If you’re struggling to keep up with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s never-ending divorce battle, plus his tangled love life, spare a thought for how their six kids are feeling.
WATCH: Shiloh Jolie-Pitt is all grown up
Recent delays in the former couple’s four-year custody case – along with Brad cavorting with model Nicole Poturalski, a 27-year-old married mum-of-one – has caused Maddox, 19, Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, and 12-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox to “become unsettled” and “nervous”.
“The older boys already didn’t have much time with Brad, but they think things have now gone too far,” one insider connected to the family tells New Idea.
“Thankfully, Viv and Knox are sheltered from a lot of it, but Zahara is very much Team Ange and hardly mentions Brad’s name anymore.”
That leaves poor Shiloh, who we’re told is “really struggling”.
“Shi is close to both her mum and dad, and has always been a sensitive little thing, so she feels very torn,” continues the insider.
“She’s had to deal with four years of ugly fighting between her parents, and all of a sudden her dad has this new woman who looks like her mum on the scene … It’s all too much!”
Last week – almost four years to the day since Brad and Ange split in September 2016 – the family feud took a terrifying turn when Shiloh “cracked it and just took off,” says the source.
She reportedly disappeared to a friend’s house for almost two whole days until she calmed down and returned home.
Word on the street near Angelina’s leafy LA mansion was that there was a “frantic search party” for the teenager and cops were even called.
“Angie was worried sick, as you can imagine,” explains the insider.
“She knows Shiloh has different needs to her siblings and it’s been hard to be there for all the ways each of them are reacting. Shiloh is such a quiet kid, so it’s hard to know what she’s thinking.”
When Shiloh “vanished”, Ange, 45, thought the worst. We’re told that there is a large homeless encampment just a couple of blocks from the star’s mansion, and hundreds of trails in the mountains nearby.
“Her staff could be seen combing the streets around the neighbourhood, so word got around with locals pretty quickly about what was going on.”
In a huge relief for Angelina, Shiloh eventually called her and told her where she was. The actress agreed to let her stay at her friend’s for as long as she needed.
“Shiloh obviously just needed some time to think, and Angelina respects that,” explains the source.
“What she doesn’t respect is Brad parading this stunning German model around Europe, knowing the kids will see it all. She holds Brad firmly responsible for Shiloh’s disappearance.”
One thing’s for sure – Ange’s friends say she’s planning on using Brad’s romance with Nicole during their impending trial.
While Nicole is said to be in an open relationship with her husband, 68-year-old German restaurateur Roland Mary, Brad still being involved with a married woman is exactly the kind of behaviour that a judge might frown upon.
“Ange couldn’t have planned this better herself … Brad could very well lose joint custody with this romance being the tipping point.”
The courtroom showdown was slowed down again last month when Ange accused the judge on their case – who married the pair in 2014 – of being “too close to Brad’s legal team”.
“Angelina might think she’s doing what’s best for her children – in her mind, it’s the only motivating factor,” says a source.
“But this thing has dragged on for so long now that it feels like it’s not really benefiting anyone. By the time it’s all over, half the kids will be legal adults – and who knows what baggage they’ll have dragged with them from this ordeal.”
