Angelina Jolie says ‘change in family situation’ forced return to acting
Actor and director has largely stayed behind the camera in last decade
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Angelina Jolie has revealed that a “change” in her family forced her to return to acting.
The Oscar-winning actor and director will soon be seen in the action thriller Those Who Wish Me Dead, which marks one of Jolie’s rare starring roles in a movie.
Other than 2014’s Maleficent and its 2019 sequel, Jolie has largely worked behind the camera in the past decade, having directed films such as Unbroken, First They Killed My Father and By the Sea, the latter in which she starred with her former husband Brad Pitt.
Jolie has now suggested that her separation from Pitt instigated a return to regular acting work.
“I love directing, but I had a change in my family situation that’s not made it possible for me to direct for a few years,” Jolie told Entertainment Weekly.
“I needed to just do shorter jobs and be home more, so I kind of went back to doing a few acting jobs. That’s really the truth of it.”
Jolie and Pitt announced their separation in 2016, with their divorce proceedings still ongoing five years later. In 2017, Jolie made Los Angeles her permanent base after buying a luxury estate there formerly owned by Cecil B DeMille for the price of $24.5m.
In Those Who Wish Me Dead, Jolie portrays a firefighter who must protect a young boy from hired assassins. She also told Entertainment Weekly that the role is a departure from her previous action movies, which include Salt and Wanted.
“There’s nothing about this character that trained in martial arts or did anything special,” Jolie added. “I get pretty beaten up through this.”
Along with her new movie, Jolie also stars in the forthcoming Marvel film Eternals and alongside Christoph Waltz in the drama Every Note Played.
Those Who Wish Me Dead will be released in cinemas on 17 May.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments