Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s divorce has been one of Hollywood‘s most publicized personal stories, which ended years ago. Their divorce proceedings were a lengthy and salacious saga, but Pitt’s ties with her children have remained news. His family has largely managed to keep his strained relationship with some of his children out of the public eye, but sources close to the actor have said it has been especially difficult.
After years together, Pitt and Jolie wed in 2014 and rose to become one of Hollywood’s most famous couples. The couple’s relationship seemed to take a dramatic turn before they parted ways in 2016. One of the people close to Pitt told the Daily Mail, “Pitt never had a drink problem, he had an Angelina problem. The statement is a reflection of the thoughts of Pitt’s associates and not a fact about the former couple’s relationship.
The report says that those who were close to Pitt agree that the marriage was blissful for a while and then fell apart. The change was even more harsh, it was said, by the same source, “They were happy for a while, but when things went bad, they went very, very bad.”
Pitt and Jolie’s marriage ended when legal proceedings arose, conflicts over their children and allegations of an incident aboard a private plane in 2016. Jolie accused Pitt of verbal and physical abuse, including one against one of their children. Pitt has denied the claims.
The FBI conducted a probe of the incident, but it did not charge the actor with a crime. Reports of what happened in the marriage have further given rise to a number of conflicting accounts, each person involved in the marriage having their own version of events.
The source indicated in the report agreed Pitt used to drink a lot, but denied the charges made against him. Was there a time in Pitt’s life when he drank too much?” Yes, but did he commit the crime in which he is charged? No.”
Pitt has previously spoken out about his alcohol abuse and attended Alcoholics Anonymous. His references to abstaining from alcohol have offered some clues as to his own coping with alcohol following the tough years after his divorce.
In an interview with Esquire earlier this year, Pitt talked about his years of sobriety and his decision to take a drink. “Well, I had to have a few but I never got me too full of myself, yep, nope, not good for me, I have to be professional.”
His remarks showed he still holds the belief that moderation is key in his drinking. Pitt also gave reasons for him trying to stay away from excessive drinking, stating that, “You can miss a nice morning if you drink too much the night before.”
Pitt’s career has continued in a forward motion, but his family has been a running theme in entertainment news. He and Jolie have six children together, Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne. They have each had a private history with both parents that has been in the public eye for years and years of litigation and controversy.
There has also been a good deal of discussion of the children’s choices of their surnames. It has been reported that several of the children have discontinued using Pitt as part of their surname, but the reasons behind their decision and the details of their personal reasons have not always been made public. There have been no public announcements of whether Pax has done the same either.
This has been a very delicate situation, for the dispute has raged for a long time, and the children are now adults. Their private relationship with their parents is a private matter, although of course the family has been in the spotlight due to Pitt and Jolie’s high-profile public lives.
Those who knew him well say that his relationship with his children is one of the toughest parts of the years since his divorce. The separation from his children is the worst thing he ever suffered, though the separation from his wife Angelina was bad, said one source, calling the experience “the most painful thing that ever happened to the actor, worse than the divorce from his wife. Now he’s gone from pain and hurt to acceptance.
In addition, the report contained an allegation by a family member of Pitt that Jolie had “a long campaign of parental alienation.” That’s debatable, according to Jolie, who has insisted that the kids’ choice of relationship with their dad is one they make for themselves. The claims are not necessarily facts, as they are based on conflicting sides of a well-publicized family dispute.
The ongoing news coverage of Pitt and Jolie is a testament to how much it can be tricky to keep private family issues away from public conversation. Their divorce has been marked by accusations, denials, legal maneuvering and speculation for many years, and the children have been given extra attention by the media that has seldom been seen before.
