Brad Pitt has opened up about attending Alcoholics Anonymous in the wake of his split from Angelina Jolie, sharing that he was at his lowest point.
The Maleficent star, 50, filed to divorce the F1 actor, who she shares six children with, in 2016, after two years of marriage – they officially reached a settlement last December after bitter legal battles over custody, as well as their Chateau Miraval winery.
Three years after their breakup, the 61-year-old spoke openly about turning to AA in a candid interview with the New York Times, describing the experience ‘freeing’.
Appearing on the latest episode of the Armchair Expert podcast with Dax Shepard, he shed light on the process once more, explaining that he was ‘on his knees’ at the point that he attended his first meeting – where he met the host.
‘I was pretty much on my knees, and I was really open,’ he recalled. ‘I was trying anything and everyone, anything anyone threw at me. It was a difficult time.
‘I needed rebooting. I needed to wake the f**k up in some areas. And it just meant a lot to me.’
Brad said that he initially feared discussing his issues at the sessions, but this quickly changed when he heard other people lifting the lid on their own experiences.
‘Everyone was so open. It gives you permission, in a way, to go, “Okay, I’m going to step out on this edge and see what happens”. I really grew to love it,’ he continued. ‘I’d been assured by another friend that this was a safe place.
‘I’m a stubborn f**k but also, when I’ve stepped in s**t, I’m pretty good at taking responsibility for it and owning up to it. And now it’s a quest to, “What do I do with this? How can I right this?” And make sure it doesn’t happen again. Just be better. Step up.
‘I was really open to that … I was a bit shy, I can generally be shy in any situation at first at first.
‘It became a thing for me, it was really something I’d look forward to.’
‘I just thought it was just incredible men sharing their experiences, their foibles, their missteps, their wants, their aches, and a lot of humor with it.’
Angelina and Brad first grew close while filming 2005 blockbuster Mr and Mrs Smith – at the time, the latter was married to Friends star Jennifer Aniston.
The pair went on to welcome daughter Shiloh the next year, and are also parents to Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Vivienne and Knox.
They walked down the aisle after more than a decade of dating but it wasn’t to last and they went their separate ways in 2016, with the mom-of-six citing ‘irreconcilable differences’ in her filing.
Their split came after a private jet flight from France to California, during which it was alleged that the Bullet Train star was abusive towards his ex and their children – allegations he has denied.
Although they had ended their romance, the former couple found themselves locked in bitter disputes – which were only settled in the last few months.
On December 30, the divorce paperwork was officially signed and Angelina’s lawyer declared that his client was ‘relieved this one part is over.’
‘Frankly, Angelina is exhausted. More than eight years ago, Angelina filed for divorce from Mr Pitt,’ he added.
‘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.’
In May, Brad touched on the legal update for the first time, and revealed the ‘annoyance’ of living his life in front of the world.
‘My personal life is always in the news. It’s been in the news for 30 years, bro. Or some version of my personal life, let’s put it that way,’ he told GQ. ‘It’s been an annoyance I’ve had to always deal with in different degrees, large and small, as I do the things I really want to do.
‘So, it’s always been this nagging time suck or waste of time, if you let it be that, I don’t know. I don’t know. Mostly I feel pretty…. My life is fairly contained.
‘It feels pretty warm and secure with my friends, with my loves, with my fam, with my knowledge of who I am, that it’s like this fly buzzing around a little bit.’
When asked if he felt relief that his divorce was finalized, he conceded: ‘No, I don’t think it was that major of a thing. Just something coming to fruition. Legally.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.