If you were paying attention to celebrity news in 2004, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were a huge story. The pair costarred in Mr. & Mrs. Smith that year and ended up finishing the movie as a couple. This was complicated by the fact that Brad was still married to his then-wife, Jennifer Aniston, when he and Angelina got together.
The following years were filled with stories about the twosome, especially as they began rapidly expanding their family. By 2008, the two shared six kids between them: Maddox, Zahara, Pax, Shiloh, Vivienne, and Knox. Angelina surprised many by filing for divorce in 2016, and the divorce was finalized in 2018.
Since then, both have more or less avoided speaking about what led to their split. There were rumors that Brad had hit one of the children, but an investigation into the incident was closed with "no finding of wrongdoing." Both Brad and Angelina have offered little details here and there, and Brad has also been public about becoming sober. We also all found out that Brad spent Christmas with three of the children — his biological kids.
Angelina recently opened up about the split with Vogue India and explained more about why she filed for divorce in the first place.
She kicked things off by explaining that the separation was what her family needed. "I separated for the well-being of my family. It was the right decision. I continue to focus on their healing. Some have taken advantage of my silence, and the children see lies about themselves in the media, but I remind them that they know their own truth and their own minds. In fact, they are six very brave, very strong young people."
Angelina also opened up about adopting her three older children, Maddox, Pax, and Zahara. She was asked about her relationship to Cambodia, which is where Maddox, her oldest, was born.
"Cambodia was the country that made me aware of refugees. It made me engage in foreign affairs in a way I never had, and join UNHCR. Above all, it made me a mom. In 2001, I was in a school programme in Samlout playing blocks on the floor with a little kid and as clear as day I thought: 'My son is here.' A few months later I met baby Mad at an orphanage. I can't explain it and am not one to believe in messages or superstition. But it was just real and clear."
Angelina adopted Maddox in 2002 after visiting an orphanage in Battambang, Cambodia, where she met many children. But she said, "I didn't feel a connection with any of them. They then said, 'There's one more baby.' I cried and cried." Angelina and Maddox were in the news pretty often, and they made an adorable mother-son pair.
When Angelina and Brad made their relationship public in 2005, she also shared that she knew Brad would be important to her because of how he and Maddox loved each other so quickly. Maddox called Brad "dad," and Brad adopted him in 2006. Brad and Angelina adopted their children Zahara and Pax together.
Brad and Maddox reportedly have had a testy relationship as Maddox has gotten older, and rumors have abounded that the two were in some kind of fight before the divorce. Since then, Brad was reportedly not invited to Maddox's 16th birthday party, and Maddox also had a say in the custody agreement that Angelina and Brad set up, asking to not see his dad.
However, earlier this year new reports surfaced that Brad and Maddox may be repairing their relationship. The actor didn't attend the BAFTAs in February owing to wanting to spend time with Maddox while he was back home. A source reportedly told The Sun that "Maddox gave Brad the chance to talk and he dropped everything."
The source also added, "Being a father is the most important thing in his life and he would do anything to repair their relationship. Maddox has been away at university so when Brad found out he was going to be around and they could have a conversation, he cancelled the UK trip."
Angelina also spoke to the magazine about how she and her kids talk about adoption at home. "Each is a beautiful way of becoming family. What is important is to speak with openness about all of it and to share. 'Adoption' and 'orphanage' are positive words in our home. With my adopted children, I can't speak of pregnancy, but I speak with much detail and love about the journey to find them and what it was like to look in their eyes for the first time."
"All adopted children come with a beautiful mystery of a world that is meeting yours. When they are from another race and foreign land, that mystery, that gift, is so full. For them, they must never lose touch with where they came from. They have roots that you do not. Honour them. Learn from them. It's the most amazing journey to share. They are not entering your world, you are entering each other's worlds."
In recent months, it definitely seems like the Jolie-Pitt children are all working toward building a better relationship with their dad. At the Oscars this year, Brad noted that his award was dedicated to each of his kids. "This is for my kids, who color everything I do. I adore you."
