Custody deal for Pitt and Jolie
BRAD PITT and Angelina Jolie have reached a custody deal over their six children ahead of a court showdown.
The agreement ends their two-year feud and means the Hollywood couple will avoid a potentially explosive face-toface hearing on Tuesday.
Angelina’s lawyer, Samantha Bley DeJean, announced in a statement: “A custody arrangement was agreed two weeks ago and has been signed by both parties and the judge.” She added that the confidential deal was “based on the recommendations of the child custody evaluator” Dr Stan Katz, who has spent hours interviewing the youngsters.
Angelina, 43, who admitted in a recent US interview that the divorce had become “hostile” and “messy”, had demanded sole custody of Maddox, 17, Pax, 14, Zahara, 13, Shiloh, 12, and 10-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne.
Brad, 54, who said being away from his children has been “as tough to handle as a death in the family”, insisted on joint custody and several US reports last night suggested he has got his way. Both parents were reportedly “horrified” by the prospect of their eldest adopted son Maddox having to choose between them at the planned Los Angeles Superior Court hearing.
Brad was still married to Jennifer Aniston, 49, when he and Angelina, fell in love on the set of their 2005 movie blockbuster Mr & Mrs Smith.
The pair married in France in 2014 but broke up two years later after Brad admitted the split was “self-inflicted” because of his heavy drinking.
The couple, who did not sign a prenuptial agreement, have yet to resolve a financial deal over their shared fortune in excess of £470million.