All The Drama That's Happened Since Brad And Angelina's Divorce
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were once one of Hollywood's most beloved couples. The pair met while on the set of the action movie "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" and "fell in love" while filming together, Jolie told The New York Times. Following Pitt's divorce from actor Jennifer Aniston in 2005, Jolie and Pitt soon started dating and were together for almost 10 years prior to getting married in 2014. Throughout their marriage, the pair grew to be Hollywood's "it" couple, while also starting a family and continuing to grow their careers as actors, producers, and directors. They appeared to be a perfect couple, but illusions only last so long, and behind the scenes, things went wrong for Jolie and Pitt.
The couple's marriage only lasted two years, with Jolie filing for divorce in 2016. Since then, Jolie and Pitt have been engaged in complicated divorce proceedings that have been very public. From a rocky custody battle to splitting assets, here is all the drama that's happened since Brangelina split.
Angelina Jolie filed for divorce in 2016
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt seemed like they were going to be a Hollywood couple with longevity. The two had survived relentless media speculations and scrutiny about their relationship, ranging from allegations of cheating early on, as noted by People, to a 2015 Life & Style story claiming that they had been fighting "for months." The couple's brood grew to include half a dozen children prior to their August 2014 wedding.
To the surprise of many, the marriage appeared to be the beginning of the end for the couple, and the two officially separated just two years later. Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt in 2016, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for the split. According to TMZ, Jolie grew tired of Pitt's alleged use of marijuana and alcohol and claimed he had anger problems that posed a danger to the welfare of their children.
In response to the divorce filing, Pitt released a statement to People, which read, "I am very saddened by this, but what matters most now is the well-being of our kids. I kindly ask the press to give them the space they deserve during this challenging time." Amidst the media frenzy that followed the divorce, Us Weekly revealed that their relationship was not as good as it appeared. A source close to the couple told the publication, "They fought a lot over the years and disagreed about many things. ... The fighting got worse and they disagreed a lot about parenting and a lot of things."
A child abuse investigation complicated the divorce
As Angelina Jolie's divorce filing was underway, the FBI and Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services were investigating Brad Pitt following allegations of child abuse. The investigation was in response to a tip claiming that Pitt had attacked his son, Maddox, following a confrontation with Jolie on the couple's private jet in September 2016, per TMZ.
The TMZ report claims that the couple started arguing after their jet took off, and amidst the fight, their son Maddox, intervened to defend Jolie, which is when Pitt allegedly "lunged at the boy and Angelina jumped in between them to block her husband." According to People, Pitt was drunk during the altercation and allegedly got both verbally and physically abusive with one of their children while Jolie and other children were present.
A source close to Pitt told the publication, "He takes the matter very seriously and says he did not commit any abuse of his children." He was eventually cleared of the allegations in November 2016, per TMZ, but the situation complicated their already difficult divorce.
Their divorce judge was removed from their case due to an ethical breach
Judge John W. Ouderkirk was overseeing Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's divorce case until an appeals court removed him from the case due to an ethical breach. According to The Guardian, Ouderkirk was removed on grounds that he did not disclose a professional relationship with Pitt's attorneys.
The court report obtained by the publication read, "Judge Ouderkirk's ethical breach, considered together with the information disclosed concerning his recent professional relationships with Pitt's counsel, might cause an objective person, aware of all the facts, reasonably to entertain a doubt as to the judge's ability to be impartial. Disqualification is required."
Because of the relationship Ouderkirk had with Pitt's attorneys, his oversight of the couple's divorce case was a conflict of interest and inherently biased. Following Ouderkirk's removal from the case, the progress toward joint custody that Pitt was in reach of was immediately reversed, and the custody battle was yet again back to square one. An insider spoke with Us Weekly about the status of the case after Ouderkirk's disqualification, saying, "The case has been sent back to the Los Angeles Superior Court. ... Angelina is grateful to seek a fair decision regarding custody for the children."
Angelina Jolie claimed Brad Pitt was not paying child support
As if their divorce case wasn't messy enough, Angelina Jolie claimed that Brad Pitt had not paid child support for over a year following their split. In court documents obtained by NBC News, the actor's attorney, Samantha Bley DeJean, said, "[Pitt] has a duty to pay child support. As of present, [Pitt] has paid no meaningful child support since separation." At the time of this accusation by Jolie in 2018, Pitt was arguably one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood, with earnings of at least $20 million per film, according to Celebrity Net Worth, making the actor look even worse in court and the media.
Pitt formally responded to Jolie's claims through his lawyers. According to the court documents, the actor claimed he financially supported both his wife and children, which included an $8 million loan to purchase a home and $1.3 million to pay their bills, per ET.
The fight for custody has been an ongoing battle
The largest point of contention in Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's divorce is the custody of their children. The couple has been back and forth between custody agreements since their split. When Jolie first filed for divorce in September 2016, she sought sole custody of the children but the pair reached a temporary custody agreement allowing for Pitt to have visitation rights, per Us Weekly. Since then, the battle has been anything but simple.
Throughout their divorce, Jolie has continually fought for sole custody of their children while Pitt has pushed for joint custody, which he was awarded by Judge Ouderkirk prior to his removal from the case. The removal of Ouderkirk reversed the custody outcome and made for the case to be re-litigated. Pitt petitioned the California Supreme Court to review the custody case after Ouderkirk's removal, but his appeal was denied in October 2021, as reported by USA Today.
