Brad Pitt recently gave a very open interview to GQ, in which he opened up about his past substance abuse issues and said he is living a clean life post-split from Angelina Jolie.
"I've got no secrets. I've got nothing to hide," Pitt told the Associated Press. "We're human and I find the human condition very interesting. If we're not talking about it, then we're not getting better."
Since his split from Jolie, Pitt said he has been working with his ex and "figuring out the new configuration of our family."
''Kids are everything," he said, of their six children. "Kids are your life. They're taking all the focus, as they should anyway."
He said he is spending his time "keeping the ship afloat" in terms of his family. And he joked that his situation isn’t so dire.
"I'm not suicidal or something," Pitt said, laughing. "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."
Pitt was most keen to discuss "War Machine" and the strong passions behind it. The film, written and directed by the Australian filmmaker David Michod ("Animal Kingdom"), is based on Michael Hastings' 2012 book "The Operators," which chronicled McChrystal's tumultuous and short-lived stewardship of the war in Afghanistan.
"War Machine," which debuts on Netflix May 26, takes a slightly fictionalized approach. Pitt's character is named Gen. Glen McMahon, but the events and personalities covered correspond accurately with McChrystal's downfall.
The film has Pitt thinking about the situation in Afghanistan, and he is particularly upset by a request last week by advisers to President Donald Trump and military officials for several thousand more American troops in Afghanistan.
"Nothing that we've ever done has said that more troops are going to do anything but cause any more damage, more loss of life and limb," said Pitt. "We talk a lot about supporting our troops but I think supporting our troops is much more than giving them money and a pat on the back. I think it's being responsible to how we use that ultimate dedication."
Trump's top advisers have said the president has not made any final decision about adding more troops in Afghanistan.
Pitt said “War Machine” excited him enough to come out from behind the lens.
"The degree of difficulty on this one was ten," said Pitt, "which is what makes it worth it for me to go get in front of the camera now."
He hinted that his movie days may be nearly behind him.
"I feel myself as I'm older gravitating more to the producing side than being in front of the camera," said Pitt. "It's a big commitment, a film, and it does take you away from your family. I just have to balance that. It's not less important, itself, it's just not as important as family. ('War Machine') I loved because it's after something and we don't know where we're going to end up. It's a delicate tightrope to walk."
He credited Netflix for its role in the production.
“It wouldn't have gotten made without Netflix. The reality for the studios is it just doesn't make sense for them on paper. They can take the gamble up to $35 million on a risky film. And then otherwise they focus on big tent-poles which seem to be safer and make the big payoffs. It's not their fault in any way. The numbers just don't run for them. Now with Netflix and other entities like Netflix, it becomes a whole new delivery system for these kinds of films I prefer to gamble on. For us, it's opened up a whole new world of possibilities. I'll stick work with studios, I'll always do that, at least I think so, as long as they're around. Because they are still films that deserve to have the big-screen, cultural experience.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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