Roughly one month ahead of the release of her film Unbroken, Angelina Jolie has announced that she might retire from the acting world in the coming year. The award winning performer, who has starred in well over two dozen movies, will instead focus her artistic energy behind the camera.
Speaking with Du Jour Magazine, Jolie opened up about acting. “I’ve never been comfortable as an actor; I’ve never loved being in front of the camera. I didn’t ever think I could direct, but I hope I’m able to have a career at it because I’m much happier.” Adding, “Directing is very different from acting because it takes more than two years of your life, so it has to matter—really matter—in a different way.”
Before turning her focus all to directing, Jolie will work on a love story By The Sea where she will direct and star opposite her husband and fellow actor Brad Pitt. “Compared to Unbroken, this film is a walk in the park,” Jolie said. “The tricky thing is directing myself and directing Brad. It’s hard, dramatic material, and we’re balancing. It’s a heavy film, and it’s not easy for us. But even as you struggle through it, you’re in the trenches together and you don’t expect it to be easy. We’re challenging each other and that’s a really good thing.”
The film follows a 1970s American couple, their complicated marriage, and their trip to France.
Jolie also touched on her most recent project that teamed the 39-year-old with the talented Ethan and Joel Coen. The brothers, responsible for True Grit and Fargo, penned the screenplay. Unbroken is a true account of the life of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who later became a prisoner of war when he was captured by Japanese forces during World War II. The casting of Zamperini was crucial for Jolie. “The trick of casting Louie was that he had to be somebody that was really a man’s man, but also somebody who had a strong sense of family, a talented actor with a deep emotional well.”
Jolie chose English actor Jack O’Connell of Skins fame. “Jack had this combination of fight, fire and spirit,” Jolie said. “As soon as I met him, I knew he was Louie.”
Unbroken will be released on Christmas Day.
