Brad Pitt and George Clooney's behind the scenes competition

George Clooney and Brad Pitt often find themselves fighting for rights to the same film titles. Photo / Getty

Brad Pitt and George Clooney often compete with one another.

The actors, who both have production companies, often find themselves bidding against each other on books they want to adapt into movies, including Brad's latest project The Big Short.

He told Vulture: "In all fairness, he outbid me on Argo. But, yeah, it can get competitive.

"We do naturally have a lot of the same tastes and interests. With The Big Short, I think maybe we got the upper hand at auction because [author] Michael Lewis and I got tight on Moneyball."

Brad also revealed that he often has to take on a role in movies he produces in order to get them financed.

The star, who plays Ben Hockett in the financial-crash comedy, explained: "These kinds of movies are hard to make. The studios don't want to make them because it doesn't fit the business model anymore. It's complicated material, it's a gamble.

"They need some guarantee with marquee. So often I jump in and take a part first because I love the project, and I gotta get in to make sure it gets made.

"Then, when Steve Carell and Christian Bale and Ryan Gosling all jump in, I think it is a testament to the subject matter, and the story, and to Adam McKay's script.

"Michael Lewis was able to find the story, to make it interesting, he has such a knack for taking complicated, even mundane material, and making it understandable and even thrilling."

-Bang! Showbiz