Angelina Jolie accuses ex-husband Brad Pitt of abuse in new countersuit
Angelina Jolie is alleging in a new court filing that her ex-husband Brad Pitt verbally and physically abused her and their children back in 2016.
In a cross-complaint obtained by ABC News, over a lawsuit stemming from the sale of Jolie's stake in their winery, Chateau Miraval, Jolie accuses Pitt of physically abusing her aboard a private plane flight in 2016, as well as some of their children, who, according to the suit, had "bravely" intervened.
Jolie and Pitt are parents to adopted children Maddox, 21, Pax, 18, and Zahara, 17, as well as 16-year-old Shiloh, and 14-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox.
The alleged incident reportedly started as a verbal argument, according to the cross-complaint filed on Tuesday, with Pitt accusing his then-wife of being "too deferential" to the kids, according to the legal documents.
"Pitt grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her, and then grabbed her shoulders and shook her again before pushing her into the bathroom wall," the document alleges. "Pitt then punched the ceiling of the plane numerous times, prompting Jolie to leave the bathroom."
"When one of the children verbally defended Jolie, Pitt lunged at his own child and Jolie grabbed him from behind to stop him," the cross-complaint reads.
"To get Jolie off his back, Pitt threw himself backwards into the airplane's seats injuring Jolie's back and elbow. The children rushed in and all bravely tried to protect each other ... Pitt choked one of the children and struck another in the face. Some of the children pleaded with Pitt to stop. They were all frightened. Many were crying."
According to the court filing, Jolie filed for divorce five days later on Sept. 19, 2016.
Pitt's lawyer Anne Kiley responded to the cross-complaint in an email statement to "Good Morning America" on Thursday.
"Brad has owned everything he’s responsible for from day one -- unlike the other side -- but he’s not going to own anything he didn't do," Kiley wrote. "He has been on the receiving end of every type of personal attack and misrepresentation. Thankfully, the various public authorities the other side has tried to use against him over the past six years have made their own independent decisions. Brad will continue to respond in court as he has consistently done."
Pitt sued Jolie in February, claiming in that suit that she sold her stake in their French estate and winery, Château Miraval, without his consent.
In that February lawsuit, Pitt said that he and Jolie "agreed they would never sell their respective interests in Miraval without the other's consent." Miraval is also where the couple spent the holidays and where they were married in 2014.
According to the lawsuit, Pitt had "poured money and sweat equity" into Miraval, calling Jolie's sale of Miraval to a third party "unlawful" and that the sale "breaches the agreement between Jolie and Pitt that formed the foundation of the couple's investment in Miraval."
Jolie's team argues in the cross-complaint that there was no such agreement.
"In fact, just days before buying Chateau Miraval, Pitt expressly refused in writing to enter any form of agreement controlling how he and Jolie could sell their interests," it reads.
In the end, according to the cross-complaint, Jolie and Pitt closed the transaction of Miraval without any agreement on how they could both sell their interests in the property.
"Jolie's and Pitt's representatives discussed the issue, and, on April 30, 2008 -- just eight days before the purchase of Chateau Miraval -- [Pitt's business manager Warren] Grant delivered Pitt's definitive rejection of any such agreement," the document states.
Jolie's lawyers state that she did offer to sell her interest in Miraval to Pitt, but in exchange for his purchase, "Pitt demanded she sign a non-disclosure agreement that would have contractually prohibited her from speaking outside of court about Pitt's physical and emotional abuse of her and their children," according to the cross-complaint.
When Jolie refused to agree to the non-disclosure agreement, Pitt walked away from the deal, according to the cross-complaint.
In June 2020, Jolie began negotiating with Pitt on a potential sale of her interest in the winery, but when Jolie submitted a sealed document with the title, "Offer of Proof and Authority re Testimony Regarding Domestic Violence," during the couple's child custody case the following year, Pitt's team notified Jolie's that he would be "stepping back" from the Miraval deal, according to Jolie's cross-complaint.
This article has been updated to include a statement from Pitt's lawyer Anne Kiley.
