Hollywood star Angelina Jolie recently revealed how her late mother's passing impacted her acting career in a candid interview with W magazine. The actress shared that pursuing acting was initially driven by her mother Marcheline Bertrand's unfulfilled dreams in the entertainment industry.
"I did it in the beginning because it was my mother's dream," Jolie explained, describing how Bertrand had attempted to build an acting career in both Chicago theater and Los Angeles before choosing to focus on raising her children after divorcing Jon Voight.
The mother-daughter duo formed a close professional partnership early in Jolie's career, with Bertrand serving as her manager. "We were a team," Jolie remembered, noting that she wanted to support her mother financially, including buying her a house.
However, after Bertrand's death from cancer in 2007 at age 56, Jolie found it challenging to continue acting. "When my mom passed, I think it was harder for me to be an actress for a while," she admitted. "I realized how much it was for her."
In her recent Gotham Awards acceptance speech, Jolie highlighted her mother's profound influence on her artistic development, sharing a touching memory: "I grew up with a mother who kept books inside the oven because there were more books in our house than shelves in the apartment we had."
Now starring as opera singer Maria Callas in her latest film "Maria," Jolie continues to honor her mother's legacy while pursuing roles that resonate with her personally. Her story reflects the lasting impact of maternal influence and the complex emotions that can shape an artistic career.