Angelina Jolie has opened up about how her children supported her during the making of her latest film, Maria.
The movie, which is directed by Oscar nominee Pablo Larraín, charts the final days of opera diva Maria Callas, when the legendary star is attempting to sing again after spending years out of the spotlight.
The emotionally taxing nature of the role, which also marks the first time that Jolie has acted since the 2021 Marvel movie Eternals, meant that filming could be draining, so the Oscar winner sought support from her children.
“I have never had a set where my family is not allowed to be there because I’m focusing — I’m not that person,” the 49-year-old told The Hollywood Reporter. “You can climb all over me or visit.
“It really meant a lot that my boys were with me on Maria. When I would have really heavy times, they would come over and just give me a hug or a cup of tea.”
The actor admitted that filming marked the “first time” that her children had seen her weep, as she usually tries to “hide” any “pain and sadness” from them.
“That was probably one of the more intense things was that —usually when I’m expressing that much pain, it’s not in front of my children,” she said.
“You really try to hide from your children how much pain and sadness you carry. And so for them to be with you when you’re expressing it at such a level, I think it was the first time they ever heard me cry like that. That’s usually for the shower.”
Jolie has six children with her former husband Brad Pitt: 22-year-old Maddox, 20-year-old Pax, 19-year-old Zahara, 18-year-old Shiloh and twins Vivienne and Knox, 16.
She and Pitt, 60, got together in 2004 after meeting on the set of Mr & Mrs Smith and married in 2014. The couple announced their split in 2016, and the break-up has been an acrimonious one.
Both Jolie and Pitt have new films debuting at this year’s Venice Film Festival, with the former promoting Maria and the latter launching Wolfs, which also stars George Clooney.
The festival’s artistic director Alberto Barbera said there would be “no way” the exes could cross paths during the event, as Pitt will only arrive in Venice on Saturday (31 August), once Jolie has already left.
Jolie also told The Hollywood Reporter that she currently has to stay in Los Angeles because of her divorce, but is looking forward to moving once her youngest children turn 18.
“I grew up in this town,” she said. “I am here because I have to be here from a divorce, but as soon as they’re 18, I’ll be able to leave.
“When you have a big family, you want them to have privacy, peace, safety. I have a house now to raise my children, but sometimes this place can be … that humanity that I found across the world is not what I grew up with here. [After Los Angeles,] I’ll spend a lot of time in Cambodia. I’ll spend time visiting my family members wherever they may be in the world.”
