Brad Pitt Blames Troubles on ‘My Own Hubris’ As He Promotes ‘War Machine’

Brad Pitt is getting back on top of his game now that the emotional roller coaster of separation and divorce from Angelina Jolie is finally coming to an end. While the former couple still has some issues to work out, Pitt is turning his attention back to the things that make him happy, including his love for cinema. That passion for acting is evident in Pitt’s latest project, War Machine; a satirical and fictionalized look at the life of General Stanley McChrystal, a four-star general who saw his rise to power during the Afghanistan war. As Brad launches a press tour to promote War Machine, he can’t help but draw parallels between McChrystal’s rise and fall and his own life.

War Machine Gives Brad Pitt a New Perspective on His Own Life

As Yahoo Movies reports, War Machine takes a sardonic look at a lifetime military man as he rises to power, only to be knocked down from his perch through his own pride and greed. In playing the character, who is named General Glen McMahon in the film, Brad Pitt found himself drawing uncanny parallels to his own personal life.

“Hubris is a trap and it’s the trap of every great nation that has been number one for too long. You start believing your own stink,” Pitt says. “Anytime I’ve gotten in trouble, it’s because of my own hubris.”

While Pitt doesn’t specifically mention Angelina Jolie, the large part of his life was spent with Ms. Jolie, so Brad can only be harboring some regrets in regard to that failed relationship. Without knowing details about Brad’s personal life, that’s certainly the easy conclusion to draw, but, as the War Machine star later alluded, there are many facets of his life in which Brad feels he might have done better.

Pitt says he’s taking a deeper interest in his children. After facing the possibility of losing his children, along with Angelina, Brad has found a renewed passion for fatherhood and a joy for keeping his children in his life. The War Machine actor says he’s trying to adapt to the new extended family dynamic and learning how he fits into this new situation.

Brad Pitt Still Loves Life in Spite of Depression Rumors

Brad went through a very dark time in full view of the public when child protective services became involved in the actor’s family drama with Angelina and their children, reports USA Today. Pitt recalls feeling down even before the suggestion of child abuse raised concerns by the government agency, and as the investigation was launched, the War Machine star says he felt backed up against a wall.

In the end, everything worked out and no charges were filed. Ms. Jolie and Mr. Pitt put the past behind them and began striving together to find a way to make things work with their children’s interests in mind. Brad says that both he and Angelina have been disgusted by the viciousness of their lawyers, with each side trying to dig up dirt on the other.

In the end, Pitt says he and Jolie refused to play the legal games. They came together, as they have done so often in the past, to hash out the best arrangement for both of them and for the happiness of their children.

Since losing his marriage, Brad has been the subject of much speculation with fans worrying over weight loss or with Pitt’s apparent withdrawal from the limelight. The War Machine actor says he’s fine, however.

“I’m not suicidal or something,” says Brad Pitt. “There’s still much beauty in the world and a lot of love. And a lot of love to be given. It’s all right. It’s just life.”

War Machine, starring Brad Pitt, Anthony Hayes, and John Magaro, opens in theaters on May 26.

[Featured Image by Rich Fury/Getty Images]