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Louise Thomas
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Brad Pitt has revealed that he was told off by Alcoholics Anonymous for revealing he was involved in the private recovery group.
The 60-year-old has been open about his journey to sobriety following his divorce from actor Angelina Jolie. After the split, reports alleged that the pair had been involved in heated arguments in which Pitt was under the influence of alcohol.
In an interview with GQ, Pitt sat down with fellow Ocean’s 11 actor George Clooney for a personal conversation about their lives, and the Mr and Mrs Smith star commented on the problems that came from him being transparent about his journey.
“You know they came down on me for that? AA did,” he said. “They were like, ‘It’s anonymous.’...”
Clooney responded, “Really? You got sh** for that?”
Reflecting on the slap on the wrist, Pitt said, “I’m not outing anyone. Everyone knows you exist. What’s the issue?”
In 2022, the star opened up about his involvement with the AA, telling GQ, “I had a really cool men’s group here that was really private and selective, so it was safe.”
He continued, “Because I’d seen things of other people who had been recorded while they were spilling their guts and that’s just atrocious to me.”
Pitt previously explained his decision to go sober following the breakdown of his marriage, telling the New York Times in 2019, “I had taken things as far as I could take it, so I removed my drinking privileges.”
He took further action by attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings for a year and a half after the breakdown of his marriage.
Pitt expressed his admiration for the men with whom he attended the meetings and their willingness to speak openly about their experiences.
“You had all these men sitting around being open and honest in a way I have never heard,” the actor remarked.
“It was this safe space where there was little judgement, and therefore little judgement of yourself.”
Pitt added that he found it “freeing” to reveal the “ugly sides” of himself to a group of strangers, all of whom he could trust to not speak to the media about his attendance at the meetings.”
In September 2016, it was announced that Jolie had filed for divorce from Pitt, having been married to the actor since 2014 and romantically involved since 2006. The couple have six children together.
If you or someone you know is suffering from alcohol addiction, you can confidentially call the national alcohol helpline Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 or visit the NHS website here for information about the programmes available to you.