The children involved in the custody battle and their ages at the time of this writing are Zahara, 17, Shiloh, 15, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 13. The former couple also have two other adult children, Maddox, 20, and Pax, 18, per People.
The pair sought control over their real estate and other shared assets
Outside of the couple's hostile custody battle, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have continually fought over their shared assets and real estate, most notably their French winery, Château Miraval. Pitt and Jolie married at the winery in 2014, and following the divorce, it became another thorn that the two disagreed on.
In September 2021, five years after the couple's split, a temporary restraining order was lifted on their assets, which allowed for each party to have greater freedom over what they owned, according to ET. The dividing of Château Miraval, however, proved to be more complicated than picking and choosing who owns what.
In regards to other assets, the pair will most likely be subject to splitting royalties from movies, including ones that the stars have acted in, produced, and directed. In an interview with Insider, divorce lawyer Raoul Felder, known for his involvement in high-profile cases including those of Mike Tyson and Martin Scorsese, noted that both Pitt and Jolie's income is considered property. The lawyer continued to say, "If the movie was made during the marriage, then it was marital property and will be shared, in California's case, 50-50." The couple's shared assets continue to add another layer of drama to the ongoing divorce battle.
Brad Pitt is suing Angelina Jolie over their French winery
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's shared assets have yet to be split evenly at the time of this writing, with Pitt now suing Jolie over their French winery. The actor currently alleges that Jolie sold her share of Château Miraval without his knowledge. The complaint, which was filed on February 17, 2022, and summarized by Rolling Stone, notes that "Pitt accuses Jolie of secretly selling her half of the ex-couple's controlling interest in their famous French winery, Château Miraval, to a company controlled by Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler."
The pair bought the winery in 2008 for a $28.4 million purchase price, and over the years, Pitt claims he invested money into the winery and is the reason why it became successful, thus deserving of a say in how it is shared and sold, per TMZ.
The lawsuit alleges that Jolie made little contributions to Château Miraval while trying to claim the profits from its success to herself. It additionally claims it was the funding and dedication of Pitt that built the winery "into the ascendant company it is today," per Rolling Stone.
They were deemed legally single
In September 2016, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt officially separated, with Jolie filing for divorce, but the two wouldn't be recognized as divorced until years later. Three years after their separation, Jolie and Pitt were legally declared single in April 2019. The declaration allowed for their marriage status to be officially dissolved while still continuing legal action over the custody of their children and shared assets, according to CNN.
The legal declaration of a single status is a growing trend among high-profile divorce cases, most notably and recently in the very public divorce of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. Kardashian filed a request to be declared "legally single" from her former husband, which according to New York City family law attorney Nancy Chemtob, is "a way to move forward with their single lives while dealing with more complex financial or parenting matters," per Insider.
In regards to Jolie and Pitt's relationship, it appears that the pair both sought official, legal separation from each other to get past their own personal relationship.
Each have publicly spoken about the toll of the divorce
Despite a desire by both parties to keep the matters of their divorce private, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have each publicly spoken about the toll it has taken on each of them and argued their side to the media. Though both have their own perspective on their divorce and dissolution of their relationship, each has maintained that their children are of the utmost importance and prioritized before all other matters.
Nonetheless, Jolie and Pitt have each made their case to the public regarding their side of the story and how the split affected them. Pitt revealed in a 2017 interview with GQ that he quit drinking and sought out therapy to help with his problems, and he talked of the divorce with vulnerability, saying in part, "We're both doing our best. ... you spend a year just focused on building a case to prove your point and why you're right and why they're wrong, and it's just an investment in vitriolic hatred. I just refuse."
Jolie, on the other hand, told The Guardian in 2021 that the decision to divorce Pitt was not an easy one, and it left her feeling "broken." The actor said that the impact of the messy divorce made her realize, "Sometimes you can survive things, but not know how to feel and live in the same way."
The both have been subject to romance rumors after the split
The custody battle and the fight over ownership of assets has stirred significant drama for the former couple, and to further complicate their relationship to the public eye, both Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have also been subject to dating rumors after their split.
In 2020, Pitt was romantically linked with model Nicole Poturalski. The pair were officially deemed a couple in August 2020, but they were allegedly dating months prior and broke up in October 2020, as reported by Page Six. As of January 2022, Pitt is rumored to be dating Swedish singer Lykke Li. Li lives a short distance away from Pitt's home, and the two's alleged relationship had been going on for a few months by the time it was reported by The Sun.
Jolie, on the other hand, made headlines when rumors circulated that the actor and The Weeknd had become an item. The two initially met because Jolie's children are fans of his music, but the pair reportedly continued to keep in touch. In July 2021, they were seen dining together and attending a concert, but their relationship is nothing more than friendly, according to a source close to Jolie. The insider told Us Weekly, "Angelina and The Weeknd have had a few meetups, but there is nothing romantic going on between them — at least that's what friends are told."
While there isn't any official confirmation of a romantic relationship between Jolie and The Weeknd, the singer did note that he finds Jolie "to be the ultimate muse," which leaves a lot to the imagination!