Angelina Jolie is opening up about what it means to be a mother and how she, like most parents, tries to hide her pain and sadness from her children.
"I’ve been a parent for 23 years. The most beautiful thing about being a parent is that you are not the center of your life," Jolie told the The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interview before the release of her new biopic film, Maria, which follows the life and legacy of opera singer Maria Callas.
"So you are leaving set, focused on something for someone. That’s your real life. Your real world. And that always is the majority of who you are," she continued. "I have never had a set where my family is not allowed to be there because I’m focusing—I’m not that person. You can climb all over me or visit."
Jolie went on to explain that her sons, Maddox and Pax, were on set of her new film working as assistants, and as a result were privy to some of the film's more emotional moments that required Jolie to dig deep and, at one point, cry in a way her sons had never heard before.
"It really meant a lot that my boys were with me on Maria. When I would have really heavy times, they would come over and just give me a hug or a cup of tea," Jolie explained. "That was probably one of the more intense things was that—usually when I’m expressing that much pain, it’s not in front of my children.
"You really try to hide from your children how much pain and sadness you carry," she added. "And so for them to be with you when you’re expressing it at such a level, I think it was the first time they ever heard me cry like that. That’s usually for the shower."
The proud mom of six went on to say that she took a significant break from acting because she "needed to be home more with her kids," but now that her children are becoming adults she says her family is entering "a new season in our lives" that allows her more freedom.
"They’re a bit older, getting more independent. I’m less needed and so able to go away for different periods of time," she said. "And they’re old enough to join me at work. It’s a new season in our lives. I’m very excited for them to be coming into their own more and more every day."
While Jolie did not discuss her ongoing and contentious divorce from Brad Pitt, she has seemingly alluded to her split from the actor while attending this year's Venice Film Festival.
"There’s a lot I won’t say in this room that you probably know and assume," the actress said during a press conference on Thursday, Aug. 29, and after being asked what she had most in common with real-life opera singer Maria Callas.
"I related to the part of her that is extremely soft and didn’t have room in the world to be as soft as she truly was and as emotionally open as she truly was," Jolie continued, as reported by People. "I think I share her vulnerability more than anything."
