A therapeutic film that Angelina Jolie could never have made in the past

"Coutures," the feature film directed by Alice Winocour and released in February 2026, strongly resonates with the unique life experiences of its lead actress, Angelina Jolie. In the film, Jolie plays Maxine, an American filmmaker grappling with both a divorce and a breast cancer diagnosis, all amid the hustle and bustle of Paris Fashion Week.

Angelina Jolie certainly could not have taken on such an intense role in the past. Now 50 years old, the actress opened up to People magazine about the therapeutic experience:

“The film isn’t about an ending for my character, but rather a renewed desire to live until her last breath, which resonates particularly with me at this stage of my life,” she said. “I’m not sure I would have been strong enough to do this five years ago—to be open, to trust, to share, and to be vulnerable again.”

Beyond the fiction, the heart of the film—which highlights sisterhood as well as mutual support in the face of illness—resonates deeply with her personal story. Affected by the deaths of her mother and grandmother from breast cancer, Angelina Jolie underwent a preventive double mastectomy in 2013.