When Brad Pitt talked about attending his first AA meeting after Angelina Jolie divorce: 'I needed rebooting'

TRIGGER WARNING: This article contains references to alcohol and drug addictionWhen Brad Pitt finally decided to talk about one of the hardest times in his life, people didn’t really expect him to be so upfront.

After his split from Angelina Jolie, he hit a wall. He had to face his problems with alcohol and start taking responsibility for his actions.He’s been pretty open about it since then. In fact, in several interviews, Pitt has talked about how the aftermath of the divorce pushed him to get help. He has also revealed that one of the biggest steps was walking into his first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. That moment changed everything for him.

Brad Pitt on attending his first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting

Per Entertainment Weekly, back then, Pitt was reeling from the end of his marriage. It took a toll on his relationship with his kids, too. He couldn’t ignore what was happening anymore. He needed a reset, and he was finally ready to face some harsh truths about himself.He actually joined AA right after Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, which he’s called one of the lowest points of his life. On Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast last year, Pitt described himself as being “on my knees.”

The breakup forced him to look at years of personal issues, especially his drinking.He and Shepard bonded over their experiences in AA. Pitt talked about how freeing it felt to finally let his guard down and show the parts of himself he usually wanted to hide. “There’s a great value in that,” he said in a New York Times interview back in 2019, and he echoed that again with Shepard, saying, “It was when I first was getting sober.

I just thought it was incredible: men sharing their experiences, their foibles, their missteps, their wants, their aches, and a lot of humor with it.

I thought it was a really special experience.”Growing up in Missouri, where nobody really shows their feelings, this kind of openness was new for him. Shepard admitted he wasn’t sure Pitt could open up, especially with all the attention he brought to the group, but Pitt said he learned to really love those meetings.Shepard told him, “You were so f---ing honest. I was like, he must have a stubbornness like I have, which is like, ‘Yeah, all this is going on, but I refuse to let it not let me be a person.’” Pitt said being open came from hitting rock bottom. “I was pretty much on my knees, and I was really open. I was trying anything and everyone. Anything anyone threw at me. It was a difficult time. I needed rebooting. I needed to wake the f--- up in some areas.

And it just meant a lot to me.”He’s always been the type to own up to his mistakes. “When I’ve stepped in s---, I’m pretty good at taking responsibility for it and owning up to it. And now it’s a quest to, you know, ‘What do I do with this? How can I right this?’ And make sure it doesn’t happen again.”After a few sessions, those AA meetings became something he actually looked forward to. Seeing everyone else be so open made it easier for him to do the same.

He started to love it.He took that same approach into therapy. “When I jumped into therapy then, I was just like, ‘And I did this and I did that and da da da da,’” he said, admitting he was pretty desperate back then.Shepard joked, “Yeah. You don’t come into AA because everything’s working out fantastic.”Pitt laughed, “No. That’s usually not the entry point.”“It’s not the winner’s club,” Shepard added. “Your hair has gotta be on fire before you go like, ‘Yeah, I’ll go hang with a bunch of dudes and talk about emotions.’”

Brad Pitt and Angelia Jolie: Looking back at their relationship

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were once Hollywood’s golden couple. They first met in 2004 on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Back then, Brad was still married to Jennifer Aniston, so when rumors started swirling about him and Angelina, it stirred Hollywood up.Even with all the gossip and public scrutiny, Brad and Angelina got together and started building a big, blended family that people everywhere followed like it was their own favorite TV show.

Together, they raised six kids: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne. People knew them not just for their movies, but for their work with the Jolie-Pitt Foundation, too. They made headlines for their humanitarian efforts almost as often as their red carpet appearances.After nearly ten years, they tied the knot in a quiet ceremony in France in 2014. But the marriage didn’t last long — just two years.

In 2016, Angelina filed for divorce, saying things just weren’t working anymore. The split got even messier after an alleged incident on a private plane. Authorities looked into it, but in the end, Brad wasn’t charged with anything.The breakup turned into a media circus. Every detail, from custody fights to money arguments, all of it played out in the public eye and dragged on for years. For Brad, it was a turning point.

He had to face his issues with alcohol and decided to get help.Finally, after eight long years of legal battles, the divorce was wrapped up in 2024.DISCLAIMER: If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol or substance abuse, please seek help from available helplines or support organizations.