CNN
—
A countersuit filed Tuesday by actress Angelina Jolie against ex-husband Brad Pitt includes more information about an alleged physical altercation between the former couple that took place on a plane in 2016.
In a statement to CNN, a rep for Pitt called the latest allegations “completely untrue.”
Jolie and Pitt argue over Jolie’s sale of her stake in their joint French wine estate, Château Miraval. Jolie sold her half of the winery in 2021 to Tenute del Mondo, a subsidiary of the Stoli Group, controlled by Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler.
Pitt sued Jolie in February, claiming he and Jolie made a deal that neither would sell without the other’s consent.
Jolie claims in her countersuit that there was never such a deal and that she sold her share of the winery in an effort to gain “financial independence” from Pitt and “to have a form of peace and closure to this deeply painful and traumatic chapter in her life and that of their children.
In court documents, obtained by CNN, Jolie also shares more details about an alleged incident that occurred on a private plane on Sept. 14, 2016, five days before filing for divorce.
In a section of Jolie’s counterclaim titled “Why Jolie Split From Pitt,” the document alleges that before arriving at the airport, Pitt argued with one of their six children, who were then between 8 and 15 years old. The filing goes on to allege that on the plane, Jolie asked Pitt “what was wrong?” and that Pitt continued to verbally attack her, then an hour and a half later “pulled” her into the bathroom, “grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her, then grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her again before pushing her into the bathroom wall.”
The claim also alleges, “Pitt strangled one of the children and punched another in the face. Some of the kids begged Pitt to stop. They were all scared. Many were crying.
In a statement provided to CNN on Tuesday, a rep for Pitt said, “(Jolie’s) story continues to evolve each time she tells it with new unsubstantiated claims. Brad has accepted responsibility for what he did but won’t for the things he didn’t do. These new allegations are totally false.
CNN previously reported some of these details from a heavily redacted FBI report in August.
Pitt has not been arrested or charged in connection with the incident after the FBI completed an investigation in 2016.
“In response to allegations made following a United States special jurisdiction flight for aircraft that landed in Los Angeles carrying Mr. Brad Pitt and his children, the FBI conducted a review of the circumstances and does not will not continue the investigation. No charges have been filed in this case,” FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said in a statement to CNN at the time.
“All parties have had this information for almost six years and have been used in previous legal proceedings. There is nothing new here and serves no purpose other than to be a media stunt intended to inflict pain,” a source close to Pitt said of the August report.
CNN has reached out to Jolie’s reps regarding the latest court filing, which states that during the plane incident, Pitt allegedly “lunged at her own child and Jolie grabbed him from behind to stop him. To do peeling Jolie off her back, Pitt threw himself backwards into the plane’s seats, injuring Jolie in the back and elbow.
The court documents also claim that the children “rushed up and all bravely tried to protect themselves” and that Jolie and the children “sat still and silent under blankets. No one dared to go to the bathroom.
Because of this, according to legal documents, Jolie and her six children were unable to return to Chateau Miraval due to the “pain that Pitt inflicted on the family that day.”
Many of the details of Jolie’s countersuit echo those of a countersuit filed last month by Nouvel LLC, Jolie’s former company.
In his earlier statement, Pitt alleged that Jolie “did nothing to spur (the) growth” of the business, which he turned into a “multi-million dollar international success.”
In his countersuit, Nouvel disputed this, saying that “Pitt refused to grant Jolie or Nouvel equal access to the Château Miraval archives or an equal voice in management”, “in fact holding the most important part of his net worth as a hostage”.
Jolie’s countersuit adds that “like other couples,” the two “divided responsibilities and generally shared costs.”
“Jolie made her acting and directing career secondary to her primary responsibility of raising children. She also oversaw the day-to-day management of the Jolie-Pitt Foundation, to which she not only devoted a great deal of time, but also substantial sums of cash (more than double what Pitt contributed),” the document states. “Pitt continued his career in Hollywood and took primary responsibility for the renovation of the castle.”
She also claims that she made several attempts to sell her stake in the winery to Pitt, as recently as last year and that Pitt was going to buy her share for $54.5 million in February, but that Pitt” demanded” that she sign a broad non-disparagement clause. “It would prohibit Jolie from discussing outside of court Pitt’s personal conduct toward her or the family,” inherently including the abuse allegations from the 2016 incident.
Jolie claims she refused to sign that clause and called it an “abusive and controlling deal breaker.”
The counterclaim asks the court to declare Jolie’s sale of her stake final so that the actress can “leave the cellar and the castle.”