Angelina Jolie is still in the midst of a legal battle with Brad Pitt. Just recently, Angelina revealed a big issue she had with Brad, and it's upsetting to know that the actor may have put his career over his wife's well-being — along with the well-being of many other women in the industry.
The actress recently sat down with The Guardian to tell more about her side of the story. Her main priority remains to be the children she shares with Brad — Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne.
"I'm not the kind of person who makes decisions like the decisions I had to make lightly," she admitted to the publication. "It took a lot for me to be in a position where I felt I had to separate from the father of my children."
Despite the rumors that something happened on a private plane, one thing that Angelina did feel the need to mention was the fact that Brad had no trouble working with Harvey Weinstein after knowing he had raped and sexually assaulted many women in the industry.
Angelina opened up about whether or not she felt her rights were respected. "I think my mother did a lot to ensure my rights and empower me," she admitted. "But you know, I started working really young to help her pay bills and stuff. And I wasn’t aware of how I deserved to be treated as a young girl and a human being. I didn't feel I was born with these rights and protections. I felt that these were things you had to demand or fight for, and sometimes be seen as difficult when you do."
She revealed that the first time she felt that lack of power and respect was when she worked with Harvey Weinstein. At the time, she was only 21 years old. She explained that sometimes women tend to downplay the situation at hand if they've managed to escape from it. It's a sad reality that Angelina has witnessed many times.
"If you get yourself out of the room, you think he attempted but didn't, right?" she said. "The truth is that the attempt and the experience of the attempt is an assault." The incident happened before she met Brad. At the time, she was with her first husband, Jonny Lee Miller.
"I stayed away and warned people about him," Angelina admitted. "I remember telling Jonny, my first husband, who was great about it, to spread the word to other guys – don't let girls go alone with him. I was asked to do 'The Aviator', but I said no because he was involved. I never associated or worked with him again. It was hard for me when Brad did."
While Angelina didn't let the lack of Harvey Weinstein films derail her career, it's surprising that Brad didn't follow suit. For one, while they were together, he was an established actor by himself. Being part of these films can be seen as giving support to the abuser. These actions shouldn't be viewed as OK just because it's beneficial to one's career.
"We fought about it. Of course it hurt," she admitted. She said that Brad knew that Angelina had been assaulted by Harvey in the past, but that didn't stop him. Even more hurtful, Brad did speak up once about Harvey's actions. And that was when he threatened to kill Harvey for sexually harassing Gwyneth Paltrow.
Back in May 2018, Gwyneth admitted that Brad spoke to Harvey about the incident in 1995. He reportedly went up to Harvey at the opening of Hamlet on Broadway and let him know he had his eye on him. According to the story, Brad told him, "If you ever make her feel uncomfortable again, I'll kill you."
"At that moment, I was just a boy from the Ozarks on the playground and that’s how we confronted things," Brad said, per IndieWire. "I just wanted to make sure nothing was going to happen further, because Paltrow was going to do two [more] films [with Weinstein]. I think the interesting thing is that we, Hollywood specifically, but the workplace, men and women's dynamics is being recalibrated, recalibrated in a very good way that is long overdue. And I do think that's an important story to tell.”
Given that Angelina wasn't getting anywhere near the same support as Brad's ex-fiancée, it makes sense as to why the situation formed a bigger rift between Brad and Angelina. While Angelina did stay tight-lipped about many aspects of the marriage, she admitted that the whole thing had taken quite a toll on her.
"I mean, in some ways it’s been the last decade," Angelina admitted. "There's a lot I can't say."
"I think at the end of the day, even if you and a few people you love are the only people who know the truth of your life, what you fight for, or what you sacrifice, or what you’ve suffered, you come to be at peace with that, regardless of everything going on around you," she said. It's a statement that, hopefully, fans of Angelina will pay attention to. Being in the public eye means that there is no shortage of rumors regarding your personal life, with many being untrue.
Angelina's story is also an important reminder that we don't always know half of the story. It seems as if she has a lot to tell but legally can't. And being in a situation where she may still need to have custody agreements with Brad, extra pressure is added to the situation. Angelina's had a tough few years as is, but knowing that Brad chose his working relationship with Harvey Weinstein over his marriage must have been incredibly hurtful.
