Brad Pitt reveals boozing problem was behind his ‘self-inflicted’ divorce from Angelina Jolie – and says the split felt like ‘a death’
Star opens up to give first interview since shock separation
BRAD Pitt has revealed his drinking helped wreck his marriage when it became "too much" and compared his split from Angelina Jolie to a "death".
The star has since stopped boozing, gone into therapy and, in his first interview since the break-up, admitted his split from the Hollywood actress was "self-inflicted".
He also branded himself "emotionally retarded" while conceding: "I hit the lottery and I still would waste my time on those hollow pursuits."
Posing for three sombre in his first photoshoot since splitting from Angelina, the 53-year-old has broken his silence on what led to the shock separation.
In a searingly honest chat he told the men's mag: "I was boozing too much.
“It’s just become a problem. And I’m really happy it’s been half a year now, which is bittersweet, but I’ve got my feelings in my fingertips again.”
He added: “Truthfully I could drink a Russian under the table with his own vodka. I was a professional. I was good.”
When asked how he simply stopped drinking, the Fight Club star said: “Don’t want to live that way anymore.”
MOST READ IN TV & SHOWBIZ
The Hollywood favourite insisted he stopped everything but drinking after starting a family, but added: "I can't remember a day since I got out of college when I wasn't boozing or had a spliff, or something.
"I stopped everything except boozing when I started my family. But even this last year, you know - things I wasn't dealing with. I was boozing too much. It's just become a problem."
Brad split from Angelina in September 2016 amid allegations he had been involved in an altercation with their son Maddox, 15, on a private jet.
The case was later closed and no charges were filed.
Now the actor has given up alcohol completely swapping it for cranberry juice and fizzy water and jokingly claimed to have "the cleanest urinary tract in all of LA".
When asked if the months since the split had felt like a death, he simply replied: "Yeah."
He said: "(The split was) self-inficted... If you love someone, set them free. Now I know what it means, by feeling it.
"It means to love without ownership. It means expecting nothing in return. It doesn't mean f*** all to me until, you know. Until you live it."
The dad-of-six has now revealed he "loves" therapy after going through two therapists to find the right one but stills feels "retarded" when it comes to emotions, managing to "cover" them up.
Brad also admitted he spent too much time working and away from his kids when they needed him.
He said: "Kids are so delicate. They absorb everything. They need to have their hand held and things explained. They need to be listened to.
"When I get in that busy work mode, I'm not hearing. I want to be better at that. I gotta be more. I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven't been great at it."
Shortly after splitting from Ang, Brad chose to sleep on a friend's floor to avoid going back to the family home as it was too "devastating".
The star was forced to limit his access to his children following the FBI investigation and he said of the difficult time: "I was really on my back and chained to a system when Child Services was called."
Now the former couple are working together and both have agreed to try and avoid battling each other in court for the sake of their children.
He told the magazine: "We're both doing our best. I heard one lawyer say, 'No one wins in court - it's just a matter of who gets hurt worse.' And it seems to be true."
Brad looked completely different in the three close-up shots for the GQ shoot.
One sees him stood with a blurred sky behind him wearing an open white shirt and a chain around his neck.
The title of the issue reads: "Brad Pitt in America's National Parks".
Another shows him in an orange Hawaiian shirt, while he later swaps to a pink jumper and poses with sand smeared across one of his cheeks.
The star first shocked fans with his recent weight loss at The Lost City of Z premiere last month.
The Hollywood hunk looked noticeably thinner as he walked the red carpet in trousers which appeared too big for him.
Brad wore a white shirt over black trousers for the screening of the new movie in LA, but his clothes seemed to hang on his gaunt-looking frame.
previously reported that Brad's weight loss was not stress-related and he had just been working out.
The insider said the actor had been hitting the gym "almost daily” and had “lost a few pounds, he’s in very good shape”.
Got a story? email [email protected] or call us direct on 02077824220