AI scammers pretending to be Brad Pitt con woman out of $850,000

A happily-ever-after with whom a woman assumed to be Hollywood hunk Brad Pitt quickly turned into a living nightmare. 

On Jan. 12, the French television channel TF1 aired an episode of its show "Sept à Huit," which told the story of a 53-year-old interior designer named Anne who revealed that she had lost 830,000 euros (approximately $850,000) in personal funds because she thought she was sending money to a cancer-ridden Pitt. 

Through falsified documents and images as well as artificial intelligence, Anne believed she was speaking to, and eventually in a relationship with, the 61-year-old actor.

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Reportedly contacted in February 2023 on Instagram by a person who introduced themselves as Pitt's 85-year-old mother, Jane Etta Pitt, Anne received a message that said, "It’s a woman like you that my son needs," per BFM TV and The Sunday Times. 

"At first I said to myself that it was fake, that it's ridiculous," Anne said, per AFP. "But I'm not used to social media and I didn't really understand what was happening to me." Despite her skepticism, Anne proceeded with the conversation before being messaged by the alleged Pitt. 

"My mother told me a lot about you," the con artist wrote.

Anne was barraged with countless romantic messages and poetry as well as doctored photographs. The operation was multifaceted, with others posing as Pitt's manager and daughter, Shiloh, who he shares with ex-wife Angelina Jolie, to aid in the con. Following a contentious eight-year legal battle, Pitt and Jolie finalized their divorce settlement in 2024 after being legally declared "single" in 2019.

"What makes these scams particularly dangerous is their multilayered approach," Marva Bailer, AI expert and founder and CEO of Qualaix, told Fox News Digital. "Scammers build trust over time, often pretending to be a family member, a staff member or even someone close to the celebrity who claims they are helping the celebrity by managing their charitable efforts. This indirect approach makes the scam seem more credible, as it’s not the celebrity asking for help directly, it's someone positioned to be more relatable or ‘realistic.’ It plays on the idea that the celebrity is too proud or private to ask for help themselves, which makes the situation seem more genuine."

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Anne was troubled by her lack of visual communication with the actor, prompting the scammer to send her an AI-curated video. Money was introduced into the conversation when Anne was told she'd need to pay more than 9,000 euros in customs tariffs in order to accept luxury gifts from the person posing as Pitt.

A recent divorcée, Anne relayed to the scammer that she'd received a hefty divorce settlement of 775,000 euros. After this admission, the Pitt impersonator told Anne that he had kidney cancer and was struggling to pay for his treatments due to his ongoing divorce proceedings with Jolie. Anne sent most of her divorce settlement to the fake Pitt.

Throughout the treatment, the alleged Pitt sent Anne a series of doctored pictures depicting his time in the hospital receiving treatment. In one picture, Pitt lies in a hospital bed holding a card that reads, "Anne I love you."

A novice at social media, Anne had lingering doubts and the wherewithal to block the scammer's number on multiple occasions, ultimately succumbing to her feelings and resuming communication. After initially reading a report that Pitt was involved with businesswoman Inés de Ramon, she was sent a fake TV report to mitigate her qualms, which clarified the couple wasn't together.

When photos of the couple were released over the summer, Anne knew it was all a con and decided to take legal action. The story was ultimately pulled by TF1 because she started to experience extreme ridicule. The network released a statement saying they'd chosen to pull the story from their platforms after the initial broadcast "sparked a wave of harassment" against the victim.

A representative for Pitt told E! News on Jan. 15 that the situation involving Anne was "awful."

"It's awful that scammers take advantage of fans' strong connection with celebrities," the rep said, "but this is an important reminder to not respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence." 

Pitt does not have any verified social media platforms. The actor's representative did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Bailer echoed those sentiments, sharing that with how easily accessible celebrity imagery is, people are at risk: "With access to a celebrity's public persona and online presence, they can create fake social media accounts or send highly convincing emails or messages that look as though they come directly from the celebrity or their team. Fans, eager to be a part of something that feels exclusive, can easily be misled into thinking they are engaging with someone they trust."

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Luke Arrigoni, CEO of Loti AI, a company that specializes in facial recognition and deepfake detection, told Fox News Digital that scams like this one involving Pitt's likeness "are becoming increasingly common."

"For everyone who is interacting with these scam accounts, please be aware that the scammers often give reasons why they have to hide their relationships. They fake medical issues or being stranded somewhere, these are all red flags. But the biggest red flag is asking for any kind of money at all."

"These types of scams are rampant and the deepfakes being made through the use of artificial intelligence are getting better and better all of the time," Rob Rosenburg, who runs the consulting firm Telluride Legal Strategies, told Fox News Digital. "Unless you travel in celebrity circles, you should treat any communication originating from a celebrity with caution. It is more likely a scam than authentic."