Why Brad Pitt Doesn’t Go Out in Public With His Kids: ‘Doesn’t Want to Rock the Boat’
Despite having visitation rights with his youngest three children, Brad Pitt prefers to keep his relationship with his kids private to avoid conflict with their mother, Angelina Jolie.
“He definitely doesn’t want to rock the boat regarding his visitation rights, which is why he closely guards their privacy and hasn’t even taken the children out in public, even though Angelina is seen with them relatively often,” a source exclusively tells In Touch. “He doesn’t want to give her any ammunition that would jeopardize his seeing them.”
The insider adds that “the ongoing custody battle with Angelina is as fragile as ever.”
“[Angelina] still seems hell-bent on destroying him and has been scolded for jealously sabotaging his relationship with the kids in the past, so it wouldn’t be surprising if she tried again,”
The pair, who met on the set of their 2005 film Mr. & Mrs. Smith, have been in the midst of a brutal custody battle over their six children since their 2016 split.
While their three eldest children are legally adults, Brad, 60, has “finally won back” younger children Shiloh, 17, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 15. “[He] has slowly rebuilt his relationship with” them, as his relationship with the former couple’s eldest children remains strained.
“Every time he’s reunited with Shiloh or the twins, it’s very emotional,” another insider told In Touch.
The pair’s son Pax, 20, previously blasted his father in a nasty Father’s Day post in June 2020. “You time and time again prove yourself to be a terrible and despicable person. You have no consideration or empathy towards your 4 youngest children who tremble in fear when in your presence. You will never understand the damage you’ve done to my family because you are incapable of doing so,” the post, which resurfaced in 2023, reportedly read. “You have made the lives of those closest to me a constant hell. You may tell yourself and the world whatever you want, but the truth will come to light someday. So, happy Father’s Day, you f–king awful human being!!!”
Their eldest daughter, Zahara, 19, also threw shade at their father in November 2023 as she dropped Pitt from her last name while joining Alpha Kappa Alpha at Spelman College.
Despite the ongoing turmoil, a source told In Touch, “Brad is determined to regain their trust so he can continue to be in their lives as adults,” adding, “He hopes one day there will be peace in their hearts.”
Amid the ongoing battle with the Maleficent star, 48, Brad has moved on with girlfriend Ines de Ramon, who recently moved into his Los Feliz estate.
Read the full story in this week's issue of In Touch Weekly on newsstands today.
