Brad Pitt Says He Has Started Drinking Again After 7 Years Sober

3 hours ago 2

August 11, 2026 | 04:12 pm

Brad Pitt makes a fashion statement with his eye-catching look at the Bullet Train premiere/Photo: Instagram.

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Brad Pitt has revealed that he has resumed drinking alcohol in moderation after maintaining sobriety for seven years, saying he is now trying to manage his relationship with alcohol more carefully.

In an interview with Esquire published Monday, the Oscar-winning actor said he had remained sober for seven years before deciding to drink again.

“I was sober for seven years. And then I got back off the wagon,” Pitt said to Esquire, as cited by Los Angeles Times.

Pitt, 62, said he has since learned that moderation is important for him after experiencing moments when he became overconfident about his ability to drink.

“I got overconfident a couple times,” he said, adding that alcohol is “not good for me” in large quantities.

He said he can drink wine but needs to keep his consumption limited. “I can have a few. But I can’t have a lot,” Pitt said. “I have to be professional about it.”

Pitt's Journey to Sobriety

Pitt's struggles with alcohol became public during his highly contentious divorce from Angelina Jolie. The couple's marriage ended in 2016, following an alleged alcohol-related incident aboard a private plane that year.

The fallout from their separation continued for years, with their divorce proceedings only finalized in 2024. Pitt previously acknowledged turning to Alcoholics Anonymous as he sought to address his drinking.

In 2020, Pitt publicly credited fellow actor Bradley Cooper with helping him get sober, saying at an awards ceremony that his life had become happier after giving up alcohol.

Pitt also discussed his experience with a 12-step recovery program during a 2025 appearance on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast, describing the process as an important part of taking responsibility for his past behavior.

Pitt Opens Up About Grief

In his latest Esquire interview, Pitt also reflected on a difficult period in his life, describing the grief and emotional pain he experienced while dealing with what he called “family stuff.”

He said there were moments when he understood how suicide could appear to someone as an escape from overwhelming pain, but added that his survival instinct ultimately prevailed.

Rather than trying to simply escape grief, Pitt said he learned to move through it.

He described recovery as a gradual process of continuing to push forward, even when progress was difficult to recognize.

“I just one day woke up, and it just felt a little sunnier and the air felt a little sweeter,” Pitt said, describing those small improvements as “microdoses” of relief.

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