Angelina Jolie has a close relationship with her older brother, James Haven

NEED TO KNOW

• Angelina Jolie has one sibling: older brother James Haven
• He is an actor and a director
• Haven came out as gay in a post on Instagram in August 2026

After growing up together in a Hollywood family, Angelina Jolie and her brother, James Haven, have remained close.

The firstborn son of Jon Voight and the late actress Marcheline Bertrand, Haven shares Jolie’s passion for film, human rights and family. Voight and Bertrand welcomed Haven in 1973 and divorced in 1980.

Jolie brought her brother to the 2000 Academy Awards, where she won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Girl, Interrupted. “I don’t know if it’s divorced families or what it is, but he and I were each other’s everything, always, and we’ve been best friends,” she told reporters of her brother after her win, according to Entertainment Weekly.

In January 2024, Haven made an appearance on the 90who10 podcast and gave rare comments about his sister, saying he is “protective” of her and her six children, whom she shares with ex-husband Brad Pitt.

In August 2026, Haven came out as gay in a video shared on his former partner Romi Imbelli’s Instagram, telling the camera that he is beginning “a new chapter” of his life.

Here’s what to know about Angelina Jolie’s brother, James Haven.

He is an activist and former actor

Haven was born James Haven Voight on May 11, 1973, in Los Angeles.

Like Jolie, Haven was a working actor for years with guidance from their mother, Bertrand. In 1998, he starred alongside Jolie in the HBO film Gia. He also appeared in Original Sin with Jolie and Antonio Banderas, Monster’s Ball with Jolie’s then-husband Billy Bob Thornton and episodes of CSI.

He’s no stranger to working behind the camera, either. Haven directed an episode of The Game in 2007 and produced the 2005 documentary Trudell about Native American poet and activist John Trudell.

Haven also shares Jolie’s love for humanitarianism and has credited his sister with getting him involved with human rights causes, especially working to help AIDS patients.

“Angie was the catalyst,” he told Marie Claire in 2007. “She’d say, ‘I just heard this is going on in Darfur…’ and I’d want to be involved.” He also worked for the Artivist Film Festival, which showcased movies that addressed human rights, and environmental and animal rights causes.

Jolie kissed him the night she won an Oscar in 2000

The same night that she won her Oscar for Girl, Interrupted, Jolie kissed Haven on the lips on the red carpet before the ceremony.

During her acceptance speech, she said, “I’m in shock, and I’m so in love with my brother right now. He just held me and said he loved me and I know he’s so happy for me, and thank you for that.”

After thanking others, including her parents, she tearily closed with: “Jamie, I have nothing without you. You are the bravest, strongest man I’ve ever known. Thank you. I love you so much.”

Two years later, Jolie spoke to Vogue about her acceptance speech, explaining, “Saying I’m ‘in love’ with him is just an expression.” She continued, “What I meant was, in this moment, with all this s— going on, all that matters to me is that guy sitting right there who has stood by me and is so f—ing happy for me.”

He and Jolie grew even closer after losing their mother

Jolie and Haven’s mother died on Jan. 27, 2007. The siblings were together at the time, which Haven said was helpful in processing his grief.

“When I first lost my mother, I couldn’t stop crying,” Haven told the Daily Mail later that year. “Fortunately, I was with Angie when we heard. It was such a big moment.”

Haven later told Marie Claire he and Jolie bonded over their desire to protect women and children in need, and their humanitarian passion was partially inspired by their late mother.

He’s close with Jolie’s children

Haven is a proud uncle to Jolie and Pitt’s six children: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh and twins Vivienne and Knox.

In an April 2007 interview with Express, Haven said that Shiloh was actually named after him.

“It’s an honor beyond any honor I’ve received in my life. Before I was born I was going to be Shiloh, and at the last second my parents gave me Haven instead,” he said. “So it was great when Brad and Angie came to me and said, ‘We’re thinking of names and our favorite is Shiloh. Would it be okay?’ I was almost in tears.”

Speaking with Marie Claire later that year, Haven said that the kids were “unbelievable.” He noted that then-toddler Zahara loved hiding and that Pax, then 3 and still learning English, “amazed” him the first time he said Haven’s name.

Haven has remained close with his nieces and nephews, who are now young adults. In January 2024, he said on 90who10, “They’re becoming young adults. [They’re in their] early 20s. That’s so crazy. I think it’s just very natural. I just want to be there.”

He added, “Anytime I’m blessed to be in their presence, I want to be in their presence.”

He came out as gay in August 2026

After a brief marriage to Romi Imbelli lasting less than a year before it was annulled in 2024, Haven shared the news about his sexuality in a post on her Instagram account.

“After many years of healing from childhood trauma, I am now free to live the life that I believe I was always meant to live,” he said in a video. “One of hope, one of peace and one of love. So as my story unfolds, I want you all to know that I do it with an open heart, with nothing but love for myself and for all of you.”

Haven also appeared in a live stream on Imbelli’s Substack, where he read a statement to the camera.

“I hope my family and others can choose love over fear, understanding over judgment, and connection over the beliefs that may have kept us apart,” he said. “I hope they can look beyond the labels and simply see me with the same heart, the same laugh, the same soul they’ve always known.”

#Meet #Angelina #Jolies #Brother #Actor #Director #James #Haven