Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ‘no longer in family therapy’ ahead of child custody trial

Their high-profile split has been full of drama.

And it seems that tensions may once again be ramping up between celebrity exes Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

Relations between the former couple who share six children have deteriorated to the point where they are no longer engaging in family therapy ahead of a custody trial slated for next month, UsWeekly reported Thursday.

‘Tensions have escalated between Brad and Angelina, with family therapy no longer taking place,’ a source exclusively told Us Weekly. 

Pitt and Jolie had appeared to reach a cordial understanding about co-parenting their kids, with the Once upon A Time… In Hollywood actor spotted leaving the actress’ LA home in June after spending time with the children.

However, UsWeekly claims they are now at odds again over how much time they each get with Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, and 12-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne. 

Eldest child Maddox, 19, is allowed to choose his own timetable and is rumored to no longer have any contact with his father. 

‘Brad wants 50/50 joint physical and legal custody of the kids. Angelina has been unagreeable to those terms,’ a source told UsWeekly.

The insider added that Jolie ‘will only agree to talk about an agreement if the home base for the children isn’t Los Angeles. The younger kids are in school in Los Angeles, which Angelina has always been opposed to.’

It’s previously been suggested that Jolie wants to relocate to the UK and base the children with her there.

DailyMail.com has reached out representatives for Pitt and Jolie seeking comment. 

Pitt and Jolie – who enjoyed the moniker Brangelina during their time together – separated in September 2016 when the Maleficent star filed for divorce following an incident aboard a private jet involving son Maddox and Pitt.

The two had met on the set of the film Mr. & Mrs. Smith that was released in June 2005.

Several months before the movie’s debut, Pitt and then wife Jennifer Aniston had announced they were separating after five years of marriage, with the Friends star subsequently filing for divorce in March 2005.

On January 11, 2006, Jolie finally confirmed the romance with Pitt when she confirmed she was pregnant with his child.

Their daughter Shiloh was born in Namibia in May 2006 and two years later, in July 2008, the couple welcomed twins Knox and Vivienne, who were born in Nice, in the south of France.

In early 2006, Pitt also officially adopted Jolie’s adopted son Maddox, born in Cambodia, and daughter Zahara, born in Ethiopia. In 2007, they adopted son Pax who is from Vietnam. 

On August 23, 2015, the couple officially wed at Château Miraval, their estate in Provence, saying at the time that they had made their union legal for the sake of their children.

Fast forward five years, and the pair, who were declared legally single last year, have still not been able to finalize terms regarding custody and support of the children.

The reports of renewed friction between the exes come after Pitt, 56, visited Château Miraval at the end of August with rumored new girlfriend, German model Nicole Poturalski, 27.

He and Jolie had purchased the estate including the Château and vineyard in 2011 for $60 milljon after leasing it for three years. 

‘Taking Nicole to Miraval on their former wedding anniversary, Brad knows exactly what he is doing and the reaction it’s going to get from Angelina,’ a source told UsWeekly at the time. ‘He just doesn’t care if Angelina is going to lash out. He expects she will.’

Britain’s The Mirror reported that Jolie was ‘furious and utterly stunned Brad could stoop this low.’ 

Pitt and Poturalski, who is married with a son, were spotted arriving in the south of France on a private jet.

‘They were kissing and Brad was being super attentive to her,’ a source told OK! magazine. 

‘He was in a semi public place but didn’t seem to mind people seeing him. She’s a real beauty and obviously a lot younger than him.’ 

It’s believed that the pair may have been dating for the best part of a year, as they both attended a performance of Kanye West’s opera Nebuchadnezzar at the Hollywood Bowl in November 2019.

The model, who is currently signed to Next Management in Los Angeles and A Management in Germany, is married to Berlin-based restaurateur Roland Mary, 68, with whom she’s allegedly in an open relationship. 

Meanwhile, a trial has been scheduled for October in Los Angeles where a judge will adjudicate on the child custody and support issues that remain unresolved between Jolie and Pitt. 

The two had previously signed off on the appointment of retired Superior Court Judge John W. Ouderkirk to oversee the proceedings; he had presided over their marriage in 2014.

However, last month, Jolie requested he be removed from the case claiming she feared he would be ‘biased’ against her because he had failed to disclose an existing relationship between himself and Pitt’s lawyers.

Pitt’s legal team accused the actress of making a ‘transparently tactical gambit’ to delay matters, adding that it will be their own children who are ‘hurt most’ by the hold up.  

Ouderkirk denied Jolie’s request that he recuse himself, stating that he is within his rights to continue working as the celebrity divorce continues to drag on and declaring that he can and will be impartial.