Angelina Jolie Proves Her Career Isn't Slowing Down Amid Brad Pitt Drama
Years after Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt finalized their divorce the former couple continued to be embroiled in legal disputes. The Hollywood A-listers were married in 2014 — after initially dating in the early 2000s — and shared six children during their time together, per Us Weekly. They filed for divorce in 2016, which was finalized in 2019. Afterwards, Jolie and Pitt engaged in a custody battle over their children who were still minors. In 2020, a judge ruled they could have joint custody, but the "Maleficent" star later had that judge removed from the case. "Brad hopes that one day he and Angelina find a way to forgive each other ... He hates all the bad blood," a source told Us Weekly in April. Unfortunately, the "bad blood" between the pair continued.
In addition to the custody dispute, Pitt filed a lawsuit in February against his ex-wife for selling her shares of their winery Château Miraval located in France. According to documents filed by the "World War Z" actor, Jolie "sought to inflict harm on" when she sold her share of the winery and estate, per People. The winery had become a "passion" project for Pitt, and according to him the former couple had previously agreed to never sell without consulting one another. A source close to Jolie said the "Ad Astra" star filed the suit as "an extension of a false narrative," per People.
Despite the well-publicized legal issues, Jolie has managed to put her career back on the track she always envisioned.
Angelina Jolie's career is back on track
Angelina Jolie is set to make her return to directing for the first time since 2017. It was announced on June 9 that she would take the director's chair for the movie "Without Blood," which was slated to star Salma Hayek and Demián Bichir. The film is based on the best-selling novel by Italian writer Alessandro Baricco. "I'm honored to be here in Italy to bring this very special material to film, and to have been entrusted by Alessandro Baricco with the adaptation of his book," Jolie said in a statement, per Variety. "Without Blood" was being filmed under the production company Fremantle whom the "Unbroken" director had signed a three-picture deal with in March. This would mark Jolie's fifth time working as a director.
Previously, the "Girl, Interrupted" star spoke about wanting to focus more on directing. "I've never been comfortable as an actor; I've never loved being in front of the camera," she told DuJour during a 2014 interview while mentioning that she was "much happier" behind the camera.
In 2021, Jolie appeared in "Those Who Wish Me Dead" and "Eternals," but revealed that she took the gigs because of her divorce. "I love directing, but I had a change in my family situation that's not made it possible for me to direct for a few years," she told Entertainment Weekly. "I needed to just do shorter jobs and be home more."