LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The relationship between a daughter and her father can become challenging even under the best of conditions. But even the most shattered of relationships can be fixed when the time is right and, amid various intervals of separation. Angelina Jolie and her father, Jon Voight, have eventually renewed their estranged relationship. However, once Jolie's father, Voight, made an emotional plea for his daughter to seek treatment for what he called "serious mental problems."
Jolie talked to Vanity Fair in 2017 about getting back in touch with her father and making him a permanent member of the family after she separated from and divorced Brad Pitt. Meanwhile, Pitt is once again alleging that Jolie secretly sold her portion of the winery they jointly owned. Pitt refers to his ex-wife as "vindictive" in the latest case, filed on June 1, as reported by CBS News.
Father and daughter's complicated relationship
When Marcheline Bertrand and Jon Voight separated, Jolie was just two years old. Bertrand raised Jolie and her brother James Haven by herself, per Jolie, who also credits Voight with providing financial support. When Jolie became a mother herself, she spoke about how Bertrand inspired her own parenting style. Jolie and Voight stayed very close until Bertrand's death from cancer in 2007 at the age of 56.
However, Jolie stated that she and her father had an unstable and distant relationship, with only random appearances at press conferences and small roles in his films. In 2002, shortly after their brief reunion when they co-starred in 'Lara Croft: Tomb Raider,' she admitted to Vogue that "We don't really speak that much anymore."
The situation worsened further when the siblings filed a petition to have the surname "Voight" legally removed, requiring the actress to use her middle name, "Jolie," which she was using at the time. Most of the time, her father kept his distance as well, even going so far as to claim that his daughter, Angelina had "serious mental problems."
However, in 2007, Marcheline's death at the age of 56, following a struggle with ovarian cancer, brought Jolie and her father together. Ironically, it was also Jolie's unforeseen difficult divorce from Pitt that allowed her dad to re-enter her life in a meaningful way.
They began to rebuild their relationship over time. The Oscar-winning Voight even attended events with his daughter and grandchildren, whom she has with her ex-husband Pitt. The 'Salt' actress spoke to Vanity Fair in 2017 about getting back in touch with her father and making him a permanent member of the family after she separated from and divorced Pitt.
Jon Voight wept over daughter's 'mental problems'
In one emotional speech, Voight pleaded with his daughter to seek treatment for her "serious mental problems." The 84-year-old actor then sobbed as he appeared on American TV to explain how he had attempted to contact her daughter for support but had been unsuccessful.
He admitted to Access Hollywood, "I haven't come forward and addressed the serious mental problems she has spoken about so candidly to the press over the years, but I've tried behind the scenes in every way." Although he did not describe the issues specifically, he stated that they were "serious symptoms" of a "real illness".
When Jolie divorced her second husband, Billy Bob Thornton, Voight stated he was not surprised. "I never had the feeling that they were going to make it, because of both of their serious problems ... so I never really held out any hope," the father said at the time. The actor claimed he tried everything else in vain before deciding to go public with his appeal.
Brad Pitt refers to ex Angelina Jolie as 'vindictive'
Not only her father, the Oscar-winning actress also has had an estranged relationship with her now ex Brad Pitt. Though, the father-daughter duo reconciled their broken relationship after all these years, the "Brangelina" couple does not seem to come to positive terms in any near future.
Pitt, 59, originally sued Jolie, 47, in 2022 on the grounds that she had sold shares of the Chateau Miraval Winery, which also includes a residence, to Yuri Shefler, a Russian oligarch. Pitt once again claims that Jolie sold her portion of the winery they jointly owned in secret, saying she did it "to seize profits she had not earned and returns on an investment she did not make." Pitt refers to his ex-wife in the newly filed complaint as "vindictive."
The 'Troy' actor claimed that when Jolie and he filed for divorce, they agreed that neither of them would sell their share without the other's approval. In 2008, the couple made their initial purchase of the winery where they later got married. In the court documents, Pitt claims that Jolie paid for 40% of it.
The couple, who has six children together, filed for divorce in 2016, and it was finalized in 2019. The couple has previously been involved in legal combat before the winery suit. The FBI disclosed that it was looking into a purported incident involving Pitt and one of their kids that took place on a plane when they initially filed for divorce.
