ANOTHER BLOW FOR BRAD

THE CUSTODY BATTLE RUMBLES ON AS THE FORMER COUPLE’S ELDEST CHILD PREPARES TO TAKE THE STAND TO TAKE THE ACTOR DOWN

During an interview back in 2017, shortly after his split with Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt insisted he was not interested in a back-and-forth court battle over the couple’s children. “It’s just an investment in vitriolic hatred. I just refuse,” he told GQ magazine. “And fortunately my partner in this agrees.”

Sadly, that couldn’t be further from the truth, with the exes locked in a bitter custody war just months after Pitt’s candid interview. And more than four years on, it’s showing no signs of coming to a close any time soon.

Late last month, a legal victory for Jolie, 46, saw the 57-year-old actor lose the additional time with his five younger children – Pax, 17, Zahara, 16, Shiloh, 15, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 13 – that had been agreed to in May. And Judge John Ouderkirk, who has been overseeing the case for the past four years, was also disqualified due to an impartiality issue.

To add to the blow, the couple’s eldest child Maddox, 20, is preparing to take the stand to help clear his mother’s name. “Maddox is fiercely loyal to his mum, and it’s been torture watching her suffer during and after the marriage,” a source told UK’s Heat magazine. “He hates how she’s been depicted when all she’s done is fight to protect the kids and ensure they get the best upbringing possible. He gets that there are two sides to every story, but he speaks from experience, and the facts for him are that his mum has been made to look bad compared to Brad.”

Despite Pitt clearing his name after an incident on a private plane in 2016, when things reportedly got physical between the actor and his eldest son, it seems Maddox isn’t willing to let things slide anymore. “Maddox is so proud of his mum,” the source continued. “He’s seen her shed many tears since the split, and he isn’t willing to soften his stance. Brad knows this, and it’s a big reason this war could rumble on even after the court case is settled.”

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“Maddox is fiercely loyal to his mum” SOURCE

Maddox has firmly been on his mother’s side since the split, with Pitt said to have little contact with him.

“I heard one lawyer say, ‘No-one wins in court – it’s just a matter of who gets hurt worse,’” Pitt fortuitously said in a 2017 interview.