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Angelina Jolie Shares Mastectomy Scars And The Internet’s Reaction Sparks Backlash
Hollywood star Angelina Jolie found herself at the center of an online firestorm after a new magazine photoshoot reignited conversations about her health and her high-profile legal battle with ex-husband Brad Pitt.
The Oscar-winning actress, who has been open for more than a decade about undergoing preventive cancer surgeries, was met with a wave of criticism from trolls who questioned her motives, even as supporters rushed to defend her message and intent.
Highlights
- Angelina Jolie faced online trolling after revealing her mastectomy scars in a Time France photoshoot.
- Critics claimed that the images were a distraction from her ongoing legal battle with ex-husband Brad Pitt.
- Sources close to Jolie said she shared the photos out of advocacy and solidarity with other women.
RELATED:
Angelina Jolie said sharing her scars was about solidarity with other women, not spectacle
Image credits: TIME France
The controversy followed Jolie’s appearance on the December cover of Time France, where she posed in a low-cut jumper with her hand partially covering her chest. The photos visibly showed the scars from her double mastectomy.
Jolie, 50, had the surgery in 2013 after she learned that she carries the BRCA1 gene mutation, which significantly increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
Image credits: TIME France
Speaking directly to Time France, Jolie explained her decision to showcase her scars in her photos. “I share these scars with many women I love. And I’m always moved when I see others share theirs,” she said.
According to an OK! report, Jolie’s photos were aimed at raising awareness about cancer prevention. They were also intended to support women who were facing similar health challenges.
Image credits: TIME France
Apart from her double mastectomy, Jolie also underwent surgery to remove her ovaries and fallopian tubes as further preventive measures.
Her decision was shaped by family history. Her mother, French actress Marcheline Bertrand, passed away from ovarian cancer in 2007, while her grandmother and aunt also lost their lives to cancer.
Friends have stated that history continues to drive Jolie’s advocacy, which has long focused on awareness and early testing, among others.
Internet trolls proceeded to accuse Jolie of “timing” the photoshoot around her long legal battle with ex-husband Brad Pitt
Image credits: TIME France
Despite Jolie’s long history of advocacy, the photoshoot quickly became a target for online criticism. Some trolls accused Jolie of “seeking attention” and claimed the images were deliberately released to distract from her ongoing legal and business dispute with ex-husband Brad Pitt, 62, over their shared French winery, Château Miraval.
According to a source close to the actress, those accusations deeply missed the mark. “She is proud of what she’s done and why she’s sharing it,” the source said.
Image credits: TIME France
“But people are twisting it, linking it to everything else going on in her life. The online abuse has been brutal, and it’s compounded by the legal fight over the winery.”
Another source pushed back even harder against the narrative circulating among her critics. “These people should be ashamed of themselves,” the source said. “They are opportunists after web clicks, as Angelina’s photoshoot clearly has nothing to do with some crackpot theory she bared all to tray and draw some kind of sympathy vote from lawmakers and fans.”
Image credits: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty Images
A media analyst cited by OK! shared the same sentiments. “She’s using her platform to support millions of women who are dealing with cancer risks,” the analyst said. “It’s brave, and it’s separate from any other dispute she has going on.”
Angelina Jolie’s legal battle with Brad Pitt over their winery has been long and complicated
Jolie’s photoshoot landed amid her long-running and increasingly complex legal dispute between her and Brad Pitt over Château Miraval. Their fight has intensified following recent court rulings favoring Pitt.
As part of the case, Jolie has faced demands to turn over private communications connected to her 2021 sale of her stake in the French winery to Tenute del Mondo, the wine division of the Stoli Group.
Image credits: Julian Parker/Getty Images
Pitt had alleged that Jolie’s sale of her stake breached a prior agreement that required mutual consent. Jolie has disputed these claims.
The ongoing case has become so tangled that one legal source described it as “labyrinthine,” but sources close to Jolie strongly rejected any suggestion that her health advocacy was connected to the dispute.
Image credits: Harald Krichel/Wikimedia
An entertainment industry insider said, “Ange and Brad’s winery fight is ongoing, as it has been for years, but it’s unfair to link her health advocacy to a legal matter. The trolling has nothing to do with the important message she’s sending.”
Netizens shared their thoughts on Angelina Jolie’s recent photoshoot and her encounter with trolls on social media
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What do you think ?
roddy 1 day ago
I can't understand the hate on this. Yes, most breast cancer survivers are overlooked because they are not famous. So, when someone who is famous speaks, she speaks for all of them. This should be appreciated. The alternative, in reality, is no publicity at all.
Tabitha 7 hours ago (edited)
Yeah, what’s with the “Horangelina” thing in the title?
Load More Replies...
JB 1 day ago
Can’t help but feel that one commenter, “I have real mastectomy scars”, misses the point. A mastectomy is a mastectomy. Preemptive, aesthetic, gender affirmation, or forced due to disease; there isn’t a good nor better reason for why this surgery is “more valid because…”. It’s the bitterness of someone forced into surgery they didn’t want struggling with the idea that it can be a choice.
Emilu 15 hours ago
Agree with this so much. Angelina's mastectomy isn't 'fake' because she had it as a preventative measure, or because she's a celebrity or anything like that... it's the same end result. Some people are so bitter; it's disgusting.
Load More Replies...
Tyranamar Seuss 22 hours ago
She's in Hollywood. She made the very difficult decision to chop off her breasts and go into early menopause to have a better shot at living a long life. She should be commended for this. People who are bitter bc they had to wait until they had breast cancer for the mastectomy suck. I don't approve of many things this woman has done. But this, was not one of her mistakes. Nor was it done for attention. This was done to save her life! Good for her.
