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"The events leading to my need to separate from my ex-husband were emotionally difficult for me and our children," Jolie wrote, before claiming she stopped visiting their shared Château Miraval because of those "painful events."
Angelina Jolie is opening up about her split from Brad Pitt.
The Academy-award winning actress revealed in a personal declaration submitted to a California court on October 9 -- obtained by E! News -- that neither she nor their children have visited their once shared French winery Château Miraval since 2016.
"The events leading to my need to separate from my ex-husband were emotionally difficult for me and our children," the declaration said.
"Upon filing for divorce, I left him control (and full residency) of our family homes in Los Angeles and at Miraval, without compensation, which I hoped would make him calmer in his dealings with me after a difficult and traumatic period," she wrote.
"To this day, the children and I have never again set foot on the property, given its connection to the painful events leading to the divorce," she added, per PEOPLE. "Post-separation, I immediately began to look for a new house for me and our children, initially renting a home while looking for a more stable solution. Because I wanted to ensure that Brad remained an important part of our children’s lives, I looked to buy a property near his home. At the time, my savings were tied up in Miraval, and I had not asked Brad for alimony or any other financial support."
Pitt and Jolie share Maddox, 24, Pax, 21, Zahara, 20, Shiloh, 19, as well as twins Vivienne and Knox, 17.
Pitt and Jolie finalized their divorce in December 2024, after a lengthy legal battle that saw the pair reaching a full settlement that concluded their divorce proceedings.
Jolie filed for divorce in in September 2016, following a transatlantic flight with Pitt and their kids, on which she alleged the Once Upon A Time In Hollywood star verbally and physically assaulted her. Pitt denied the allegations and was never charged.
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View StoryThey've since been embroiled in a legal battle over the French property, with Jolie wanting to sell her interest in the winery.
In the court documents, Jolie said she and Pitt began "to have on-again, off-again discussions" in early 2017 about him buying her shares in the winery, per E! News.
"These discussions were always difficult for me, due to my deep emotional ties to our family home there and how our relationship ended," Jolie wrote. "Miraval was one of the first major investments we made together, and it was a focal point of our family life. We were married there, I spent part of my pregnancy there and I brought our twin children home there from the hospital."
"To have such a sudden break from my home and memories has been hard," she continued, "and it was especially difficult for the children to have their lives so disrupted."
According to the documents, Jolie claimed Pitt offered to purchase her shares under the conditions that she "agree to an expanded NDA."
"As the mother of our children, as well as an advocate for victims of violence around the world," Jolie wrote, "I found his demand extremely painful."
She went ahead and sold her share of the property to a third party instead -- Stoli Group's Tenute del Mondo in 2021. Pitt then filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife, alleged she sold her interest without his permission. This then led Jolie to countersue Pitt.
