Since Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt announced their breakup in 2016, things haven't exactly been copacetic between the former spouses. But time and the chaotic events of 2020 have given the Maleficent actress a lot of time to think and gifted her with a new outlook on life, family, and the state of the world as she knows it.
The Hollywood star opened up about her some of the changes in her personal life in conversation with Vogue UK Editor-in-Chief Edward Enniful for the magazine’s March cover story, revealing that things are going well in her personal life after an extended season of serious drama. Jolie spent much of the last few years dealing with the fallout from her divorce from Pitt; the custody battle that ensued over their six children got very complicated and played out very publicly. It was rough on the big family, but things are fortunately looking up for the Jolie-Pitts.
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"The past few years have been pretty hard," Jolie admitted candidly in the Vogue UK interview. "I’ve been focusing on healing our family. It’s slowly coming back, like the ice melting and the blood returning to my body."
She and her kids are currently living in the former estate of American film director Cecil B. DeMille in Los Angeles, just a few minutes away from Pitt’s home. According to the actress, they’ve all been able to spend a lot more time together throughout the downtime of the pandemic, restoring a sense of balance and peace to the family dynamic. And as much as Jolie is teaching her kids, they're teaching her important life lessons, too — and making her a better mom daily.
“I feel like I’m lacking in all the skills to be a traditional stay-at-home mom,” Jolie explained. “I’m managing through it because the children are quite resilient, and they’re helping me, but I’m not good at it at all...It may sound cliché, but you love and you try, and even if you burn the eggs, that doesn’t matter in the end."
“Even at their young age they know that what matters is to feel safe and loved and stable,” she continued. “To not see those you love harmed. To know your own mind and truth and not to live a lie.”
Her children are in good health, and her career is still flourishing almost 30 years in the industry; she's starring in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's film The Eternals, directing a biopic, and publishing a book. At the end of the day, says Jolie, she's feeling quite optimistic about the future on all fronts.
“I’m feeling that I’ve come through a few things," she said emphatically. "I’m trying to be hopeful. I think this is something we’ve all discovered through the pandemic."