10 hot stories, including the bib: the trend with benefits, and why is Angelina ‘stalling’ divorce?
… EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT THIS WEEK
FOLLOWING SENSATIONAL REPORTS that they had called off their split and were reuniting, Brangelina’s divorce proceedings do appear to have stalled. But according to insiders, the real cause isn’t rekindled love – but a diminishing bank balance.
‘They are in no way getting back together,’ revealed one source familiar with the situation. ‘The truth is, Angelina is having cash-flow issues, and can’t afford to finalise things right now. Her lawyer Laura Wasser is one of Hollywood’s most high-profile – and expensive – attorneys, and Angelina’s struggling to find money right now to pay her retainer.’
Angelina, short of cash? It may sound unlikely, but public records (obtained by Grazia) show that she took a whopping $17m mortgage out on her new $24m home in LA. Factor in her huge living expenses – and the fact that she hasn’t starred in a big film since Malefificent in 2014 – and the news seems less surprising.
‘Being Angelina is expensive,’ added the source. ‘Her security detail alone is thought to cost her around $40k per month, and she insists on having a private nanny for each of her kids. She’s still living the same lifestyle as when she was with Brad, but without his earnings, which is why she’s run into trouble.’ Angelina’s last film, 2015’s By
The Sea, was dismissed as a vanity project and flopped at the box office. Meanwhile her next project for Netflix,
First They Killed My Father, is not expected to be a big earner.
‘In recent years Angelina has lost interest in playing the Hollywood game and starring in blockbusters, preferring to indulge in smaller passion projects that bring in far less money. When she split from Brad, her intention was to move away from film entirely and focus more on her political and philanthropic work. Ironically, now she’s finding that without Brad’s income she may well end up having to star in the type of big budget movies that she’d hoped to have left behind.’