He’ll be home for Christmas – sort of.
Brad Pitt will spend at least part of the vacation with three of his children – daughter Shiloh and twins Knox and Vivienne – as his bitter custody battle with Angelina Jolie rages on.
However, the visit will be limited to the specific window of Christmas Day and then some, according to Us Weekly, who reported the news. “They can spend the night with him on Christmas Eve,” the magazine quotes a source saying, who then clarifies that Pitt and Jolie “had previously talked about spending the holiday as a family when they got along earlier this year, but plans have since changed. “
“Brad and Angelina are equally responsible for the never-ending drama,” adds the source. “Unfortunately their children are collateral damage.”
The coronavirus pandemic has derailed Jolie’s usual globetrotting this year. The Us Weekly source described her as “more irritable” and noted, “She wanted to do humanitarian work outside the United States, but needs Brad’s permission to get the kids out of the county”
Pitt, 57, and Jolie, 45, are locked in an endless custody battle that has dragged on since they were declared legally single in April 2019 (Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt in September 2016.)
Aside from Shiloh, 14, and the twins, 12, the custody battle affects 17-year-old Pax and 15-year-old Zahara. The eldest of the bunch, Maddox, has reached legal maturity at the age of 19.
This summer, Jolie tried to have the private judge in their divorce – John W. Ouderkirk – removed because he was reportedly too close to Pitt’s attorneys. Pitt’s team responded with court documents showing that Ouderkirk, who led the couple’s wedding in 2014, had made all parties aware of the alleged conflict.
“The longer she does this, the more harm she does to the children,” an acquaintance of the couple told The Post in August. ‘This is a game she plays. She still has the kids more than he does, and she tries to keep that up for as long as possible. “
Pitt’s recent and much-discussed relationship with German model Nicole Poturalski ended after two months. He is wrapping up 2020 with an apparent goodwill tour of his own, taking part in a well-received September table reading of ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ for charity – full of palpable chemistry with ex Jennifer Aniston, who he left for Jolie in 2005 – and spent hours delivering meals to a Los Angeles housing project in November.