Brad Pitt’s mother, Jane Etta Pitt, has passed away at the age of 84.
According to sources cited by TMZ on Wednesday, Jane died within the last day or two. The news was also confirmed by People magazine.
A representative for Brad Pitt declined to comment on the matter.
The family confirmed the loss on social media, with Brad’s niece and Jane’s granddaughter, Sydney Pitt, sharing a tribute on Instagram on Wednesday.
“My sweet Grammy, Jane Etta, we weren’t ready for you to go yet, but knowing you’re finally free to sing, dance, and paint again makes it a little easier,” wrote Sydney Pitt, daughter of Brad’s brother Doug Pitt.
Brad Pitt with his mom in New York City in 1997.
“If you knew Grammy, you knew she had the biggest heart,” Sydney continued. “She cared deeply for everyone and everything, no questions asked. She taught me how to paint, how to be strong, how to lead with kindness, to love Jesus through everything, and to find joy in the smallest things. She made up the silliest games just to make us laugh, and she believed in fairness, in putting others first, and doing good simply because it was the right thing to do.”
Jane Pitt with her granddaughter, Sydney Pitt.
Sydney fondly remembered her annual “special day” with Jane, which included starting the morning with banana splits for breakfast, playing hours of Trouble, enjoying rides together at Silver Dollar City, and ending the day with dinner at Olive Garden.
“She could keep up with all 14 of us grandkids without missing a beat,” Sydney said. “There was no limit to the love she gave, and everyone who met her felt it.”
Brad Pitt’s niece and her mom
Jane Pitt with some of her family members.“I don’t know how we move forward without her,” Sydney continued about Jane. “But I know she’s still here in every brushstroke, every kind gesture, every hummingbird. She was love in its purest form. We were truly blessed to have her to love on growing up, and I know she lives on through each of us.”
In her emotional tribute, Sydney shared multiple photos of Jane from over the years. Brad Pitt, 61, did not appear in any of the pictures.
At a screening for his film F1 in June, Brad Pitt gave a heartfelt shoutout to his mom during an interview with Savannah Guthrie on Today.
“I gotta say hi to my mom because she watches you every morning,” Brad told Guthrie. “To Jane Pitt. Love you, Mom,” he added, blowing a kiss.
Pax Thien Jolie-Pitt, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, Brad Pitt, Maddox Jolie-Pitt, Jane Pitt, and William Pitt at the 2014 premiere of Unbroken.
Brad Pitt, his brother Doug, 58, and sister Julie, 56, were raised in Springfield, Missouri, by their mother Jane, a retired school counselor, and their father William, 84, who owned a trucking company.
Though Jane mostly stayed out of the spotlight despite Brad’s fame, she occasionally appeared alongside him at red carpet events, including the 2012 Academy Awards.
In 2009, Pitt and his siblings donated $1 million to a Missouri hospital to open a new wing named the Jane Pitt Pediatric Cancer Center.
In a 2018 interview with WorldServe International, Jane spoke lovingly about her three children and their humanitarian efforts.
“I’m very proud of all my children. They see a need and try to step in and fill it,” she said. “Whether it’s a disaster in New Orleans, or all the things in Tanzania that Doug does do, or Julie’s wonderful, wonderful work in Ethiopia. It’s an amazing thing.”
