Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie filed for divorce from Brad Pitt on Monday, ending two years of marriage of the most high-profile and glamorous Hollywood couple.
Jolie, 41-year-old, filed her petition Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for the breakup.
Jolie is asking the court for physical custody of the couple's six children and to grant Pitt visitation rights. Jolie is not asking for spousal support. Among their six children, they gave birth to three of them and adopted two from Africa, one from Vietnam.
Pitt and Jolie have been together since 2004 and married in August 2014. According to the court documents, it lists the date of separation of the pair on Sept. 15, two years and one month after they married.
A source close to the couple told People magazine that "The divorce is a complete shock. They have definitely spent more time apart this year, but it's still a shock. They just celebrated their wedding anniversary together."
"I am very saddened by this, but what matters most now is the well-being of our kids," Pitt said in a statement to People magazine. "I kindly ask the press to give them the space they deserve during this challenging time."
"Angelina will always do what's in the best interest to protect her children," Geyer Kosinski, Jolie's manager, told the press on Tuesday. "She appreciates everyone's understanding of their need for privacy at this time."
In addition to being an actress, Jolie also is a filmmaker and humanitarian. She has received an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. She also has been cited in the past as Hollywood's highest-paid actress.
Jolie made her screen debut as a child alongside her father, Jon Voight, in "Lookin' to Get Out" in 1982. Her first leading role in a major film came in 1995 in "Hackers."
Jolie won an Academy Award for best supporting actress for her performance in the 1999 drama "Girl, Interrupted."
She was previously married to actors Jonny Lee Miller and Billy Bob Thornton.
Jolie is represented in her divorce petition by attorney Laura Wasser, who also assisted the actress in her divorce from Thornton and is representing Johnny Depp in his divorce from Amber Heard.
Pitt, 52 years old, was previously married with former "Friends" co-star Jennifer Aniston.
He won an Oscar in 2014 as a producer of best-picture winner "12 Years a Slave." He received Oscar nominations for best actor for his work in "Moneyball" and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," and was nominated for his supporting role in "Twelve Monkeys" that won him a Golden Globe.
He was also a producer of Oscar best-picture nominees "The Big Short" and "Moneyball."
Pitt and Jolie starred together between 2004 and 2005 when they film "Mr. and Mrs. Smith." At that time, Pitt was married to actress Jennifer Aniston. In January 2005, Pitt and Aniston announced they were splitting and Aniston filed for divorce a few months later. Months later that year, Pitt and Jolie appeared together.
Pitt and Jolie have also been partners in charity. Pitt has worked for years to help rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. And Jolie is a United Nations special envoy for refugee issues, a critical topic at the UN General Assembly meeting in New York this week.
