Angelina Jolie says her six kids stopped her from ‘going under’ after split from Brad Pitt
Angelina Jolie has revealed what stopped her from going to “darker places” after her split from Brad Pitt and why she hasn’t “been myself” for a decade.
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Angelina Jolie has revealed that being a single mother of six “saved” her from going to “much darker” places after her split from Brad Pitt.
In a new Vogue cover story, Jolie opened up about how focusing on parenting following her highly publicised split from Brad Pitt in 2016 has kept her going in the ensuing years.
“I was 26 when I became a mother. My entire life changed. Having children saved me — and taught me to be in this world differently,” she told the fashion bible.
“I think, recently, I would’ve gone under in a much darker way had I not wanted to live for them. They’re better than me, because you want your children to be.”
Jolie and Pitt, who split in 2016 after 12 years together, are the parents of six children: Maddox, 22, Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 15.
Jolie also told Vogue that she hopes she’s a “safe place” for her children.
“But I’m also the one that they laugh at — and I see them taking over so many different aspects of our family,” she said.
Jolie was also searingly honest about her mental health amid a difficult few years, saying that she’s been feeling “a bit down these days”.
“I don’t feel like I’ve been myself for a decade, in a way, which I don’t want to get into,” she said.
Post her split from Pitt, Jolie told Vogue that she's still “transitioning as a person”.
“We had a lot of healing to do. We’re still finding our footing.”
Jolie features on the cover of the latest issue of American Vogue to promote her new fashion company, Atelier Jolie.
“I don’t want to be a big fashion designer, I want to build a house for other people to become that,” she said.
“I’m hoping to change many aspects of my life. And this is the forward-facing one.”
Jolie told Vogue that she hopes Atelier Jolie will inspire women to “feel safe enough” to be “soft,” which she has struggled with in the past.
“Sometimes the way you dress says, ‘Don’t mess with me — I’ve got my armour on.’ But I want a woman to feel safe enough that she can be soft,” she said.
“After I went through something where I was hurt, I had a therapist ask if I would try wearing a flowing garment. Sounds silly, but I assumed that pants and boots projected a ‘tougher’ look, a stronger me.
“Was I strong enough to be soft? At the time, no,” she said. “I felt vulnerable. Now I wonder if … I don’t know what my style is because I’m still understanding who I am at 48.”
Jolie and Pitt first met on the set of the 2005 action flick, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, while he was still married to Jennifer Aniston.
After he and Aniston split in 2005, Pitt and Jolie immediately began a relationship. And while it was rumoured that the relationship started as an affair, Pitt has strenuously denied that he was unfaithful to Aniston.
For a decade, Pitt and Jolie were Hollywood’s golden couple, eventually marrying in 2014 because it was “important” to their kids, the couple said at the time.
Things went sour and the relationship ended after they got into an alleged altercation while on a private jet returning to the US from France with their kids.
Pitt was accused of “choking and striking” their eldest son Maddox. Jolie also alleged that he physically harmed her. However, no charges were ever brought against him. The actor has also denied the claims.
Pitt later stopped drinking after admitting he had an issue with alcohol.
Since their split, Jolie and Pitt have fought in court over custody of their kids, as well as a French winery that they once owned together, which Pitt accused Jolie of selling off her share without consulting him.
In May 2021, the two were granted joint custody of their six kids, but just one month later, the judge’s decision was thrown out. To this day, the matter has remained unresolved.
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Originally published as Angelina Jolie says her six kids stopped her from ‘going under’ after split from Brad Pitt
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