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Angelina Jolie Admits She’s “Never Been Comfortable as an Actor,” Says Directing Husband Brad Pitt Is “Tricky”

Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie opened up to DuJour magazine about the fact that she has "never been comfortable as an actor"; plus, she shared what it's like to direct husband Brad Pitt in By the Sea

Take a good look now, because Angelina Jolie‘s gorgeous face may be moving behind the camera — permanently. The actress took a break from filming with love Brad Pitt in Malta recently to sit down with DuJour‘s Adam Rathe for the magazine’s winter 2014 issue, which features the Unbroken director alongside the star of her new movie, Jack O’Connell. During the chat, she confirmed to the mag that she “absolutely” plans to give up acting in the future.

Related: PHOTOS: Angelina Jolie's Us Weekly covers

“I’ve never been comfortable as an actor; I’ve never loved being in front of the camera,” the Best Supporting Actress Oscar winner admitted. “I didn’t ever think I could direct, but I hope I’m able to have a career at it because I’m much happier.”

Angelina Jolie and Jack O'connell cover

Related: PHOTOS: Angelina's style transformation

She’s certainly on the right path. At 39, Jolie has two feature films under her belt — the just-premiered Unbroken and 2011’s In the Land of Blood and Honey — as well as a third in production. The latter is By the Sea, a movie she wrote and is directing and starring in with Pitt.

“Compared to Unbroken, this film is a walk in the park,” she told DuJour of the romantic period drama, the couple’s first on-screen reunion since 2005’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith, the movie that brought them together.

Related: PHOTOS: Brad Pitt's Us Weekly covers

That’s not to say there aren’t challenges, of course — just that the challenges they have aren’t quite as extreme or grueling as, say, playing a POW in World War II, which is what English actor O’Connell had to do as Louis Zamperini in Unbroken. (“It’s hard to highlight one particular point because the whole film was very f—ing brutal,” O’Connell told DuJour.) 

Angelina Jolie and Jack O'connell

With By the Sea, Jolie explained, “The tricky thing is directing myself and directing Brad. It’s hard, dramatic material, and we’re balancing.” 

The couple — parents to kids Maddox, 13, Pax, 10, Zahara, 9, Shiloh, 8, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 6 — began shooting the movie shortly after their hush-hush French wedding in August. In a way, it was their honeymoon, which Pitt jokingly described as “dysfunctional” back in October.

Related: PHOTOS: Brad and Angelina's love story

“It’s a heavy film, and it’s not easy for us,” Jolie told DuJour. “But even as you struggle through it, you’re in the trenches together and you don’t expect it to be easy. We’re challenging each other and that’s a really good thing.”

For more from Angelina Jolie’s interview, pick up the new issue of DuJour magazine.

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