Brad Pitt Opens Up About Mental Health, Alcoholism and Suicidal Thoughts
Speaking with Esquire magazine, the 62-year-old reflected on the personal fallout following his 2016 separation from ex-wife Angelina Jolie, addressing long-standing public speculation regarding his sobriety and family life.
Reflecting on Mental Health and Personal Trials
The profile detailed how years of high-profile personal drama and ongoing legal battles with Jolie have taken a toll on the actor. Pitt told the magazine that while his default disposition tends toward optimism, that mindset has occasionally backfired. “I was never suicidal in any way. It just was not my makeup,” Pitt stated to Esquire, as reported by USA Today. “In fact, if I have any afflictions, it’s probably being a congenital optimist. Which has helped many times, and it’s also gotten me – I’ve walked foolishly head-on into a Mack truck because of my optimism.”
However, the actor acknowledged one exceptionally dark phase during the turbulence. “I’ve never been suicidal except for one little period. And in that one little period, I just didn’t see a way out,” Pitt said. “The pain was so oppressive that – I wasn’t going to act on this – but I could feel the cold steel of the bullet in my head, and it felt like relief.” He added that his natural survival instincts quickly intervened.
Navigating Sobriety and Moderation
Alcohol consumption played a major role in Pitt’s life during the final years of his marriage. According to coverage by Tempo, Pitt previously consumed alcohol heavily from morning until night as a form of emotional escape from unresolved personal wounds. In a past interview with NDTV cited by Tempo, the actor noted that his life required a complete reboot following his 2016 split from Jolie.
In his recent conversation with Esquire, Pitt updated the public on his current relationship with alcohol. After achieving seven years of sobriety—during which he attended Alcoholics Anonymous—he admitted to a relapse. “I was sober for seven years. And then I got back off the wagon,” Pitt said, explaining that he now drinks in moderation. “In a more restrained manner. I got overconfident a couple times, went, ‘Yep, nope, not good for me.’ Not in big quantities.” He clarified to the magazine that while he can consume a small amount, professional boundaries remain necessary.
Legal Battles and Family Dynamics
The public disclosures arrive amid a decade of continuous legal friction between Pitt and Jolie, whose marriage ended when they filed for divorce in September 2016. Though legally declared single in 2019, their divorce was finalized in December 2024, as noted by USA Today. The former couple has remained locked in disputes over Château Miraval, a French vineyard they once shared, which spurred court filings detailing allegations and requests for financial records.
The ongoing family strain has also extended to the actor’s relationship with his six children: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Vivienne, and Knox. Several children have taken legal steps to drop Pitt’s last name in recent years, including daughter Vivienne, who filed a name change request in a Los Angeles court on July 20, 2026. While Pitt declined to delve deeply into the specifics of these domestic developments with Esquire, he acknowledged that “family stuff” heavily influenced his declining mental health during the hardest periods of the past decade.