Brad Pitt opens up about depression, marijuana and marriage

Brad Pitt should be over the moon about his Oscar nominations for starring in and producing "Moneyball," but the actor hasn't always been so on top of his game and opened up about a bout of depression and marijuana use.

"I got really sick of myself at the end of the 1990s: I was hiding out from the celebrity thing; I was smoking way too much dope; I was sitting on the couch and just turning into a doughnut," Pitt told the Hollywood Reporter. "I used to deal with depression, but I don't now, not this decade - maybe last decade. But that's also figuring out who you are. I see it as a great education, as one of the seasons or a semester: 'This semester I was majoring in depression.'"

The 48-year-old actor told the industry magazine that a trip to Casablanca, Morocco and seeing "poverty to an extreme I had never witnessed before" helped him to quit smoking so much marijuana and "get off the couch."

Pitt also opened up about his relationship with Angelina Jolie and addressed the constant marriage inquiries.

"We'd actually like to," Pitt said. "It seems to mean more and more to our kids. We made this declaration some time ago that we weren't going to do it till everyone can. But I don't think we'll be able to hold out. It means so much to my kids, and they ask a lot. And it means something to me, too, to make that kind of commitment... to be in love with someone and be raising a family with someone and want to make that commitment and not be able to is ludicrous, just ludicrous."

The Oscar nominee said that he and Jolie, his partner of seven years, are open to adopting more children if they feel they can "help this person" and told the Hollywood Reporter that having kids has been "the most grounding thing."

The actor recently hurt his knee and attended the Golden Globes with a cane. Pitt told reporters that the injury was from slipping while carrying his daughter Vivienne down a hill and "it was either her or me."

The actor and father to actress Angelina Jolie's six children recently made headlines after sayin g that he would like to retire from acting within the next three years.

When Jolie appeared on Anderson Cooper's talk show in December, she told the reporter the two were "both racing to see which one of us gets to retire first."

Pitt recently filmed the sci-fi movie "World War Z" and the crime thriller "Cogan's Trade," which are set to hit theaters in 2012. He is also due to start filming the movie "Twelve Years a Slave," which is set in the 1800s and tells of a New York man who is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the deep South. It also stars "X-Men" star Michael Fassbender and is due to be released in 2014.

Pitt has served as a producer on many of his films, including "World War Z" and the baseball movie "Moneyball," which was released earlier this year.

Pitt began his on-screen acting career in the late 1980s. His breakout role came in 1991, when he played a hunky con artist in the film "Thelma & Louise" alongside Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis. He has since earned Oscar nominations for his parts in the 1995 film "Twelve Monkeys," the 2009 drama "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and his 2011 film "Moneyball."

Upon learning that he had been nominated on January 24, Pitt said in a statement: "This is an extraordinary honor. I am dizzy with joy... and caffeine. Considering both films, 'Moneyball' and 'The Tree of Life,' nearly didn't make it to the screen, this is especially sweet. And I'd like to thank all the artisans and craftsmen who gave their best to each film."

"I am especially over the moon for Jonah [Hill] (and the other Moneyballers acknowledged today), Terry Ma! lick and the tribute this is to Billy Beane and the Oakland A's organization. My congratulations to all the nominees... pancakes for everyone," Pitt continued. Check out other nominees' reactions and a full list of Academy Award nominations.

Watch a behind-the-scenes video of Brad Pitt's Hollywood Reporter cover shoot below.

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