It’s no longer news that Brangelina is no longer a thing. While Brad Pitt had earlier opened up to GQ Style last May, in his first sit-down interview since the split from in September 2016, this is the first the first time that Angelina Jolie has talked publicly about the events of that autumn and her subsequent life after Pitt. Below is a round up of things we learned about the actress, UN goodwill ambassador and humanitarian from her revelations to Vanity Fair.
1. Her and Pitt’s marriage started having trouble last summer:
Jolie reveals that while her new film, First They Killed My Father, was in post-production in the summer of 2016, “things got bad” between her and Pitt.
“I didn’t want to use that word. … Things became ‘difficult,'” she later clarifies.
2. Jolie’s global travelling didn’t cause their split:
Vanity Fair describes Jolie as “defensive” when addressing reports that Pitt wanting “a more stable, normal life for the whole family” was a catalyst for their breakup.
“[Our lifestyle] was not in any way a negative,” Jolie replies. “That was not the problem. That is and will remain one of the wonderful opportunities we are able to give our children. … They’re six very strong-minded, thoughtful, worldly individuals. I’m very proud of them.”
“They know that it’s important (her travellings), and they know that Mom thinks that it’s going to be important when they’re older,” she adds.
3. She wasn’t surprised at Brad Pitt’s headline-making GQ Style tell-all in May:
Jolie answers with a simple “no” when asked if she was surprised by Pitt’s extremely revealing GQ Style profile from May, and VF describes her as looking “unmoved.” Still, she says the two are keeping it amicable for the children.
“We care for each other and care about our family, and we are both working towards the same goal,” she says.
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4. She consciously strives not to show too much emotion:
Jolie brings up her own childhood experiences with her late mother, Marcheline Bertrand, when talking about her reluctance to cry in front of her children.
“I was very worried about my mother, growing up — a lot,” she recalls. “I do not want my children to be worried about me. I think it’s very important to cry in the shower and not in front of them. They need to know that everything’s going to be all right even when you’re not sure it is.”
5. Daughter Zahara, 12, is the “rock” of the family:
Though both Jolie and Pitt have been fiercely private of their six children, the magazine gives insight into a few of the kids’ personalities, and describes them as “polite but not phoney polite.”
For example, 9-year-old Vivienne wears a denim backpack covered with pins and still likes her blanket, and doesn’t mind being called either “Viv” or “Vivienne.” However, her twin brother, Knox, appears to be the more rambunctious one.
As Jolie steps out of the house, Knox immediately wants to know when their waterslide is going to be put up. “How about a ‘Hello, Mom’?” Jolie hilariously replies.
As for daughter Zahara — who Jolie calls “Zaz” — the actress describes her as “the rock” of the family, and discusses where her other children are with her.
Meanwhile, Maddox and Pax appear to be destined to follow in their parents’ artistic footsteps. Maddox is credited on First They Killed My Father as an executive producer, and Jolie says he read draft after draft of the script, giving comments. Pax also did still photography for the film.
6. She hinted at her kids having to deal with trauma
Jolie suggests that her children are dealing with more than a divorce between their parents.
“They’ve been very brave,” Jolie says. “They were very brave.”
“In times they needed to be,” she continues cryptically. “We’re all just healing from the events that led to the filing. … They’re not healing from divorce. They’re healing from some … from life, from things in life.
