Angelina Jolie Admits She Needs More Time at Home with Her Six Kids Amid Divorce

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s legal battle over their divorce and shared assets has extended for several years. They first filed for divorce in 2016 and were declared legally single in 2019.

The 49-year-old actress and philanthropist and the 60-year-old actor both have films premiering at the latest Venice Film Festival. However, they will not encounter each other due to conflicting schedules.

Angelina stars in Maria, a biopic on legendary opera singer Maria Callas, and spoke with the press at the festival about her acting career taking a backseat to her family over the past few years.

Angelina and Brad share six children: Maddox, 23, Pax, 20, Zahara, 19, Shiloh, 18, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 16. They have reportedly been estranged from their father, with Shiloh legally filing to drop her dad’s last name.

The actress spoke about feeling it was crucial to be home with her family over the past few years instead of dedicating herself fully to her craft. “I’ve needed to be home more with my family these last years,” she said.

“In that time, I’ve become maybe more grateful to have the opportunity to just be an artist and play and be among all of you, to just be in this creative world that we are all fortunate to be in some way a part of,” she continued. “So I’m happy to be here, and I’m grateful.”

Maria is Angelina’s first film role since 2021’s Eternals. She has also attracted attention for her role as a producer on the Broadway production of The Outsiders, which won the Tony Award for Best Musical earlier this year.

She also spoke about having “relearned” things through the eyes of Maria Callas, particularly the meaning of the word “diva,” often associated with the famed vocalist. “I think it has often come with a lot of negative connotations,” she said.

“I think I’ve relearned that word through Maria and I have a new relationship with it,” Angelina added. “And I think it is often other people’s perception of a woman that defines sometimes too much who she is, and who she was, or what she intended.”

The Oscar winner continued, “And I actually think she was one of the hardest working people, who didn’t hurt anybody. I suppose it’s everybody in this room that makes that definition.”

Maria director Pablo Larrain recently discussed his desire to work with Angelina in an interview with Vanity Fair. He revealed how he convinced her to sign on after she watched his previous directorial effort, Spencer.

“This is the greatest diva of the 20th century, and who could play that?” he questioned. “I didn’t want to work with someone that didn’t have that already.”

“I needed an actress who would naturally and organically be that diva, carry that weight, be that presence. Angelina was there,” he added, describing her period of preparation as “very long, very particular, very difficult.” Angelina trained for six months for the role, using her own vocals for the film’s dramatic musical scenes.

Source: Getty Images, Vanity Fair