What happened to Angelina Jolie’s mother? Actress says she struggled with acting after mother’s death

Angelina Jolie recently opened up about her struggles with acting after her mother, Marcheline Bertrand's passing.

Marcheline Bertrand passed away on January 27, 2007, in Los Angeles at 56. She had reportedly battled for over seven and half years with ovarian and breast cancer. During her final moments, Bertrand was in the presence of her daughter, Angelina Jolie; son, James Haven; and Brad Pitt (Jolie's then-partner).

The Eternals actress spoke to W Magazine recently, when revealed whether she was always interested in pursuing acting as a job. Responding to the question, Jolie claimed that she started her acting career initially because it was her "mother's dream." The Maleficent said,

"She [Jolie's mother] pursued acting, but by the time my mom was 25, she was divorced with two kids and she decided to focus her life solely on motherhood. She didn't make me feel like it was a sacrifice—she loved being a stay-at-home mom. But she really wanted me to be an actress."

Jolie claimed that acting made her mother happy. Bertrand was also her manager, as they worked as a team. Back in the day, the actress wanted to buy a house for her mother while she had begun paying the bills. However, after Bertrand passed away, she struggled to continue as an actress.

"When my mom passed, it was harder for me to be an actress because I realized how much of it was for her."

For the unversed, Illinois native Marcheline Bertrand was married to actor Jon Voight between 1971 and 1980. Following their split, Bertrand, an aspiring actress, gave up on her dreams to raise Jolie and Haven as a single mother.

Although Bertrand did appear in Lookin' to Get Out and The Man Who Loved Women, she shifted her focus to producing during the latter part of her career.

Angelina Jolie did live up to her mother's expectations, earning global fame for her acting performances and humanitarian work. Jolie is among the most well-known faces of Hollywood around the world. She was recently seen in the Maria Callas biopic, released in Italy on New Year's Day.

The Angelina Jolie Starrer Maria will be released in the UK and Ireland on January 11

After an underwhelming critical performance of Eternals, the Mr. & Mrs. Smith actress made her acting comeback with Maria. Pablo Larraín's directorial venture is a biographical-psychological drama based on the life of celebrated opera singer Maria Callas. Reportedly, Angelina Jolie had trained for months for the opera singing part in the film.

The film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, Italy, in August 2024, followed by multiple screenings at different festivals.

Maria was also released in select theaters across the United States in November 2024 before making its way to Netflix US on December 11. The film debuted in Italy on January 1, 2025, and will be released in the UK and Ireland on the 10th.

Trending

Angelina Jolie has received some rave reviews for her performance, while the film has received a positive reception from critics. As of this writing, Maria has a 76% score on Rotten Tomatoes' Tomatometer.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback

Comment