How Jen and Brad’s pals are trying to get them back together
After drifting apart and falling out over Kanye West, A-list friends of Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt are stepping in to help salvage the former couple’s friendship
Despite their shock divorce in 2005, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston have formed an increasingly close friendship since he was spotted at her 50th birthday party last year.
But Brad’s recent fling with married 27-year-old German model Nicole Poturalski, and
Jen actively discouraging fans from voting for Brad’s pal
Kanye West in the lead-up to the presidential election, appeared to have wrecked the friendship all over again.
Just a week on, insiders say
Jen and Brad’s mutual A-list pals – including Matthew McConaughey and Ellen DeGeneres – don’t want to be caught in the middle and are trying to help the pair get back on better terms.
Attempting to break the ice during an interview last week, Matthew joked that the sexual tension between the exes was “palpable” when they all appeared via Zoom to perform a table read of the script of classic ’80s comedy Fast Times At Ridgemont High in September. “Could I feel the heat through the screen of Brad? So palpable. Yeah, it was so palpable,” the 51-year-old quipped.
TENSION
And pals say it was one of many tactical moves friends have made to dispel tension between the pair following their recent fallout, with Ellen thinking of inviting both of them to her house in LA when she can and it’s safe to do so.
The source says, “Everyone loves seeing Jen and Brad back together and how happy they’ve been since reconciling, so friends have been trying to settle the dust and mediate to ensure a spat doesn’t escalate into destroying their relationship – especially after everything they’ve been through over the years.
“Matthew knew his comments would make them both laugh, and it worked to dispel the tension.
“It can cause issues within the wider group if there’s tension between Brad and
Jen. Ellen prides herself on being everyone’s buddy, and as soon as she can she’s keen to get them over for a low-key gathering so they can catch up in a relaxed environment and get comfortable around each other after a rocky few months.”
Following their divorce – said to be sparked after Brad, 56, fell for his now estranged wife Angelina Jolie, 45, on the set of Mr & Mrs Smith – the pair didn’t speak for 13 years.
But after his bitter split from Angelina in 2016, and Jen’s divorce from actor
Justin Theroux two years later, the pair were said to have grown close again after reaching out to support one another.
UNBREAKABLE BOND
Earlier this year, their close friend Melissa Etheridge, who sang at their wedding in 2000, spoke out about reports the pair were getting close again, saying, “I believe they will always remain friends, because they’re two very special people that can get through anything. I just hope their friendship lasts, because they share one hell of an unbreakable bond.”