Angelina Jolie Countersuit Details Child Abuse Allegations Against Brad Pitt

Samantha Bergeson

4 October 2022 at 3:55 pm·3-min read

Angelina Jolie has issued claims of abuse by ex-husband Brad Pitt six years after filing for divorce.

In September 2016, days prior to filing for their split, Jolie alleged that Oscar winner Pitt had a physical and verbal outburst directed toward herself and their children during a private plane flight from France to California. Per the legal filing, as reported by The New York Times, Pitt allegedly “choked one of the children and struck another in the face” and “grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her” after Pitt accused Jolie of being “too deferential” to their children. The alleged incident took place in the bathroom of the private plane and subsequently in the cabin.

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“Pitt grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her, and then grabbed her shoulders and shook her again before pushing her into the bathroom wall,” the filing stated. “Pitt then punched the ceiling of the plane numerous times, prompting Jolie to leave the bathroom.”

Later, Pitt is accused of pouring “beer on Jolie; at another, he poured beer and red wine on the children” after they came to Jolie’s defense.

IndieWire has reached out to representatives for both Jolie and Pitt for comment.

Federal authorities investigated the incident but declined to bring criminal charges. A redacted FBI report released in August 2022 described Jolie as “conflicted on whether or not to be supportive of charges” for the case at the time.

“After reviewing the document, representative of the United States Attorney’s Office discussed the merits of this investigation with the case agent,” the report stated. “It was agreed by all parties that criminal charges in this case would not be pursued due to several factors.”

Jolie’s filing now states that the FBI agent who investigated physical assault allegations had “concluded that the government had probable cause to charge Pitt with a federal crime for his conduct that day.”

Jolie and Pitt are parents to six children. Pitt previously told The New York Times in 2019 that following Jolie filing for divorce, he went to Alcoholics Anonymous and is now sober. Pitt later noted pottery was part of his therapeutic release post-split. The former couple are currently in multiple lawsuits over Jolie selling her half in their joint controlling interest stake in winery Château Miraval. Pitt has now launched a skincare line tied to the estate.

Jolie’s attorneys noted in a cross-complaint that the actress “has gone to great lengths to try to shield their children from reliving the pain Pitt inflicted on the family that day” in September 2016.

“But when Pitt filed this lawsuit seeking to reassert control over Jolie’s financial life and compel her to rejoin her ex-husband as a frozen-out business partner, Pitt forced Jolie to publicly defend herself on these issues for the first time,” Jolie’s attorneys stated.

As part of his Plan B Productions, Brad Pitt is a producer on the #MeToo Harvey Weinstein whistleblower drama “She Said,” out November 18 from Universal Pictures.

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