Checkout Angelina Jolie on Motherhood, Marital Issues, and Why She Can’t Wait to Turn 50

Checkout Angelina Jolie on Motherhood, Marital Issues, and Why She Can’t Wait to Turn 50



Angelina Jolie


Most women in Hollywood start to stress once they’ve hit the wrong side of 25, but Angelina Jolie is not most women. Faced with a daunting family history of cancer, the movie star/director and mother of six made the brave decision to undergo a preventative double mastectomy, and followed that surgery up two years later with another surgery to remove her ovaries and fallopian tubes — a procedure she knew would send her into early menopause.

At the time of the second operation, she was also starring in a movie with her husband — their first together in a decade — that she wrote and directed. So, you know, no pressure there.

Shortly after she underwent the second operation, Jolie penned an op-ed in the New York Times to share her story with the world. It turned out that exposing this part of her life had a somewhat healing effect on the actress turned activist.

“It really connected me to other women,” she explains in the November issue of Vogue. “I wish my mom had been able to make those choices,” she added, recounting how painful it was watching her mother suffer. “The specific grief came from the woman I was closest to, seeing her art slip away, her body fail her.” Still, opting to take such drastic measures wasn’t something Jolie went into lightly.

“They are not easy surgeries. The ovaries are an easy surgery, but the hormone changes [are] interesting. We did joke that I had my Monday edit. Tuesday surgery. Wednesday go into menopause. Thursday come back to edit, a little funky with my steps."






Despite the challenges, though, she is at peace with her choice. "I feel grounded as a woman. I know others do too. Both of the women in my family, my mother and my grandmother, started dying in their 40s. I’m 40. I can’t wait to hit 50 and know I made it.”

She might not have to wait until 50 to feel that way, though, judging from the buzz around her upcoming film, By the Sea, which tells the story of a husband and wife in the 1970s who resolve their marital issues while visiting a French resort. Perhaps somewhat ironically, they shot the movie during their honeymoon. (Jolie, Pitt, and their six kids shot the film on the Maltese island of Gozo.)

“This is the only film I’ve done that is completely based on my own crazy mind,” she laughed, noting that she and Brad frequently referred to it as “the worst idea.” She then quickly clarified, “It’s not autobiographical. Brad and I have our issues, but if the characters were even remotely close to our problems, we couldn’t have made the film.”

Just because it wasn’t a reflection of their own relationship, however, didn’t mean the material wasn’t challenging. “As artists we wanted something that took us out of our comfort zones,” Jolie explained. “Just being raw actors. It’s not the safest idea. But life is short.”

And it seems Jolie is making every minute count. Despite her pursuits of writing, directing, acting, making wine, and saving the world, she still prioritizes time with her kids.

NYT