Divorce happens like routine Hollywood that it never or rarely damages any career, especially if you happen to be one of the brightest constellations in Hollywood. Most celebrities endure swarms of bad publicity over drug use and scandal of sorts, apart from divorce; but still thrive and succeed in the industry.
"I've never really seen where the loss of a relationship was responsible for a dip in someone's career," said John Tarnoff, head of industry relations at the Carnegie Mellon University Heinz College master of entertainment management program. Celebrities whose careers have undergone pain after breaking up, he said, "did that to themselves quite apart from the split."
For Jolie and Pitt, the biggest career risk lies in claims that he has been circulating about being abusive toward his kids, said David Johnson, CEO of Strategic Vision PR Group in Atlanta.
Headlines about drunkenness and infidelity (even though "Allied" costar Marion Cotillard said nothing happened between them, Pitt's been a sex symbol since "Thelma & Louise") would be in line with what the public knows about the actor, Johnson said.
That's why Pitt's team is really pushing back against the allegations of any violence engaging his kids, Johnson said. If there's an acceptable reason for what happened on that plane the day before Jolie took off, the public will forgive the rest.
"Her team got that story out first, and in the public's mind they're hearing all these things - and yes, his team's responding as much as they can, but at the same time it's not loud and clear, and you're just hearing the thunder beat, it's one thing after another," he said. "That's the one that could ruin his brand ... even as far as wanting to cast him as films."
"It depends on what kind of news is going to come out and what people are going to believe," he said. "When things like this happen there's always going to be a little bit of bruising here and there, but we're a forgiving society and as long as it's not something that's absolutely horrible, in the end, people will just be OK and they'll move on."
Both Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have still thriving Hollywood careers. Pitt still has star power as an actor and is a major player as a producer with his company Plan B. Jolie continues to act but progressively interested in directing.
"People are still going to see Brad Pitt movies," Deraney said. "They're still going to see Angelina Jolie movies."
