Brad Pitt Opens Up About Attending AA Amid ‘Difficult’ Time: ‘I Was Trying Anything and Everyone’

Brad Pitt got candid about his private struggles and the “difficult” time in his life that led him to attending Alcoholics Anonymous.

During a Monday, June 23, installment of Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, the Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood star, 61, admitted he was “pretty much on my knees” and “trying anything and everyone” at that point – including therapy.

“I needed rebooting,” he added. “I needed to wake the f**k up in some areas. And it just meant a lot to me.”

While Pitt confessed he initially felt a bit timid by the idea of being vulnerable with a group of strangers, he “grew to love” the meetings, as they gave him permission to say, “OK, I’m gonna step out on this edge and see what happens.”

“I just thought it was just incredible men sharing their experiences,” he continued. “Their foibles, their missteps, their wants, their aches, and a lot of humor with it. I thought it was a really special experience.”

While the F1 actor did not clarify exactly when he attended his first AA meeting, he’s previously claimed to have quit drinking in 2017 as he elaborated on his history with substance abuse in a sit-down with GQ.

“Personally, I can’t remember a day since I got out of college when I wasn’t boozing or had a spliff, or something,” he said at the time. “And you realize that a lot of it is, cigarettes, you know, pacifiers. And I’m running from feelings.”

He noted he was “really, really happy to be done with all of that.”

Pitt’s decision to quit drinking came the year after an incident that allegedly occurred aboard his and ex-wife Angelina Jolie’s private jet. The Maleficent star, 50, accused Pitt of becoming drunk while on the international flight from France to the United States. He was also accused of being  verbally abusive to one of their children – Maddox, 23, Pax, 21, Zahara, 20, Shiloh, 19, Knox and Vivienne, 16.

They split that same year and entered into a yearslong legal battle as they fought in court over how to divide assets and custody of their children.

According to a since-released 2016 investigation report from the FBI, obtained by People, Jolie further alleged that she and her ex had gotten into it on the 2016 flight. The documents claimed that Pitt allegedly grabbed Jolie and shook her and made her feel “like a hostage.”

However, the FBI declined to press charges against Pitt and the actor has denied the allegations.

Their divorce was officially finalized in December 2024.