Brad Pitt says he is drinking again after seven years of sobriety, admitting he is 'back off the wagon' but insisting he now keeps his alcohol intake tightly controlled.
In a recent interview with Esquire, the Hollywood star revealed he has reintroduced alcohol into his life, while stressing he is determined to avoid the excessive drinking that previously led him to seek help for alcohol abuse. 'I was sober for seven years and then I went back off the wagon,' Pitt said laughingly.
The 62-year-old actor said his relationship with alcohol has changed. He said he has learnt from past experiences and now makes a conscious effort to stay disciplined about how much he consumes.
'In a more restrained manner,' Pitt explained. 'I got overconfident a couple times, went, "Yep, nope, not good for me." Not in big quantities.'
Pitt Says He Can Now Limit Himself
He made the admission after offering the Esquire interviewer some wine during their interview at his Los Angeles home. The actor, who starred in 'Fight Club' and 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood', said he is now able to have a few glasses of wine but accepts he cannot safely return to heavy drinking.
'I can have a few,' said Pitt, while also acknowledging: 'I can't have a lot. I have to be professional about it.' He added. His remarks mark a clear shift from the period when Pitt publicly committed to sobriety and turned to Alcoholics Anonymous for support.
Seven Years of Sobriety
In 2019 Pitt first revealed that he had given up drinking and had entered a 12-step programme. He said he had pushed his drinking as far as it could go and decided to give up what he called his 'drinking privilege'.
He later discussed his first attendance at an AA meeting on Dax Shepard's 'Armchair Expert' podcast, describing the experience as 'amazing' even though he was at a particularly difficult stage in his life.
Pitt recalled being 'pretty much on my knees' and said he needed to 'wake the f–k up' in some aspects of his life. He said he tried everything that was suggested to him and 'all sorts of other things', since, as he put it, he needed a 'rebooting'.
Strain of Split From Angelina Jolie
The issues Pitt faced with alcohol became closely linked in public discussion to his separation from Angelina Jolie. The couple split in 2016 after an incident on a private plane was reported. Jolie later made accusations regarding Pitt's behaviour during that incident in legal documents, a claim which Pitt has denied.
The pair, who share six children, were legally declared single in 2019 and only reached an agreement on their divorce in 2024 after years of legal disputes.
Pitt has also spoken about going through a very dark time as a result of family problems. In his most recent interview he recalled having suicidal thoughts, although he emphasised that he had no intention of acting on them.
Pitt has not completely given up drinking, but has said he remains aware of the risks involved in excessive alcohol use and is focused on keeping what he drinks within limits he believes he can manage.
