Brad Pitt reveals he felt 'suicidal' while navigating 'family stuff' decade after Angelina Jolie split
Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide, which some readers may find distressing.
In a raw new interview, Brad Pitt has admitted he 'didn't see a way out' following the breakdown of his personal life.
The Oscar-winning actor spoke to Esquire this week, where he recalled 'one little period' of heartache, which came after the headline-hitting breakdown of his marriage to Angelina Jolie.
Their split is still heavily played out in the papers 10 years on - more recently, honing in on the controversial decision several of their children have made to drop 'Pitt' from their official titles.
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Only on a handful of occasions since have either Jolie or Pitt addressed their divorce in conversation with the press, including this week, when Pitt reflected on 'family stuff' which left him contemplating suicide.
During the discussion, Pitt began by insisting he considers himself a positive person generally, adding: "If I have any afflictions, it’s probably being a congenital optimist.
"Which has helped many times, and it’s also gotten me - I’ve walked foolishly head-on into a Mack truck because of my optimism."
He added, however, that several years ago, his ability to keep his hopes high suddenly evaded him.
"Anyway, I’ve never been suicidal except for one little period," Pitt, 62, confessed. "And in that one little period, I just thought - I just couldn’t - just didn’t see a way out."
He added: "The pain was so oppressive that - I wasn’t going to act on this, but I could feel - I could feel the cold steel of the bullet in my head, and it felt like relief. And I thought, 'Oh, okay, now I understand'.
"I understand suicide, in the sense that it’s just relief. It’s just looking for relief from the pain."
Pitt continued: "But I also think we have incredible survival instincts. And for me, that immediately kicked in, but it was just..."
Asked specifically what prompted his period of low mood, he candidly confessed: "Family stuff."
Declining to elaborate on the comment, Pitt concluded: "We could leave it at that."
Pitt divorced his first wife, Friends star Jennifer Aniston, in January, after which he quickly began dating Jolie, with whom he'd starred as co-leads in Mr and Mrs Smith the year prior.
In the years that followed, he and Jolie tied the knot before welcoming six children together, three of whom were adopted and three of whom were conceived naturally by the couple.
In 2016, however, Pitt and Jolie unexpectedly announced their plans to separate after 10 years together, citing 'irreconcilable differences', after which a chaotic legal battle ensued over custody of their kids and control of several of their assets.
Several unnerving details were made public at the time, alleging an incident had occurred before their 2016 split whereby Pitt shoved his wife into a bathroom wall, choked one of his children, struck another in the face, and poured wine and beer over his family.
Pitt, who denied the allegations, was cleared of all charges following an FBI investigation.
Their divorce was finalised in 2024.
Knox Jolie is the latest of the pair's children who drop 'Pitt' from his surname, following in the footsteps of sisters Shiloh, Zahara, Vivienne and brother Maddox, with only Pax still using a hyphenated version.
Topics: Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Celebrity, US News, Mental Health
Rhianna Benson