LOS ANGELES — In a rare and candid moment of reflection, Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie has revealed that she has not dated anyone since her high-profile separation from actor Brad Pitt nearly a decade ago.
Opening up during a promotional interview for her film Couture, the 51-year-old filmmaker and humanitarian admitted that she intentionally stepped away from romance to focus on raising her children and recovering emotionally from the end of her marriage.
Prioritizing Family over Romance
Addressing her personal life—a topic she has notoriously kept under wraps since filing for divorce in September 2016—Jolie explained that romantic pursuits simply took a back seat as she poured her energy into her family unit.
“To be candid, I haven’t dated since I divorced a decade ago,” Jolie shared. “So I kind of get in my head that that aspect of me is not centered in my life if I’m focusing on my children, my family.”
Jolie and Pitt, who famously met on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith in 2004 and married in 2014, share six children: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne. Following their 2016 split, the former couple endured an eight-year legal battle over custody and shared assets before reaching a formal divorce settlement.
Finding Her ‘Fighting Spirit’ Through Her Children
Reflecting on her journey over the last ten years, Jolie admitted that the emotional toll of the public split and subsequent legal battles left lasting marks.
“It doesn’t feel like I’m 51 and starting to think of being older. I’m thinking I have to live again. Be free again… In a way that maybe life has broken me a little bit,” she said.
However, the actress credited her now-older children with encouraging her to step out of her protective shell and rediscover herself beyond her maternal role.
- A Shift in Perspective: As her daughters have grown into young women, Jolie noted that seeing their strength reminded her of qualities she had set aside.
- Encouragement to ‘Live’: “My children have helped me find my fighting spirit again,” Jolie explained. “They kind of want me now to not just be ‘Mom.’ There’s a different room for me to be that woman again.”
Parallels On-Screen
The personal revelation arrived as Jolie discussed her role in Alice Winocour’s drama Couture, where she plays Maxine Walker, an American filmmaker who reevaluates her life and identity following a breast cancer diagnosis.
Jolie noted that portraying a character navigating unexpected life changes echoed her own process of reclaiming her identity after hardship.
While her ex-husband Brad Pitt has been in a relationship with jewelry executive Ines de Ramon, Jolie’s comments mark one of the few instances she has publicly addressed her own relationship status, signaling a newfound willingness to embrace the next chapter of her life.
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