Before the whole ‘Brangelina’ saga, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston had tied the knot and were Hollywood’s ultimate golden couple.
After a total of seven years together, the Friends star and Fight Club‘s main man announced that they were splitting in January 2005, having married in July 2000, with the divorce being complete by the end of March 2005.
Their statement read: “We would like to announce that after seven years together we have decided to formally separate. For those who follow these sorts of things, we would like to explain that our separation is not the result of any of the speculation reported by the tabloid media.
“This decision is the result of much thoughtful consideration. We happily remain committed and caring friends with great love and admiration for one another.”
Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt pictured together in 2001 (Kevin Winter/Getty Images.)
It came around the same time Mr. & Mrs. Smith was being shot, with it released in cinemas throughout the US and further afield in June 2005.
Of course, Pitt starred as John Smith while Angelina Jolie played Jane Smith, and according to Courteney Cox, Aniston’s co-star on Friends, Pitt made an honest confession to Aniston at the time.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Cox said: “I don’t think he started an affair physically, but I think he was attracted to her.
“There was a connection, and he was honest about that with Jen. Most of the time, when people are attracted to other people, they don’t tell.
“At least he was honest about it. It was an attraction that he fought for a period of time.”
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt met on the set of Mr and Mrs Smith. (20th Century Fox)
Aniston had reportedly been going through a difficult time after Friends finished it’s ten season run in 2004, and according to insiders, Pitt – who busy filming with Jolie – ‘just wasn’t there for her’.
An insider told PEOPLE magazine at the time: “They gradually lost sight of themselves as individuals. And despite their nice lifestyle and having everything they might want, they weren’t happy. They lost a sense of self.”
Of course, Pitt and Jolie went on to start a relationship shortly after the split, going on to get married in 2014. But they filed for divorce just two years later.
Amid the rumor mill, many saw Aniston as the wronged party and pitted her against Jolie.
Jennifer Aniston’s split from Brad Pitt was tabloid fodder for years (ABC)
When stories of Pitt and Jolie’s relationship emerged, Aniston generally avoided speaking too much on the tabloid drama.
However, in 2015, ten years after her divorce, the actor publicly discussed the ‘rivalry’ that the press had created between her and Jolie.
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Aniston said: “I think it’s time people stop with that petty B.S. and just start celebrating great work and stop with the petty kind of silliness.
“I think that’s slowly coming to an end. I really do. It’s just tiresome and old. It’s like an old leather shoe. Let’s buy a new pair of shiny shoes.”
