- Brad Pitt attended the 2020 Oscars with a blonde mystery woman, who many fans assumed to be his mom.
- As it turns out, the woman was actually his manager, Cynthia Pett-Dante.
- Brad's actual parents, dad Bill Pitt and mom Jane Pitt, live in Springfield, Missouri, where the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star grew up.
In the weeks leading up to the 2020 Oscars, many fans found themselves surprisingly invested in who Brad Pitt would bring to the awards show. After Brad had a seemingly friendly reunion with his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston at the SAG Awards, some speculated that the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star would bring her as his Oscars date — but they were surprised when, on Sunday, he was spotted sitting in the front row with a blonde mystery woman.
Twitter users immediately began theorizing about the mystery woman's identity, with many assuming that she was Brad's mom. But as it turns out, they were wrong: Brad's date was actually his manager, Cynthia Pett-Dante.
Of course, it's not out of the question that Brad would bring his mom to the Oscars — just earlier this awards season, he joked about wanting to bring her as his date to the Golden Globes but not wanting to inspire speculation about his dating life. Plus, he's brought both of his parents to the awards show in the past.
So, who are Brad Pitt's actual parents, William and Jane Pitt?
Brad Pitt (whose full name is William Bradley Pitt) was born to his parents, William Alvin Pitt and Jane Etta Pitt on December 18, 1963 in Shawnee, Oklahoma. Not long after, the family moved to Springfield, Missouri, where Brad grew up and his parents still live today.
Although his name is practically synonymous with the industry today, Brad doesn't come from a family of actors: When he was growing up, his father, William, owned a trucking company and his mother, Jane, was a school counselor. He was raised First Baptist and spent lots of time playing and exploring outdoors with his younger brother and sister. All in all, he had a relatively "normal" Midwestern childhood.
Upon graduating high school, Brad began studying journalism at the University of Missouri. But two credits shy of completing his degree, Brad realized that what he really wanted to do was pursue a career in movies — so he dropped everything and moved to Los Angeles to start taking acting classes. As we now know, that decision definitely paid off.
Despite his busy schedule, Brad still makes time to visit his hometown and his family upon occasion. He also credits them for inspiring his work ethic.
"I grew up with that be-capable, be-strong, don't-show-weakness thing," Brad told The New York Times in September 2019. "In some ways, I'm copying [my dad]. He had grown up in extreme hardship and poverty, always dead set on giving me a better life than he had — and he did it."
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