Jennifer Aniston Says This Is Her Biggest Regret About Brad Pitt
Though she still looks back fondly on their marriage, there are things she would have done differently.
Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston were making headlines from the moment their relationship went public in 1998. And that's to be expected any time a massive movie star and one of TV's most beloved actors get together. Of course, the stars' marriage famously ended in 2005, five years after they tied the knot, leading to another tabloid frenzy about who ended it and why. While Aniston has said that she still thinks of their marriage as an overall success, she has also revealed her biggest regret from the time she spent with Pitt. Read on for the details, and for more former couples on good terms, check out 48 Celebrity Exes Who Are Best Friends Now.
If Aniston had the chance, she would change some things.
In the September 2005 issue of Vanity Fair, Aniston opened up about some of her regrets from her first marriage, saying that there was "a lot [she] would probably do differently." She went on to explain that, as a couple, she and Pitt didn't have the opportunity to spend much quality time together outside of their busy lives.
"I'd take more vacations—getting away from work, enjoying each other in different environments," Aniston said. "But there was always something preventing it; either he was working or I was."
In addition to acknowledging the issues their careers posed when it came to their relationship, Aniston admitted that she'd made some mistakes as well.
"I wouldn't give over so much of myself, which I did at times," she reflected. "I love taking care of people, and I definitely put his needs before mine sometimes…somewhere along the way, you sort of lose yourself."
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Aniston also made it clear that there's no simple answer as to why they broke up.
Though much was made of the potential overlap between Pitt's marriage to Aniston and his budding relationship with Mr. & Mrs. Smith co-star Angelina Jolie, who he later married and separated from, Aniston said that there wasn't one specific issue that led to their split. "Relationships are complicated, whether they're friendships or business relationships or parent relationships," she told Vanity Fair. "There are all these levels of growth—and when you stop growing together, that's when the problems happen."
She also wanted it known that she didn't feel "like the victim" or as though she'd been "left for another woman."
"We take responsibility for our own input," the actor added. "To live in a victim place is pointing a finger at someone else, as if you have no control."
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She still felt "lucky" to have been married to Pitt.
Aniston also shared that, at the end of the day, she was still happy that the relationship happened.
"I feel so lucky to have experienced it," she told the magazine. "I wouldn't know what I know now if I hadn't married Brad."
"I will love him for the rest of my life. He's a fantastic man. I don't regret any of it," Aniston continued. "We helped each other through a lot, and I really value that…The sad thing, for me, is the way it's been reduced to a Hollywood cliché—or maybe it's just a human cliché."
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But Aniston doesn't want to be defined by her marital status.
In an interview with TODAY in August of 2014, Aniston opened up about the societal pressure put on women to get married and have children. "I don't have this sort of checklist of things that have to be done," she told Carson Daly. "I've birthed a lot of things, and I feel like I've mothered many things. And I don't think it's fair to put that pressure on people."
After her second divorce from actor Justin Theroux in 2017, who she married in 2015, Aniston shared that she's proud of both of those committed relationships, even though they eventually ended. "My marriages, they've been successful, in [my] personal opinion," Aniston told Elle in 2018.
"To stay in a marriage based on fear feels like you're doing your one life a disservice," she continued. "When the work has been put in and it doesn't seem like there's an option of it working, that's OK." For more entertainment news sent right to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
She's on friendly terms with both of her former husbands.
Aniston and Pitt have maintained a solid friendship, and anytime the two of them are together, it doesn't go unnoticed. Photos of them greeting each other backstage at the 2020 SAG Awards went viral immediately. And when Pitt and Aniston were both a part of a virtual table read for Fast Times at Ridgemont High later that year, fans and co-stars alike commented on their still crackling chemistry. Not to be outdone, Theroux has posted a loving birthday message for Aniston to Instagram every year since they broke up. While there's no evidence that either of these relationships is being rekindled, no bridges have been burned either. For more on the star's close connections, See Jennifer Aniston's Matching Tattoo With Her Best Friend.
