Brad Pitt has 'ace' card skills, film coach says

A magician who taught Brad Pitt how to perform card tricks for his latest movie role said the actor was an "ace" when it came to one particular trick.

Pitt plays fictional veteran driver and ex-gambler Sonny Hayes, returning to the grid after a long absence, in F1 The Movie.

His character had to appear to be expert at handling playing cards, a skill Pitt perfected over several months with help from magician Greg Chipman, from Doncaster.

Mr Chipman said: "He was a fast learner. He cracked how to cut a deck of cards with one hand in less than a day, a move some people might take a month to master."

The movie hit cinema screens across the world on 25 June and centres on a fictional Formula 1 team, APXGP.

Mr Chipman, 32, said: "Brad plays an ex-gambler. So he needed to learn how to handle a deck of cards, because his character would have known how to."

Mr Chipman was on set for several months teaching Pitt how to master playing cards, but said nerves had taken their toll on the first day.

He said he stood outside Pitt's trailer deciding on what approach to take in meeting the star.

"I was like, how do I approach him. Do I do this professionally, do I do it casually?

"I'm from Doncaster, so do I go 'hey up Brad' - what do I do?"

In the end he said he decided on a straightforward approach.

"I just went in and said nice to meet you. I shook his hand and he was the most down-to-earth guy, really nice.

"And then every time he saw me he'd say hello and ask how my day had been."

However, Mr Chipman said Pitt's skills did occasionally let him down on some of the sleight of hand required by his character.

"With the one-hand deck cut, he was a natural, but throwing cards across a room into a bin, that took a little longer.

"He had to be accurate and that took a little time...take after take in fact."

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