Meeting an A-lister is no easy feat, especially for those outside the U.S. For many, just being in close proximity to such celebrities can trigger an overwhelming sense of excitement.
Brad Pitt, for instance, is one of the most iconic actors Hollywood has ever seen. Even other celebrities can only dream of sharing the screen with him.
To date him, though? That’s a fantasy even some famous people can only imagine.
But for one woman from France, she believed she had struck gold.
She dated him—or so it seemed.

Brad Pitt is undeniably one of Hollywood’s most enduring and iconic figures. Born on December 18, 1963, in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and raised in Springfield, Missouri, he rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most sought-after actors in the film industry.
From his breakthrough in 1991 with his unforgettable role as a drifter in Thelma & Louise, and he redefined masculinity when he took his shirt off, to critically acclaimed performances in Legends of the Fall, Se7en, Interview with the Vampire and Fight Club, which cemented his reputation as a daring and versatile actor.
In Ocean’s Eleven, he further showcased his knack for combining style, humor, and charm, further endearing himself to audiences.
Not to mention his role in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, Inglourious Basterds, World War Z, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and the more recent F1.
Pitt has also demonstrated his skills behind the camera. His production company, Plan B Entertainment, has produced award-winning films like 12 Years a Slave (2013), among others.
In all, Pitt is an all-rounder celebrity.
And this time, in one of the most unusual and heartbreaking scams to surface, a 53-year-old French woman believed she was swept into a whirlwind romance with the Hollywood icon.

The deception began in February 2023 when she received a Facebook message claiming to be from Pitt's mother.
"It is a woman like you that my son needs," the message reads.
It was the next day that another account contacted her.
"Hello Anne, my mother told me a lot about you. I would like to know more," the message reads, supposedly sent by Brad Pitt.
What initially seemed like an innocent connection spiraled into an elaborate ruse, leaving her emotionally broken and financially drained.
Posing as the actor, a scammer maintained contact exclusively through text messages. This so-called "Brad Pitt" was always conveniently too busy for phone calls but kept her hooked by sending AI-generated videos of the star.
At first, Anne—the victim—was understandably doubtful. Yet, the scammer’s convincing charm and carefully constructed flirtations slowly won her over.
"After that, we would contact each other every day and we became friends," she said.

What unfolded next was a series of increasingly absurd demands.
From a promise of extravagant gifts—on one condition: Anne was told she needed to pay a hefty customs fee.
The scammer started buying her luxurious bags, and by paying customs of €9,000 to receive them, this is how Anne lost her sum of money
Caught up in the illusion of romance and charmed by the scammer’s smooth words and poetic declarations, Anne paid the amount without question.
The deception only deepened from there.
The imposter took the scam to a whole new level by proposing to Anne, claiming they were engaged. In the midst of this supposed fairy-tale romance, the fake "Brad Pitt" insisted he needed money for urgent medical treatment, further preying on her trust and emotions.

The scam took a darker turn when the imposter claimed that Brad Pitt was undergoing treatment for kidney cancer.
According to the con artist, the actor couldn’t access his own fortune due to complications from a messy divorce with Angelina Jolie.
Desperate to help her "fiancé," Anne, the interior designer who had recently received a divorce settlement of nearly $800,000 from her millionaire ex-husband, 19 years her senior, believed the story without question.
Anne became convinced that she was dating, and helping the actor over a period of almost a year.
Convinced she was supporting the love of her life during a time of crisis, she sent over a significant portion of her settlement, unwittingly falling deeper into the trap.
But the deception didn’t end there.
The scammer went to great lengths to keep Anne ensnared, even sending AI-generated images of Brad Pitt lying in a hospital bed, supposedly in desperate need of financial aid. Each fabricated detail added fuel to Anne’s belief in the relationship.
It wasn’t until Anne saw news of the real Brad Pitt publicly dating Ines de Ramon that reality began to set in.
By then, the damage had already been done—Anne had sent the scammer €830,000 (£697,000), leaving her financially devastated and heartbroken.

This is what happened to a woman in France, who became convinced that she was in a relationship with the Oscar winner.
The 53-year-old victim is only want of the several women who fell for the ‘Fake Brad Pitt Scam,’ after several cases before this were reported in Spain in 2024.
The victim went to the French police with the story, who then launched an investigation in he summer of 2024.
Following the scam, it's reported that Anne is hospitalized with severe depression.