Twice-Divorced Jennifer Aniston Calls Her Marriages "Successful"

Jennifer Aniston's marriages to Brad Pitt and Justin Theroux ended in divorce and seemingly endless tabloid headlines, but she is at least publicly reflecting on both of them in a positive light. She is able to do that because she says she never has had illusions about marriage and kids.

“We live in a society that messages women: By this age, you should be married; by this age, you should have children,” she told Elle. “That’s a fairy tale. That’s the mold we’re slowly trying to break out of. . .I also was never a kid who sat around and dreamed about a wedding, you know? Those were never my fantasies. When I was first popped the question, it was so foreign to me.”

She doesn't give in to societal pressures that might want her to try for another marital relationship.

 “I don’t feel a void. I really don’t," she insisted. "My marriages, they’ve been very successful, in [my] personal opinion. And when they came to an end, it was a choice that was made because we chose to be happy, and sometimes happiness didn’t exist within that arrangement anymore. Sure, there were bumps, and not every moment felt fantastic, obviously, but at the end of it, this is our one life and I would not stay in a situation out of fear. Fear of being alone. Fear of not being able to survive. To stay in a marriage based on fear feels like you’re doing your one life a disservice. When the work has been put in and it doesn’t seem that there’s an option of it working, that’s okay. That’s not a failure. We have these clichés around all of this that need to be reworked and retooled, you know? Because it’s very narrow-minded thinking.”

Team Aniston is looking strong these days.