The defamation verdict in the Johnny Depp case has unsurprisingly empowered the worst men. We knew that as soon as the verdict came out, that there would be a wave of Me Too backlash, that abusers – specifically high-profile celebrity abusers – would sue their victims. I’m very worried about Evan Rachel Wood and I hope she has people she trusts around her. I’m completely unsurprised that in the wake of the Depp verdict, Brad Pitt has chosen to sue Angelina Jolie. He’s not suing for defamation though. He’s suing because she lawfully sold her half of Chateau Miraval, including her half of the wine business. Last year, Jolie had to go to court to remove the restraining order on Miraval, their jointly-held asset. She was successful, and by October 2021, she sold her half to Tenute del Mondo, a subsidiary of Stoli.

In the months that followed the sale, Brad has been whining to anyone who would listen about how Jolie had no right to do this (she actually went to court a few times to clear the path of the sale) and how he wasn’t given any notice (he was) and how unfair it was that she wanted to remove herself from him financially (he’s a controlling abuser, big surprise). Now he’s sued her. The Daily Mail got the first look at his lawsuit and ran it as an exclusive. It would not surprise me if Pitt’s lawyers sent the lawsuit to the Mail directly, and they definitely provided color commentary via “a source” who called Jolie “vindictive” and more. But now People Magazine and other outlets are running the story about the lawsuit:

Brad Pitt is accusing ex Angelina Jolie of damaging the reputation of the wine business they previously co-owned together by selling her half to a “stranger.” Back in 2008, the now-exes, who share six kids, bought a controlling stake in the South of France vineyard and home Château Miraval, where they later got married in 2014 and spent several family holidays together throughout their relationship.

In Pitt’s latest court filing in his ongoing battle with Jolie over the sale of Miraval, the actor, 58, claims that Jolie, 47, intentionally “sought to inflict harm on” him by selling her interests in the wine company. Pitt says they had agreed to never sell their respective interests in the family business without the other’s consent. Jolie did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Pitt’s legal team writes in the documents, filed Friday at Los Angeles County Superior Court and obtained by PEOPLE, that Miraval became his “passion” project that grew “into a multimillion-dollar global business and one of the world’s most highly regarded producers of rosé wine” through his work. The actor accuses Jolie of contributing “nothing to Miraval’s success.”

In the filing, Pitt’s lawyers say Jolie planned to sell her interest in October to Tenute del Mondo, which is “bent on taking control of Miraval” and is “indirectly owned and controlled by Yuri Shefler, the Russian billionaire who controls the Stoli Group.”

“Jolie pursued and then consummated the purported sale in secret, purposely keeping Pitt in the dark, and knowingly violating Pitt’s contractual rights,” reads the filing from Pitt’s team. Pitt’s lawsuit claims that Jolie’s business Nouvel owed his company Mondo Bongo the right of first refusal, and the sale infringed on that right. Jolie, who filed for divorce in 2016, was previously cleared to sell her share of the estate in September.

Pitt’s team says Shefler launched a hostile takeover of Miraval and is trying to get ahold of “confidential and proprietary information for the benefit of his competing enterprise.” The documents accuse Shefler of having “cutthroat business tactics and dubious professional associations,” which in turn “jeopardizes the reputation of the brand Pitt so carefully built.” They add: “Jolie has sought to force Pitt into partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions.”

Pitt is seeking damages “in an amount to be proven at trial” plus the purported sale made by Jolie to be declared “null and void.”

The actor is asking for a trial by jury. Pitt is suing for breach of implied-in-fact contract; breach of quasi-contract, pleaded in the alternative; breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing; abuse of rights under Article 6-1 of the Luxembourg Civil Code; tortious interference with contractual relations; tortious interference with prospective business relations; and constructive trust.

[From People]

“Pitt’s team says Shefler launched a hostile takeover of Miraval” – from what I’ve heard, Pitt’s team continued to keep their new business partners in the dark about their business practices and Tenute del Mondo gave Pitt and his team ample opportunity to work together in good faith. When that didn’t work, Tenute del Mondo got the French authorities involved and they’re uncovering a lot of fraudulent sh-t going on in Miraval. I mean, that’s what I’ve heard. The whole reason why Jolie wanted out of Miraval is because Pitt cut her out of the business and he acted as if she didn’t own half of the property. Anyway, I can’t wait to see if Pitt hires Johnny Depp’s misogynist troll army.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Instar.