NEWSJohn Turturro Says He 'Practiced' Pickpocketing People to Prepare for Acting Role: 'I Just Wanted to Feel the Thrill'
John Turturro made a shocking confession.
Oct. 22 2026, Published 2:07 p.m. ET
John Turturro revealed that he actually pickpocketed people in real life while preparing for an acting role.
In a new interview, the Big Lebowski actor revealed that he trained in the art of lifting valuables from people's pockets to prepare for his new role in The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.
John Turturro Wanted to Pickpocket People Really Bad
John Turturro really wanted to pickpocket people.
As he learned to pickpocket, Turturro really wanted to try out his new skills in a real setting, so he was constantly checking out people's open bags on the subway. In the end, though, he never actually did it.
"I would think, Well, I don’t want to get arrested," he shared in the interview. "What was I going to say? That I was doing research?"
He revealed, "I came really close. I just wanted to feel the thrill, the nerves of what that would be."
John Turturro Learned From the Best in the Biz
John Turturro learned from a sleight-of-hand artist.
Turturro learned his pocketing skills from one of the world's foremost experts: the sleight-of-hand artist Apollo Robbins.
"Apollo Robbins is like a concert pianist. I’m never going to be that," Turturro told the New York Times. "I mean, he could take my watch off and every single time I don’t feel it."
Robbins gave Turturro a well thought-out curriculum.
"He gave me exercises with coins to do and taught me how to bump someone," the actor explained. "I kept practicing, mostly on set."
John Turturro Ended Up Pickpocketing People on Set
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John Turturro pickpocketed people on set.
Though Turturro didn't end up pickpocketing members of the public, he did pickpocket cast and crew while filming the movie.
"I pickpocketed a lot of people," he confessed. "Sometimes they would catch me, but a lot of times they didn’t know."
John Turturro Stars in 'The Only Living Pickpocket in New York'
John Turturro stars in 'The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.'
Turturro didn't pinch items from his coworkers for the thrill of it: He stars in the new movie The Only Living Pickpocket in New York, which is out October 23.
The crime film tells the story of Harry Lehman, a career pickpocket who takes care of his disabled wife during the day, while struggling to still get by through petty crime — since fewer and fewer people carry cash these days.
The movie, directed and written by Noah Segan, also stars Giancarlo Esposito, Will Price, Tatiana Maslany, Jamie Lee Curtis and Steve Buscemi as the pawn shop owner who sells some of Lehman's booty.
