Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Divorce Update: 'Damning' Private Messages Could Prove To Be A Win For Brad - What Do They Say?

In a significant development in the drawn-out legal battle between Hollywood heavyweights Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, a Los Angeles judge has handed a procedural victory to the Fight Club actor.

On Wednesday, 17 December 2025—just one day before Pitt's 62nd birthday—the Superior Court ordered Jolie to surrender a cache of private messages she had previously fought to keep sealed. The ruling marks a potential turning point in the dispute over Château Miraval, the French vineyard the couple once shared, with Pitt's legal team hopeful that the correspondence will expose what they describe as Jolie's 'disingenuous' conduct regarding the sale of her stake.

The 'War of the Rosé', as it has been dubbed in the press, centres on Pitt's allegation that Jolie sold her interest in the winery to a subsidiary of the Stoli Group without his consent, violating a mutual agreement.

Jolie has long maintained that she was forced to exit the business because Pitt demanded she sign an 'abusive' non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that would have silenced her regarding allegations of domestic abuse.

However, Pitt's solicitors argue that the private messages in question—specifically 22 documents exchanged between non-lawyers—will contradict her public narrative. The court has given Jolie 45 days to produce unredacted versions of these communications.

The 'Damning' Evidence: What Pitt's Team Hopes to Find

Sources close to the litigation suggest that the withheld messages could be 'damning' to Jolie's defence. The central theory posited by Pitt's camp is that the messages will reveal the Maleficent star was already negotiating the sale to the Russian-affiliated Stoli Group in secret, motivated not by a refusal to sign an NDA, but potentially by vindictiveness or financial opportunism. If the texts show she was courting the Stoli deal whilst simultaneously stalling negotiations with Pitt, it would undermine her claim that the NDA was the sole dealbreaker.

A source informed People magazine that Pitt's team believes the emails 'would prove Jolie has been disingenuous since the start regarding her true intentions'.

By piercing the veil of privilege Jolie attempted to cast over these specific exchanges, Pitt's barristers aim to demonstrate that the sale was a calculated move to inflict harm on his business interests, rather than a moral stand against a gagging order.

A £27 Million Battle for Control

The financial stakes in this dispute are considerable. Pitt is seeking damages of $35 million (approximately £27 million), claiming that the sale to Tenute del Mondo—the wine division of the Stoli Group—has caused irreparable harm to the Miraval brand.

He alleges the new partners have attempted a 'hostile takeover' of the business he painstakingly built. The disclosure of these private messages is crucial for Pitt to prove 'malice' on Jolie's part, a necessary component for his claims of interference with contractual relations.

Jolie's legal team, led by Paul Murphy, has expressed disappointment in the ruling, describing it as a violation of privilege laws and yet another attempt by Pitt to 'harass and control' his former wife.[4] They argue that the request for these documents is a burdensome distraction from the core issue: Pitt's alleged history of volatile behaviour. Nevertheless, the judge's order to compel discovery suggests the court finds potential relevance in these private exchanges that outweighs the privacy claims asserted by Jolie.

What Lies Ahead

With the 45-day deadline looming, Jolie must now hand over the unredacted documents or face potential sanctions. Legal analysts predict that if these messages indeed contain evidence contradicting her sworn statements about the sale, it could severely weaken her position in the upcoming trial phases.

For Pitt, who has seen the vineyard dispute drag on for years alongside the pair's acrimonious divorce proceedings, this ruling offers a glimmer of vindication. The industry now watches with bated breath to see if these private texts will indeed provide the 'smoking gun' that settles the battle for the French estate once and for all.