Actress, Angelina Jolie, has filed court papers accusing ex-husband Brad Pitt of drunkenly attacking her and their children during a private plane flight, prompting her to file for divorce.
In a lawsuit over a French winery that the divorced couple bought, Ms Jolie revealed that Mr Pitt grabbed her by the head and attacked two of their children on the 2016 trip. She indicated that Mr Pitt also verbally abused and poured alcohol on his family during the flight from France to Los Angeles, allegations which Brad Pitt denies.
Ms Jolie’s claim of abusive behaviour by Mr Pitt on the 14th of September, 2016, flight have emerged in previous court papers, including the Oscar-winning former couple’s divorce settlement.
Her lawyers allege the ‘Fight Club’ star began shouting, accusing her of being “too deferential to the children”. Following this, Mr Pitt “pulled her into the bathroom” in the back of the plane.
“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. Pitt then punched the ceiling of the plane numerous times, prompting Jolie to leave the bathroom.”
Court papers
The court papers revealed after one child verbally intervened, Mr Pitt “lunged at his own child”. It explained that Ms Jolie then “grabbed him from behind to stop him”.
“To get Jolie off his back, Pitt threw himself backwards into the airplane’s seats injuring Jolie’s back and elbow. The children rushed in and all bravely tried to protect each other. Before it was over, Pitt choked one of the children and struck another in the face.”
Court papers
Ms Jolie’s lawyers stated that she and her children “sat still and silent under blankets” for the remainder of the flight.
“Pitt periodically emerged from the back of the plane to yell and swear at them. At one point, he poured beer on Jolie; at another, he poured beer and red wine on the children.”
Investigations into abuse
The incident was investigated by the FBI in 2016, but authorities decided not to press charges. However, new details were alleged in court filing in Los Angeles by Ms Jolie’s legal team. This is part of an ongoing lawsuit over Chateau Miraval SA, a home and vineyard in the south of France that the former Hollywood couple acquired together.
Mr Pitt argued that he and his former wife had agreed not to sell their stakes in the venue without the permission of the other. Nonetheless, Ms Jolie disputes this and blames Mr Pitt for ending negotiations over purchasing her shares of the property.
Mr Pitt has sued Ms Jolie, claiming that her decision to sell her stake in the estate to a Russian oligarch amounted to an attempt to “undermine” his investment and cause “gratuitous harm” to Mr Pitt, who had “poured money and sweat equity into the wine business”.
Ms Jolie’s lawyers stated in their filing 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”.
They indicated that her decision to sell her stake in the venture was in part due to her “growing increasingly uncomfortable with continuing to participate in an alcohol-related business, given the impact of Pitt’s acknowledged problem of alcohol abuse on their family”. Mr Pitt told the New York Times in 2019 that he had joined Alcoholics Anonymous following his split from Ms Jolie.
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