Late Monday, Angelina Jolie's attorney, James Simon, revealed that Jolie and her ex-husband, Brad Pitt, had finally reached a divorce settlement, marking the conclusion of a chapter in a drawn-out separation saga that has captivated media attention for eight years. In a concise statement, Simon emphasized that this settlement was merely "a fragment of a prolonged, ongoing journey that began eight years prior." "Angelina is undeniably worn out, yet she feels a sense of relief that this particular aspect has come to a close," he added. No further details were promptly disclosed, and Pitt's representatives remained silent overnight in response to inquiries.
The couple tied the knot in a quaint chapel in France in 2014, following their fateful encounter on the set of the 2005 film "Mr. & Mrs. Smith." Just slightly more than two years later, Jolie's lawyer announced her intentions to divorce Pitt. In court documents dated September 2016, Jolie recounted an incident that occurred just days before she filed for divorce. As they traveled from France to California on a private jet with their six children, Pitt allegedly exhibited abusive behavior towards her and some of the kids.
At that time, Pitt's divorce lawyer acknowledged his accountability for certain past actions but refused to take responsibility for those he did not commit. Federal authorities in the United States investigated the plane incident but ultimately decided against pressing criminal charges. Jolie's legal team stated that the FBI agent who probed the allegations of physical assault had "determined that the government had probable cause to charge Pitt with a federal crime based on his conduct during that flight." A redacted FBI report on the case revealed that the agent had provided "copies of a probable cause statement pertaining to the incident" to the United States Attorney's Office.
The divorce proceedings stretched over several years, partly due to Pitt and Jolie's fierce custody battle over their children. Separately, Pitt initiated a lawsuit against Château Miraval, a French winery they once co-owned. Filed in 2022, his lawsuit accused Jolie of breaching his contractual rights by selling her half of the company to a third party without his consent. According to court documents, Jolie's lawyers claimed that the couple had already agreed in principle in 2021 that she would sell her stake to Pitt. However, negotiations collapsed due to Pitt's insistence that she sign a nondisclosure agreement, which would have prohibited Jolie from publicly discussing his "physical and emotional abuse towards her and their children" outside of court.
Earlier, People magazine had reported the news of the couple's divorce settlement.
