Angelina Jolie (born June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and three Golden Globe Awards, she has been named as Hollywood's highest-paid actress multiple times.
Jolie made her screen debut as a child alongside her father, Jon Voight, in Lookin' to Get Out (1982), and her film career began in earnest a decade later with the low-budget production Cyborg 2 (1993), followed by her first leading role in a major film, Hackers (1995). She starred in the critically acclaimed biographical cable films George Wallace (1997) and Gia (1998), and won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1999 drama Girl, Interrupted. Her starring role as the video game heroine Lara Croft in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) established her as a leading Hollywood actress.
She continued her action-star career with Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), Wanted (2008), and Salt (2010), and received critical acclaim for her performances in the dramas A Mighty Heart (2007) and Changeling (2008), which earned her a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actress. Her biggest commercial success came with the fantasy picture Maleficent (2014). Jolie has also directed and written several war dramas, namely In the Land of Blood and Honey (2011), Unbroken (2014), and First They Killed My Father (2017).
 Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt |
In addition to her film career, Jolie is known for her humanitarian efforts, for which she has received a Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and made an honorary Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG), among other honours. She promotes various causes, including conservation, education, and women's rights, and is most noted for her advocacy on behalf of refugees as a Special Envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
As a public figure, Jolie has been cited as one of the most influential and powerful people in the American entertainment industry. For a number of years, she was cited as the world's most beautiful woman by various media outlets. Her personal life, including her relationships, marriages, and health, has been the subject of wide publicity.
She is divorced from actors Jonny Lee Miller and Billy Bob Thornton, and legally separated from Brad Pitt; she and Pitt have six children together, three of whom were adopted internationally.
Public image
As the daughter of actor Jon Voight, Jolie appeared in the media from an early age. After embarking on her own career, she earned a reputation as a ‘wild child’, which contributed to her early success in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Celebrity profiles routinely covered her fascination with blood and knives, experiences with drugs, and her sex life, particularly her bisexuality and interest in sadomasochism. In 2000, when asked about her outspokenness, she said, "I say things that other people might go through. That's what artists should do—throw things out there and not be perfect and not have answers for anything and see if people understand."
Another contributing factor of her controversial image were tabloid rumours of incest that started when Jolie, upon winning her Oscar, kissed her brother on the lips and said, "I'm so in love with my brother right now." She dismissed the rumours, saying, "It was disappointing that something so beautiful and pure could be turned into a circus," and explained that, as children of divorce, she and James relied on one another for emotional support.
Positive reputation change
Jolie's reputation began to change positively after she, at age 26, became a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, later commenting, "In my early 20s I was fighting with myself. Now I take that punk in me to Washington, and I fight for something important." Owing to her extensive activism, her Q Score—the industry's measure of celebrities' likability—nearly doubled to 25 between 2000 and 2006. Her recognisability grew accordingly; by 2006, she was familiar to 81 per cent of Americans, compared to 31 per cent in 2000.
She became noted for her ability to positively influence her public image through the media, without employing a publicist or an agent. Her Q Score remained above average even when, in 2005, she was accused of ending Brad Pitt's marriage to Jennifer Aniston, at which point her public persona became an unlikely combination of alleged homewrecker, mother, sex symbol, and humanitarian. A decade later, Jolie was found to be the most admired woman in the world in global surveys conducted by YouGov in 2015 and 2016.
Jolie's general influence and wealth are extensively documented. In a 2006 global industry survey by ACNielsen in 42 international markets, Jolie, together with Pitt, was found to be the favourite celebrity endorser for brands and products worldwide.
Jolie was the face of St. John and Shiseido from 2006 to 2008, and a decade later became a spokesmodel for Guerlain. Her 2011 endorsement deal with Louis Vuitton, reportedly worth $10 million, was a record for a single advertising campaign. Jolie was among the Time 100, a list of the most influential people in the world as published by Time, in 2006 and 2008.
She was named the world's most powerful celebrity in Forbes's Celebrity 100 issue in 2009, and, though ranked lower overall, was listed as the most powerful actress from 2006 to 2008 and 2011 to 2013.
Forbes additionally cited her as Hollywood's highest-paid actress in 2009, 2011, and 2013, with estimated annual earnings of $27 million, $30 million, and $33 million respectively.