Brad Pitt Speaks Out for First Time on Angelina Jolie Divorce
Pitt reveals that he's been staying at his home in Hollywood Hills, California -- which he considers to be his kids' "childhood home" -- though admits he is lonely, aside from his beloved bulldog, Jacques. The actor says he and Jolie are currently working out a visitation plan for their six children -- 15-year-old Maddox, 13-year-old Pax, 12-year-old Zahara, 10-year-old Shiloh and 8-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox.
"I was really on my back and chained to a system when Child Services was called," Pitt says, though he was eventually cleared of all child abuse allegations last November. "And you know, after that, we've [he and Jolie] been able to work together to sort this out. We're both doing our best. I heard one lawyer say, 'No one wins in court -- it's just a matter of who gets hurt worse.' And it seems to be true, you spend a year just focused on building a case to prove your point and why you're right and why they're wrong, and it's just an investment in vitriolic hatred."
Pitt says he and 41-year-old Jolie are united in not making things ugly in court, although they were previously engaged in an intense custody battle.
"I just refuse," he says. "And fortunately my partner in this agrees. It's just very, very jarring for the kids, to suddenly have their family ripped apart. If anyone can make sense of it, we have to with great care and delicacy, building everything around that."
"Our focus is that everyone come out stronger and better people -- there is no other outcome," he adds.
The Allied star says he doesn't want to "hate" Jolie.
"I see it happen to friends -- I see where the one spouse literally can't tell their own part in it, and it's still competing with the other in some way and wants to destroy them, and needs vindication by destruction, and just wasting years on that hatred. I don't want to live that way."
Obviously, the split is a painful process for everyone involved.
"The first urge is to cling on," he admits about his feelings towards his family post-split. "And then you've got a cliche: If you love someone, set them free. Now I know what it means, by feeling it. It means to love without ownership. It means expecting nothing in return."
Pitt says he's been able to get through the past six months by being "family first." He admits he's previously let work take him away from his children.
"Kids are so delicate," he explains. "They absorb everything. They need to have their hand held and things explained. They need to be listened to. When I get in that busy work mode, I'm not hearing. I want to be better at that."
"I was really on my back and chained to a system when Child Services was called," Pitt says, though he was eventually cleared of all child abuse allegations last November. "And you know, after that, we've [he and Jolie] been able to work together to sort this out. We're both doing our best. I heard one lawyer say, 'No one wins in court -- it's just a matter of who gets hurt worse.' And it seems to be true, you spend a year just focused on building a case to prove your point and why you're right and why they're wrong, and it's just an investment in vitriolic hatred."
Pitt says he and 41-year-old Jolie are united in not making things ugly in court, although they were previously engaged in an intense custody battle.
"I just refuse," he says. "And fortunately my partner in this agrees. It's just very, very jarring for the kids, to suddenly have their family ripped apart. If anyone can make sense of it, we have to with great care and delicacy, building everything around that."
"Our focus is that everyone come out stronger and better people -- there is no other outcome," he adds.
The Allied star says he doesn't want to "hate" Jolie.
"I see it happen to friends -- I see where the one spouse literally can't tell their own part in it, and it's still competing with the other in some way and wants to destroy them, and needs vindication by destruction, and just wasting years on that hatred. I don't want to live that way."
Obviously, the split is a painful process for everyone involved.
"The first urge is to cling on," he admits about his feelings towards his family post-split. "And then you've got a cliche: If you love someone, set them free. Now I know what it means, by feeling it. It means to love without ownership. It means expecting nothing in return."
Pitt says he's been able to get through the past six months by being "family first." He admits he's previously let work take him away from his children.
"Kids are so delicate," he explains. "They absorb everything. They need to have their hand held and things explained. They need to be listened to. When I get in that busy work mode, I'm not hearing. I want to be better at that."
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