Jennifer Aniston is revisiting one of Hollywood's most publicized breakups, nearly 20 years after her split from Brad Pitt and the media frenzy surrounding his relationship with Angelina Jolie.
In a new Vanity Fair cover interview published Aug. 11, the 56-year-old Morning Show star reflected on the period following her 2005 divorce from Pitt, describing it as "such a vulnerable time" and acknowledging the intense tabloid scrutiny. "It was such juicy reading for people. If they didn't have their soap operas, they had their tabloids," Aniston said. "It's a shame that it had to happen, but it happened. And boy did I take it personally."
Aniston, who married Pitt in July 2000 after two years of dating, recalled the difficulty of navigating the breakup as speculation swirled over his relationship with Mr. & Mrs. Smith co-star Jolie. The pair's separation was announced in January 2005, and later that year Pitt and Jolie appeared together in W magazine's "Domestic Bliss" photo spread. Jolie and Pitt married in 2014, divorcing two years later.
Asked how she coped at the time, Aniston told the magazine her mantra was simple: "Just pick yourself up by the bootstraps and keep on walking, girl." She admitted she "didn't have a strong enough constitution to not get affected by" the rumors and public attention, adding, "We're human beings, even though some people don't want to believe we are. They think, 'You signed up for it, so you take it.' But we really didn't sign up for that."
The Vanity Fair profile also revealed that Aniston maintains a candid friendship with Gwyneth Paltrow, who was engaged to Pitt in the 1990s. "Ironically, I went to her and Brad's engagement party," Aniston said. When asked if Pitt comes up in conversation, she replied, "Oh, of course. How can we not? We're girls."
Paltrow and Pitt's relationship began in 1995 after they met on the set of Se7en. They split in 1997, and Pitt began dating Aniston the following year. Despite their shared romantic history, Aniston said she and Paltrow often discuss everything from health to career advice, underscoring that their connection goes beyond past relationships.
In the years since her divorce, Aniston has been married once more, to actor Justin Theroux, and is currently dating hypnotherapist Jim Curtis. Pitt is in a relationship with jewelry designer Ines de Ramon. Both have occasionally crossed paths in public, most notably during a warm backstage exchange at the 2020 Screen Actors Guild Awards and a virtual charity table read of Fast Times at Ridgemont High later that year.
Aniston told Vanity Fair in 2005 that she hoped "someday we can be friends again" and said she would "love [Brad] for the rest of my life." Nearly two decades later, her remarks suggest she has reached a place of perspective on a chapter that once dominated celebrity headlines.
