Brad Pitt Claims He Was the Original Prankster - Not George Clooney

George Clooney and Brad Pitt

Jeff Vespa/Getty; Gilbert Flores/Celebrity Photo

George Clooney recently revealed that he has a career-ending prank up his sleeve for Brad Pitt but Pitt is already thinking up his own retaliation.

In an interview with James Lipton on Bravo's Inside the Actors Studio (Feb. 10, 8 p.m. ET), Pitt says he's the one who actually started their practical joke war in the first place.

Back when the two were filming one of the Oceans 11 movies in Italy, Pitt says that Clooney received surprisingly deferential treatment from the film crew. The reason? A note Pitt sent on Clooney's behalf.

"I sent a memo to the entire Italian crew, in Italian, that said, 'Dear Crew: We wish you a wonderful shoot. George Clooney asks that, this is a very difficult role for him. He needs to concentrate deeply," says Pitt, 48. "Mr. Clooney asks that you try not to interrupt him, look him in the eye. If you do need to address Mr. Clooney, please refer to him only as 'Daniel' or 'Mr. Ocean.' "

"It went on for two weeks," Pitt added. "He handled it gracefully, but he was becoming unnerved, I think."

Having the crew walk on eggshells was especially new for Clooney, 50, according to his pal.

"Geo rge is our ambassador on the set," Pitt explained. "He's fun, he's telling jokes, he keeps everyone together. And he loves that camaraderie. He eats lunch with the crew. There's just no one better at it."

For Pitt, hearing of Clooney's recent revelation about a major prank he's planning came as no surprise, but the Moneyball star claims he's already armed with a retaliatory strike.

"I knew that something bad was going to happen by me doing this, so I came up with a second [prank]," Pitt tells Lipton. "Whatever he's got, this is uglier. It's so bad, I don't even know if I can do it."