Zahara Jolie-Pitt is following in her mom Angelina Jolie’s footsteps by embracing charity and equal rights, as a source exclusively tells In Touch her estranged father, Brad Pitt, is also cheering her on every step of the way, albeit from a distance.
“Zahara has totally shut Brad out, but that hasn’t stopped him loving her and wanting the very best for her,” the insider says. “He’s still massively proud of the young woman she’s become.”
The 20-year-old Spellman College student took the stage at the Women in Training, Inc. mother-daughter brunch on March 1 to give a speech on period poverty, which the NIH defines as “having insufficient access to menstrual products, education, and sanitation facilities.” Even though a mother-daughter brunch isn’t exactly where you’d expect to find Brad, 61, the source points out the Troy star’s isolation has become a fact of the family.
A good deal of the Jolie-Pitt brood have been giving their dad the cold shoulder amid the brutal decade-long divorce battle between him and ex Angelina, 49, which only recently wrapped up. During the back and forth fight over how to split their once-married life that kicked off when the Salt actress filed for divorce in September 2016, allegations of Brad’s abuse surfaced, including particularly nasty claims he got physical with his family on a private jet, with the original filing stating he “poured beer on Jolie … he poured beer and red wine on the children.”
Though Brad denied the claims, Angie’s lawyer stated, “While Pitt’s history of physical abuse of Jolie started well before the family’s September 2016 plane trip from France to Los Angeles, this flight marked the first time he turned his physical abuse on the children as well … Jolie then immediately left him.”
The couple’s daughter, Shiloh Jolie, even decided to drop “Pitt” from her formerly-hyphenated surname as soon as she turned 18. According to reports, she also refuses to speak with her dad.
The source says it’s all pain for the Moneyball star in the wake of the allegations considering how he’s now cut off from his kids, especially as Zahara steps up to the plate at school and in her philanthropic efforts. “He’s devastated that she’s turned her back on him, but he actually doesn’t blame her because he believes she’s been manipulated by Angelina. He’s still holding onto the hope that things will get better with Zahara and with all his kids, he’s never going to give up trying.”
“Right now, all he can do is watch from a distance, which is very hard, but as a parent, the pain is worth it to see his daughter shining so brightly,” the insider adds.
“As you can imagine, Angelina’s getting the credit for nurturing this side of Zahara and creating a young humanitarian. And to be fair, she has done a lot to open doors for Zahara, she’s clearly the role model for her daughter and she’s darn proud.”