Anyone-for-tea? 3 hours ago
I don’t necessarily think that’s why people would be bitter, although it might be some of them, but maybe the access to better healthcare, resources and support. I’ve been diagnosed with cancer just before Christmas, and am now facing chemo and radiotherapy, but not in the comfort she has, and that’s the hard bit. It really does suck.
Load More Replies... Jaya 22 hours ago
Wow. People really are horrible. She did a great thing back then by sharing her story publicly and drawing attention to the topic, and being a voice for people who struggled with the same choice. And she's doing the same thing now, drawing a bit of attention back onto the topic. She's doing a good thing.
Asri 19 hours ago
My mastectomy scars freak women out at the gym. It's ridiculous, they are just a scars. People need to get over it, it can happen to anyone. (Including men.)
Laszlo Larthlanc 4 hours ago
"...it can happen to anyone. (Including men.)" Not well known, but true. Out of about 2,800 cases of male breast cancer each year 510 to 530 of those men will succumb to it. If you're a man and you find that one or both of your nïpples have become inverted go see the doctor now.
Load More Replies...
Deborah B 1 day ago
Only US Health Insurance for profit would consider preventative mastectomy for BRCA1 mutation an elective procedure.
Dilly Millandry 1 day ago (edited)
It IS an elective procedure. It's value as potential preventative medicine doesn't alter that. An elective procedure is a non-emergency medical treatment or surgery that is planned in advance, rather than being done urgently, often to improve health or quality of life, like cataract removal or a hip replacement, though it can also address serious conditions like cancer. It's the opposite of emergency surgery, which is needed immediately for life-threatening issues.
Load More Replies...
Shalin Quinones 6 hours ago
I think it is brave to share these photos and it is a smart decision to get a preventive mastectomy with this gene. However, she had this done 12 years ago, so why now?
Laszlo Larthlanc 4 hours ago
Maybe it took her this long to quit worrying about what the trolls would think.
Load More Replies... Michael Fernandez 4 hours ago
Yeah, the world is imperfect, but demanding that everything be perfect immediately, all at once, is how we got a life-long criminal in the White House. She’s raising awareness of her situation, and she’s someone who tries to do good. Accept the things she’s sharing, because it’s on the path to better understanding of women’s health & body issues overall.
roddy 1 day ago
I can't understand the hate on this. Yes, most breast cancer survivers are overlooked because they are not famous. So, when someone who is famous speaks, she speaks for all of them. This should be appreciated. The alternative, in reality, is no publicity at all.
Tabitha 7 hours ago (edited)
Yeah, what’s with the “Horangelina” thing in the title?
Load More Replies... JB 1 day ago
Can’t help but feel that one commenter, “I have real mastectomy scars”, misses the point. A mastectomy is a mastectomy. Preemptive, aesthetic, gender affirmation, or forced due to disease; there isn’t a good nor better reason for why this surgery is “more valid because…”. It’s the bitterness of someone forced into surgery they didn’t want struggling with the idea that it can be a choice.
Emilu 15 hours ago
Agree with this so much. Angelina's mastectomy isn't 'fake' because she had it as a preventative measure, or because she's a celebrity or anything like that... it's the same end result. Some people are so bitter; it's disgusting.
Load More Replies... Tyranamar Seuss 22 hours ago
She's in Hollywood. She made the very difficult decision to chop off her breasts and go into early menopause to have a better shot at living a long life. She should be commended for this. People who are bitter bc they had to wait until they had breast cancer for the mastectomy suck. I don't approve of many things this woman has done. But this, was not one of her mistakes. Nor was it done for attention. This was done to save her life! Good for her.
Anyone-for-tea? 3 hours ago
I don’t necessarily think that’s why people would be bitter, although it might be some of them, but maybe the access to better healthcare, resources and support. I’ve been diagnosed with cancer just before Christmas, and am now facing chemo and radiotherapy, but not in the comfort she has, and that’s the hard bit. It really does suck.
Load More Replies... Jaya 22 hours ago
Wow. People really are horrible. She did a great thing back then by sharing her story publicly and drawing attention to the topic, and being a voice for people who struggled with the same choice. And she's doing the same thing now, drawing a bit of attention back onto the topic. She's doing a good thing.
Asri 19 hours ago
My mastectomy scars freak women out at the gym. It's ridiculous, they are just a scars. People need to get over it, it can happen to anyone. (Including men.)
Laszlo Larthlanc 4 hours ago
"...it can happen to anyone. (Including men.)" Not well known, but true. Out of about 2,800 cases of male breast cancer each year 510 to 530 of those men will succumb to it. If you're a man and you find that one or both of your nïpples have become inverted go see the doctor now.
Load More Replies... Deborah B 1 day ago
Only US Health Insurance for profit would consider preventative mastectomy for BRCA1 mutation an elective procedure.
Dilly Millandry 1 day ago (edited)
It IS an elective procedure. It's value as potential preventative medicine doesn't alter that. An elective procedure is a non-emergency medical treatment or surgery that is planned in advance, rather than being done urgently, often to improve health or quality of life, like cataract removal or a hip replacement, though it can also address serious conditions like cancer. It's the opposite of emergency surgery, which is needed immediately for life-threatening issues.
Load More Replies... Shalin Quinones 6 hours ago
I think it is brave to share these photos and it is a smart decision to get a preventive mastectomy with this gene. However, she had this done 12 years ago, so why now?
Laszlo Larthlanc 4 hours ago
Maybe it took her this long to quit worrying about what the trolls would think.
Load More Replies... Michael Fernandez 4 hours ago
Yeah, the world is imperfect, but demanding that everything be perfect immediately, all at once, is how we got a life-long criminal in the White House. She’s raising awareness of her situation, and she’s someone who tries to do good. Accept the things she’s sharing, because it’s on the path to better understanding of women’s health & body issues overall.
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