“Angelina Joile and Brad Pitt divorce timeline,” Jolie Pitt’s rep said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday, September 20. “This decision was made for the health of the family.”
From falling in love on the Mr. and Mrs. Smith set in 2004 to their secret wedding in France in 2014, see the full timeline of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s relationship through the years.
2004
After meeting on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, where Brad and Angelina played married assassins, rumours began to spread that the pair were starting a real-life love affair. Both denied the reports as Pitt was still married to Jennifer Aniston at the time and Angie had just finalised her divorce from Billy Bob Thornton (her second marriage which lasted three years).
January 2005
After five years of marriage Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston announced their separation and speculation that Angelina and Brad were together continued to grow. In March of that year Aniston officially filed for divorce, citing “irreconcilable differences” in court documents.
April 2005
Photos were published confirming Brangelina is a real thing. The images of the couple on holiday in Kenya playing on a beach with Jolie’s adopted son Maddox was proof enough that the relationship had been going on for quite some time, but both stars still officially denied they were an item.
Angelina and Brad featured in W magazine in a spread titled Domestic Bliss, where they were portrayed as a 1960s family complete with kids. The photo shoot took place in March of 2005, the same month Aniston had filed for divorce. The shoot’s concept was apparently Brad’s idea.
In a later interview for Vanity Fair, months after Brangelina went public, Aniston criticised Brad for appearing in the spread stating: “There’s a sensitivity chip that’s missing.” The Friends star also revealed she only became aware of Pitt’s trip to Kenya with Jolie when she saw it splashed across magazines: “The world was shocked and I was shocked.”
July 2005
That same month Jolie adopted her second child, a daughter named Zahara, from Ethiopia.
January 2006
Just three months after Pitt finalised his divorce from Aniston, he had baby news. Angelina and Brad confirmed they were expecting their first biological child. The Fight Club actor also filed to legally adopt Jolie’s two children, Maddox and Zahara, to start the Jolie Pitt clan.
May 2006
Shiloh Jolie Pitt was born in Namibia. Of their decision to have their first biological baby in Africa, Angelina later said, “When we found out we were pregnant and thinking about where we would want to go, we thought we wanted to find a place that was a beautiful place that our other children would enjoy. And they have, they’d had an amazing adventure. Also we just love this part of the world; our other daughter was born in Africa and so this is a special continent for us.”
December 2006
The couple went red carpet official at the premiere of Angelina’s movie, The Good Shepherd.
March 2007
Pax Jolie Pitt was welcomed into the fold as Brad and Ange travelled to Vietnam to get their second adopted son.
July 2008
Adding some more biological children into the brood, Knox and Vivienne Jolie Pitt were born in Nice, France. “It did shock us, and we jumped to six [children] quickly. But we like a challenge,” Ange told Entertainment Weekly.
November 2008
Controversy swirled when Angie finally admitted there was something going on between her and Brad on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. In an interview with The New York Times, the Oscar-winner said of showing her children the movie: “Not a lot of people get to see a movie where their parents fell in love”.
April 2012
A proposal! After six children and seven years together Brad Pitt’s manager confirmed the actor had asked Angie to marry him. The spokesman told AP: “Yes, it’s confirmed. It is a promise for the future and their kids are very happy. There’s no date set at this time. Brad designed the ring.”
May 2013
After her doctor revealed she had a high risk of developing breast cancer because she carries the BRCA1 gene, Angelina underwent a preventative double mastectomy (her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, died in 2007 after a long battle with the disease).
In an op-ed for The New York Times, Angelina wrote an emotional piece about her difficult choice – which she explained “was not easy, but it is one I am very happy that I made” – and gave credit to her partner, Brad for his care. “I am fortunate to have a partner, Brad Pitt, who is so loving and supportive,” she wrote. “So to anyone who has a wife or girlfriend going through this, know that you are a very important part of the transition.” Angelina said Pitt was with her “for every minute of the surgeries,” and said throughout it all, “We managed to find moments to laugh together.”
November 2013
A supportive Brad was by his partner’s side as she was honoured with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Governors Awards.
In her acceptance speech Angelina said of Brad: “My love, your support and guidance make everything that I do possible.”
August 2014
The couple finally wed during a secret ceremony at the couple’s French property, Chateau Miraval, on August 23. Angelina wore a custom Versace gown and veil that was adorned with colourful scribbles from her children. The older boys, Maddox and Pax, walked Angelina down the aisle while Zahara and Vivienne played flower girls and Shiloh and Knox were ring bearers.
The couple honeymooned in Malta with their kids – a location they would later return to to film By the Sea, which would be written and directed by Angelia and would be the pair’s first movie project together since Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
March 2015
Angelina Jolie Pitt announced she had surgery to remove her ovaries and fallopian tubes. In another piece for The New York Times the actress wrote, “It is not easy to make these decisions,” but Brad remained by her side, once again.
November 2015
Pitt and Jolie Pitt premiere their film, By the Sea, where they portray a couple in a turbulent marriage. Despite the onscreen drama, the pair maintained they were completely in love in their real-life marriage.
Angelina insisted the story was not autobiographical, telling The Telegraph: “Brad and I have our issues, but if the characters were even remotely close to our problems we couldn’t have made the film. To be clear: we have fights and problems like any other couple. We have days when we drive each other absolutely mad and want space, but the problems in the movie aren’t our specific problems.”
August 2016
Despite rumours of a split (of course), there were sightings of the pair celebrating their second wedding anniversary in low-key fashion in LA.
September 2016
An end to Brangelina. Angelina files for divorce from Brad, citing irreconcilable differences.
“This decision was made for the health of the family,” Robert Offer, a lawyer for Ms. Jolie Pitt, said in the statement. “She will not be commenting, and asks that the family be given its privacy at this time.”
Angelina requested physical custody of their six children and asked that Pitt only receive joint legal custody. She did not ask for spousal support.
