Brad has been engaged in a prolonged legal dispute with Angelina Jolie over the custody of his underage children and their French vineyard, Chateau Miraval. The 60-year-old experienced great sadness when his 18-year-old daughter, Shiloh, legally changed her name, becoming the fifth out of his six children to do so.
According to an informant, the father, who is feeling lonely and abandoned, has left Los Angeles and sought solace in the rural areas of France. There, he spends time with his fiancée Ines de Ramon, aged 34, and his buddy George Clooney.
“In L.A., Brad was haunted by being so close to his kids and yet so far. He’s now saying a change of scenery might be what his mind needs, at least until they start wanting to spend time with him again,” the anonymous insider told Star Magazine.
Brad is contesting Angelina's choice to sell her ownership in Miraval, which he had planned to be a lasting inheritance for his children. “It’s a big reason why he’s so furious with Angelina. He’s passionate about it,” the undisclosed informant stated.
Meanwhile, Angelina's legal team submitted a move on Thursday to obtain Brad Pitt's communications related to a comprehensive nondisclosure agreement, USA Today reported. This agreement allegedly caused the failure of the sale of Angelina's portion of their Chateau Miraval vineyard to Brad.
In the ongoing legal battle between the former Hollywood power couple, there has been a new development. Angelina’s legal team has requested the court to order Pitt and his company, Mondo Bongo, to provide documents related to his request for a more demanding non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in order to buy Angelina’s portion of the winery in the south of France. This dispute has significant implications for their six children.
According to the application in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Angelina’s lawyers stated that the records she is looking for are both "highly relevant" and expected to produce evidence that can be used in the lawsuit.
Paul Murphy, the attorney representing her, has also alleged that the Oscar-winning actor of "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" has made continuous attempts to exert control over Angelina and deplete her financially. Additionally, Murphy claimed that the actor has been trying to conceal his history of abusive behavior, manipulation, and efforts to conceal evidence.
On Thursday, both the attorney and publicist representing Brad declined to provide any comments regarding the recent complaint and the allegations of previous abuse.
Brad has alleged that Angelina and her firm, Nouvel, covertly sold her portion of their winery and family residence in order to appropriate revenues that she had not legitimately earned and returns on an investment that she did not contribute to.
In a lawsuit filed in February 2022 and later amended charges, he alleged that his investment in the business surpassed Angelina’s by about $50 million. He further claimed that Angelina had backed out of exclusive buyout negotiations that they had first agreed upon in early 2021, when she expressed her desire to exit the business.
Brad has been pursuing a trial by jury and the reversal of Angelina’s sale to the Tenute del Mondo wine firm, a subsidiary of the Stoli firm, which took place in October 2021.
In October 2022, Angelina submitted a cross-complaint asserting that there was no agreement between the couple on the requirement for both parties to give consent for the sale of their respective shares in the property.
In addition, she provided a comprehensive account of the accusations of mistreatment that caused her to initiate divorce proceedings against Brad in 2016, thus terminating their marital union of two years and highly-publicized personal partnership spanning a decade. Despite their official separation since 2019, the actors have not yet completed their protracted divorce proceedings.
The actor of "Inglourious Basterds" has expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that he can no longer enjoy his private residence in France, as it is now jointly owned by unfamiliar individuals. Angelina argued on Thursday that she and their children have not visited the French estate since they departed from it and took the ill-fated September 2016 flight, which ultimately led to Angelina filing for divorce five days later.
The attorneys for the Academy Award-winning actress of "Girl, Interrupted" submitted a petition to compel on Thursday. The motion, which was read by The Times, requested further information from Brad in order to understand his rationale for reneging on their implied agreement for him to purchase Angelina’s share in the winery.
According to her attorney, Jolie was deeply affected by Brad’ decision to withdraw from the transaction, to the point that she felt almost shattered.
“If that sale had been completed, this lawsuit never would have happened. But at the last minute, Pitt ‘stepped back’ from his agreement to buy Jolie’s interest in Miraval, and the deal collapsed. The question at the heart of this case — and at the center of this motion — is why,” the motion said.
According to her attorney, the reason for this is related to confidential documents that Jolie provided during the custody issue between her and her ex-partner, which occurred at the same time but separately. The recent filing pertained to confidential documents from March 2021, specifically captioned "Testimony Regarding Domestic Violence," which seemingly angered Brad and caused him to withdraw from the transaction.
“When Jolie filed the evidence in the custody suit, she was careful to file it under seal so that no member of the public could see it. But Jolie’s sealed filing, which included emails, summaries of the family’s expected testimony, and other evidence, caused Pitt to fear that the information could eventually become public,” the document said.
According to Angelina’s complaint, Brad made the decision that he could no longer depend on Angelina’s voluntary attempts to maintain privacy. As a result, he requested that she legally commit to remaining silent about the matter.
Furthermore, her team revealed evidence of prior mistreatment of Angelina that occurred before the controversial private-plane journey in 2016. Regarding the sealed filing in the custody dispute, as well as another document headed "Testimony of Minor Children," Angelina’s lawyers contended that Brad attempted to impose a broader non-disclosure agreement (NDA) on her in order to hide his alleged "personal misconduct, whether it is connected to Miraval or not."
The team is requesting Brad’s correspondence with the FBI, U.S. attorney's office, the L.A. County Department of Children and Family Services, and the Los Angeles Police Department regarding the private flight. Additionally, she is requesting information from DCFS regarding its investigation, drug and alcohol testing, and a safety plan that the agency supposedly mandated Pitt to follow in order to address his behavior.
“While Pitt’s history of physical abuse of Jolie started well before the family’s September 2016 plane trip from France to Los Angeles, this flight marked the first time he turned his physical abuse on the children as well,” the new motion states.
Business Times has reached out to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie for comments.
