Angelina Jolie’s Next Chapter: Leaving Los Angeles for a Life Abroad

For decades, Angelina Jolie has been one of the most recognized women in the world.

From her Oscar-winning performances and globe-spanning humanitarian work to her high-profile marriage and divorce from Brad Pitt, Jolie’s life has rarely left the headlines.

But today, the actress, director, and activist is preparing for a transition that could mark one of the most significant shifts of her adult life: leaving the United States entirely once her youngest children turn eighteen.

This move would not only close the chapter on her years in Los Angeles but also signal a fresh beginning for someone who has long felt more at home in the international community than in Hollywood’s hills.

For Jolie, the decision is not just about geography—it’s about freedom, identity, and reclaiming the kind of life she has always envisioned for herself and her family.

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From Hollywood Royalty to Global Citizen

Though she grew up as the daughter of Hollywood actor Jon Voight and actress Marcheline Bertrand, Jolie has never been fully at ease with the entertainment industry.

She has described Los Angeles as a place of shallow connections and endless image-making, an environment that can suffocate rather than inspire.

Back in 2017, when Jolie purchased the historic Cecil B.

DeMille estate in Los Feliz for $24.

5 million, she made it clear that she had little interest in making the city her permanent home.

The sprawling 2.

1-acre property—with its rolling gardens, swimming pool, and nearly century-old architecture—was, at the time, a practical choice.

After her separation from Pitt in 2016, Jolie wanted a stable residence close to where Pitt lived so that their six children could maintain regular contact with both parents.

But the actress was candid even then: Los Angeles was never her dream.

“I never really wanted to live here,” she said in a 2023 interview, admitting that she was tethered to the city only because of the ongoing custody arrangements.

With that battle now legally resolved, the anchor has been cut loose.

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Waiting for the Right Moment

Jolie’s youngest children with Pitt—twins Knox and Vivienne, born in 2008—will turn 18 in 2026.

According to people close to her, Jolie has set that milestone as the turning point when she will officially relocate abroad.

The decision reflects both legal and emotional timing.

With her children of age, she will no longer be bound by custody restrictions that required her to live within reach of their father.

This doesn’t mean Jolie is leaving her career behind.

Far from it.

Her plan, insiders say, is to split her time between international projects and occasional U.

S.

work.

The difference is that her base of operations will shift—whether to Europe, Asia, or elsewhere.

The locations under consideration remain private, though she has often spoken warmly about her time in Cambodia, France, and Namibia, three countries that hold personal significance due to her humanitarian work and family history.

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Why Leave Los Angeles?

For many, Los Angeles is the pinnacle of luxury: sunshine year-round, endless opportunities in the entertainment industry, and a lifestyle of glamour and influence.

But Jolie has never seemed fully at home with Hollywood’s rhythms.

She has called out the lack of “humanity” and authenticity she perceives in the city, describing it as a place more concerned with status than with meaningful living.

After years of humanitarian missions in war zones and refugee camps, the contrast between her work abroad and the celebrity bubble of Beverly Hills has grown increasingly stark.

“Los Angeles is not where I find fulfillment,” she has said.

“It’s where I work when I have to, but not where I find meaning.

Her move is part of a growing trend.

In recent years, several Hollywood stars have downsized their Los Angeles presence or left entirely.

Jimmy Kimmel relocated part-time to Idaho.

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi spend increasing amounts of time abroad.

Rosie O’Donnell and Richard Gere have also shifted away from Hollywood’s glare.

The reasons vary—taxes, politics, quality of life—but the overall narrative is the same: Hollywood is no longer the only place where stars feel they must live.

 

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Selling a Landmark Home

The symbolic centerpiece of Jolie’s departure will be the sale of her Cecil B.

DeMille estate.

Built in 1913 and once home to the legendary filmmaker himself, the estate is one of Los Angeles’s most storied properties.

It features 11 bedrooms, multiple guest houses, ornate fountains, and sweeping city views.

When Jolie bought it, the purchase represented stability in a turbulent period.

Today, it represents something else entirely: a tether to a city she no longer wishes to call home.

