Police escort away Vitalii Sediuk after incident with Brad Pitt (shown, inset, with Angelina Jolie)
Juan Sharma/Bruja/Pacific Coast News, Ramey
Reports identified the man as Vitalii Sediuk, a Ukrainian TV presenter notorious for red carpet incidents like putting his head up America Ferrera's dress in Cannes earlier this month.
Witnesses saw him jump over a barrier in the fan area onto the red carpet at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood and rush at Pitt, touching him briefly before security guards wrestled him back across the barrier.
Sediuk was led away in handcuffs and arrested on suspicion of battery, said Los Angeles police spokeswoman Nuria Venegas, who confirmed that he made contact with Pitt.
In 2012, Sediuk was slapped by Will Smith when he attempted to kiss the actor on the red carpet at the Moscow premiere of Men in Black 3.
The following year, he spent the night in an L.A. jail after storming the stage as Adele accepted the award for best pop solo performance at the 2013 Grammys.
Pitt's longtime partner Angelina Jolie stars in Maleficent , Disney's new live-action spin on its animated classic Sleeping Beauty.
Before the incident, Jolie told the Associated Press that the El Capitan is like a local theater for herself, Pitt and their kids, who usually don't attend her premieres but did Wednesday night.
"Well, oddly, we usually go to the El Capitan, that's where we take the kids. That's the closest theater to us," Jolie said. "This is the first time they were able to come to mommy's premiere."
The man got to Pitt despite security that was heavy for a movie premiere, with guards keeping a large gap between the stars and the crowd.
Email messages left for representatives for Pitt and Disney were not immediately returned.
• Additional reporting by STEPHEN M. SILVERMAN
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