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Jennifer Aniston Made a Rare Statement About Moving on After Divorcing Brad Pitt

Therapy wasn't the only thing that helped.

By Emily Tannenbaum

May 28, 2022

Jennifer Aniston found a cathartic way to deal with her divorce from Brad Pitt.

Aniston and Pitt announced their separation in 2005, the same year Friends wrapped its 10-season run. In a new interview with Ellen DeGeneres, the actor revealed how she dealt with all that change. "Well, I got a divorce and went into therapy," Aniston told DeGeneres during the host's final episode of her talk show. "And then I did a movie called The Break-Up. I just kinda leaned into the end. I just was like, 'You know what, guys? Let's make this a completely new chapter. Let's just end everything and start new.' It worked great."

a completely new chapter. Let's just end everything and start new.' It worked great."

Aniston and Pitt were one of Hollywood's hottest couples for seven years and had been married for five when they called it quits. "We would like to announce that after seven years together we have decided to formally separate. For those who follow these sorts of things, we would like to explain that our separation is not the result of any of the speculation reported by the tabloid media," Aniston and Pitt wrote in a joint statement to People on January 7, 2005. "This decision is the result of much thoughtful consideration. We happily remain committed and caring friends with great love and admiration for one another. We ask in advance for your kindness and sensitivity in the coming months."

Months later, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie went public with their relationship. The couple eventually married in 2014 and divorced in 2019. Jennifer Aniston was also married to actor Justin Theroux from 2015 to 2017. Aniston remains close friends with both her ex-husbands.

"Brad and I are buddies. We're friends," Aniston told Howard Stern in June 2021. "We speak, and there's no oddness at all." 

Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston share a moment at the 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on January 19, 2020. 

 Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

"I would say we've remained friends," Theroux told Esquire that same year. "We FaceTime. We text. Like it or not, we didn't have that dramatic split, and we love each other. I'm sincere when I say that I cherish our friendship."

He continued, "We can not be together and still bring each other joy and friendship. Also, she makes me laugh very, very hard. She's a hilarious person. It would be a loss if we weren't in contact, for me personally. And I'd like to think the same for her."