Real estate insiders suggest the home could fetch well over $30 million in today’s market, making it one of the most lucrative celebrity listings of the coming years.

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A New Chapter in Career and Life

Even as she looks abroad, Jolie is not stepping away from Hollywood entirely.

She is currently set to star in The Initiative, a spy thriller directed by Doug Liman (known for The Bourne Identity and Edge of Tomorrow).

The film marks Jolie’s return to action roles that recall some of her biggest hits, from Salt to Mr.& Mrs.Smith.

At the same time, she continues her humanitarian work as a UNHCR Special Envoy, focusing on refugees, displaced families, and survivors of conflict.

Her international perspective, cultivated over decades of activism, is one reason she feels drawn away from the U.

S.“My work has always taken me abroad,” she once said.

“That’s where I feel most alive, most useful.”

For Jolie, then, the move isn’t about abandoning Hollywood—it’s about realigning her personal life with the global work that defines her.

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The Children at the Center

Through every stage of her career and personal reinvention, Jolie has placed her children at the center of her decisions.

Her six children—Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Knox, and Vivienne—have grown up in the public eye but under her careful guidance.

Maddox has already pursued higher education abroad, enrolling at Yonsei University in South Korea.

Zahara is attending college in the United States but has also shown interest in international work.

Shiloh, once tabloid fodder for her style choices, has become a talented dancer.

The twins, Knox and Vivienne, remain Jolie’s youngest responsibilities, and until they come of age, she intends to keep their lives as stable as possible.

By waiting until they are 18, Jolie ensures that her decision to relocate doesn’t fracture family ties or complicate existing legal agreements.

Instead, it becomes a natural progression into adulthood—for them and for her.

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Hollywood Without Jolie?

Angelina Jolie’s departure won’t erase her presence from Hollywood, but it does raise questions about the industry’s future.

For decades, Los Angeles has been the gravitational center of global entertainment.

Yet as streaming platforms and international production hubs expand, the necessity of living in LA has diminished.

Today, films are shot in London, Vancouver, Budapest, and New Zealand as often as in Hollywood.

Stars can live anywhere and still remain relevant.

Jolie’s decision highlights this shift: she can maintain her career while choosing to live in a place that better reflects her values.

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A Broader Trend

Jolie’s move is part of a larger cultural moment.

In recent years, celebrities and executives alike have questioned whether Los Angeles still offers the sense of security, privacy, and inspiration it once did.

Rising costs of living, political polarization, and the constant gaze of paparazzi have driven many to seek alternatives.

The shift is not entirely new.

Stars like Johnny Depp and George Clooney established long-term European homes years ago.

But Jolie’s exit feels particularly symbolic because she represents not only Hollywood glamour but also humanitarian credibility.

Her voice carries weight beyond entertainment, and her choice to leave Los Angeles underscores the city’s declining hold over even its most iconic residents.

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What Comes Next

No matter where Jolie lands, her life will look very different.

Freed from legal constraints, she will be able to design her days around meaningful work and authentic connections.

The possibilities are wide open: continuing to direct films, expanding her humanitarian missions, or perhaps even building cultural institutions abroad.

For her fans, the move will add an air of mystery.

Angelina Jolie has always been more than just a movie star.

She is a global citizen, a woman whose choices—whether adopting internationally, serving in war zones, or raising six children largely outside traditional Hollywood circles—have consistently defied expectations.

Her next chapter will likely be no different.

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A Defining Moment

Ultimately, Jolie’s planned departure from Los Angeles is about more than geography.

It is about reclaiming freedom after years of constraint.

It is about giving her children a life beyond the glare of the Hollywood spotlight.

And it is about aligning her personal existence with the humanitarian, global values that have defined her career.

As one friend put it: “Angelina was never meant to stay in Los Angeles forever.

She was meant for the world.”

When the time comes and she boards that flight—perhaps to Paris, perhaps to Phnom Penh—one chapter of her life will close.

But for Angelina Jolie, a woman who has never stopped reinventing herself, the story is only just beginning.