While Brad Pitt’s divorce from Angelina Jolie was lengthy, his reaction to the legal drama finally coming to an end may surprise you.
Pitt, 61, spoke out about the pair’s divorce being finalized for the first time in an interview with GQ published on Wednesday, May 28. When asked whether he feels “relief” now that his and Jolie’s split drama has come to an end, the actor responded, “No. I don’t think it was that major of a thing. Just something coming to fruition. Legally.”
Pitt’s comment comes nearly five months after he and Jolie, 49, signed off on their divorce after an eight-year legal battle. “More than eight years ago, Angelina filed for divorce from Mr. Pitt. She and the children left all of the properties they had shared with Mr. Pitt, and since that time she has focused on finding peace and healing for their family,” Jolie’s lawyer, James Simon, said in a statement to Us Weekly at the time.
He continued, “This is just one part of a long ongoing process that started eight years ago. Frankly, Angelina is exhausted, but she is relieved this one part is over.”
Pitt and Jolie were once one of Hollywood’s biggest celebrity couples, dating for over a decade before tying the knot in August 2014. The now-exes share six kids together, including Maddox, 23, Pax, 21, Zahara, 20, Shiloh, 19, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 16.
After just two years of marriage, Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for their split. Pitt was subsequently investigated by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services after Jolie accused him of acting physically and emotionally abusive toward her and their kids during a 2016 plane flight. Pitt faced no charges for the allegations, which he denied, and was cleared of any wrongdoing.
Though Pitt and Jolie were declared legally single in November 2019, the two continued to find themselves locked in legal drama over the custody of their children and their French winery, Château Miraval. (A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the winery case going to trial in November 2024.)
Pitt was romantically linked to stars such as Alia Shawkat, Nicole Poturalski and Emily Ratajkowski before he began dating Ines de Ramon in 2022. A source exclusively told Us earlier this year that it was de Ramon, 32, who encouraged Pitt to settle his and Jolie’s split.
“Ines [wants] Brad to find peace, forgive and move on,” the insider shared. “From her perspective, it doesn’t make sense for him to hold on to all the animosity.”
Another source exclusively shared in Us’ January cover story that Pitt feels a “big sense of relief” now that the divorce is over. “Brad wants to get his life [back] on track and put this behind him,” the insider stated. “He can start over again.”
Jolie, for her part, has been single since sparking romance rumors with The Weeknd in 2021. “It’s hard for her to trust men after what she went through with Brad,” a different source exclusively told Us in February. “She hasn’t sworn off men, but she’s not looking for anything serious right now.”
