Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's kids have made their Vogue debut.
In the pages of the magazine's November issue, on newsstands Wednesday, Angelina, 40, Brad, 51, and their children— Maddox Jolie-Pitt, 14, Pax Jolie-Pitt, 11 Zahara Jolie-Pitt, 10, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, 9, Knox Jolie-Pitt, 7, and Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, 7—pose for photographer Annie Leibovitz in a stunning spread.
In the wide-ranging cover story, the director and star of Universal Pictures' By the Sea says the kids are home-schooled by teachers from different backgrounds and religions who speak different languages. "We travel often to Asia, Africa, Europe, where they were born," she says. "The boys [Maddox and Pax] know they're from Southeast Asia, and they have their food and their music and their friends, and they have a pride particular to them. But I want them to be just as interested in the history of their sisters' countries and mommy's country so we don't start dividing. Instead of taking Z on a special trip, we all go to Africa and we have a great time."
Angelina sees her children as global citizens.
In April, for example, she took Shiloh with her to meet refugees in Lebanon.
"When she was sitting on the floor with her UN cap writing her notes as she was talking to someone, I was flashing on myself 15 years ago and thinking, I know that moment," the UN Special Envoy says, later adding that not all of her children are interested in taking humanitarian trips. "The kids that don't want to go don't go."
Angelina is currently developing an adaptation of Loung Ung's memoir, First They Killed My Father, for Netflix. It's Ung's childhood story of torture, death, and survival under the Khmer Rouge. She's teaming up with award-winning Cambodian filmmaker and archivist Rithy Panh.
"It's a very unusual film. There's not a lot of dialogue. A child experiences more than she talks." It will be shot in Khmer, Angelina explains, but the actors' wardrobe will be made in Cambodia. "I'll be making it with the Cambodians every step of the way," Angelina says, noting that she wants to respect those affected by the Khmer Rouge. "I will feel the ghosts of a million people who died. It's their story and their skulls in the ground. And that is a great responsibility."
Brothers Maddox and Pax will research archives and work on the shoot. "The film will change Mad, but as much as he's discovering the horrors of the past, he'll also be discovering the culture before the war, the dignity of his country, how they held their heads up," Angelina says.
During pre-production, Angelina took Pax to meet Aung San Suu Kyi, the liberated Burmese opposition leader and Nobel laureate. "Seeing Pax get extra-nervous about which shirt he is going to wear when he meets Aung San Suu Kyi, I get very moved," she tells the magazine. "He rightfully doesn't get nervous going to a movie premiere; he gets nervous going to meet her."
For Angelina, it's important to spend as much time with her children as possible. "I schedule individual time with each of the kids like a crazy person," she says.
Angelina also tells Vogue she doesn't see herself acting forever. "What a crazy job!" she says. "I'm almost enjoying it more now that I see it as something I've been fortunate to be part of. Maybe in the next few years I'll finish being in front of the camera. I'll be happier behind it. I'm happy to be home. I want to really focus on my children, doing the best I can to guide and protect them before they are out of the house. These are their most important years."
The November issue of Vogue is on newsstands Wednesday.
For more on Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's beautiful and intimate family portraits in the new issue of Vogue, tune in to E! News tonight t 7 and 11 on E!
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