when Jennifer Lopez was presenting Adele with an award, and was stopped just before he had the chance to ruin Adele’s moment. JLo single-handedly held him back before security came in.
Sediuk also ran into Leonardo DiCaprio at a movie premiere and got on the red carpet, where he kneeled in front of the actor and buried his face in his crotch. He did the same with Bradley Cooper at the SAG Awards 2014.
The prankster also hit up the Cannes Film Festival this month, where he again managed to squeeze through security and get to the red carpet, crawling on the floor until he made it under America Ferrera’s tulle skirt, much to her shock and outrage.
As far as the media knows, not once was Sediuk charged for these stunts. The “worst” to have happened to him was to be kicked out of the venue / event.