Tragic Details About Angelina Jolie's Brother James Haven

From the Olsen sisters to Nicole and Antonia Kidman, a number of celebrities have really successful siblings. Although he's not quite as famous as his sister Angelina Jolie, James Haven has enjoyed time in the limelight and shares many of the same stunning qualities as the "Girl, Interrupted" star, including piercing eyes and killer cheekbones.

Like Jolie, Haven has found success as an actor, director, and philanthropist, the latter of which he said his sister helped inspire during his conversation with Marie Claire in October 2007. "Angie was the catalyst," Haven explained. "She'd say, 'I just heard this is going on in Darfur' ... and I'd want to be involved." While both of them have dealt with devastating events and hardship throughout their lives, Haven may be the more tragic of the siblings because he hasn't maintained consistent notoriety as his sister has. From their shared childhood struggles to their controversial relationship and apparent rift and his bizarre love life, here are the tragic details about Angelina Jolie's brother James Haven.

Sadly, James Haven and Angelina Jolie's relationship with their dad Jon Voight has been strained for nearly as long as they've been alive. At 20 years old, Marcheline Bertrand met the "Midnight Cowboy" star in 1970, and though Voight was 12 years older than her, they hit it off. The couple got married and had Haven in 1973, with Jolie following a couple of years later.

"I have no memory at all of my mother shouting at me or at my sister," Haven said to the Daily Mail in March 2007. "But I do have horrible memories of my father and the way he behaved. He was so tough on our mother." Five years after tying the knot, Voight and Bertrand split, and she was forced to raise her kids primarily as a single mother. "We saw him around Christmastime or at school recitals," Haven continued. "He was always around but he never did his job as a father." The "Heat" star fell behind on child support, too, and Haven was forced to have a conversation with him about taking better care of Bertrand.

"We definitely had a taste of his manipulative behavior," Jolie's brother said. "But it was when he dealt with my mother that we really saw him pulling the strings." While Voight dodged his parenting responsibilities, Bertrand was fortunately always present for her children, and they had an extremely close bond.

While Angelina Jolie has had a number of high-profile relationships, including Billy Bob Thornton, Val Kilmer, and Brad Pitt, James Haven's love life has been a little sparser by comparison. As it turns out, this could be in part due to his famous sister's high expectations for him, which he remarked upon during his 2007 Daily Mail interview, "She's always been very protective of me with regards to my romantic life." While it isn't uncommon for siblings to want the best for one another or to want to shelter each other from heartbreak, it seems like Jolie actually made it difficult for Haven to date. "She wants me to be with the right woman," he continued.

Coming from a broken home is part of the reason, too, Haven explained, and he understandably has wanted to avoid making a mistake or getting divorced like his parents did. The actor said that he would often go to his sister for dating advice, but that she can often be "too picky" and any potential girlfriend has had to "go through two filters," himself and Jolie. Interestingly, Haven added that because he has such a close bond with the "Maleficent" star, "[I]t's like I've already got the perfect woman in my life and it's hard for anyone else to live up to that." Of course, Haven did eventually go on to get married — but it ended quickly and tragically.

For those who can remember back to the year 2000, a number of controversial pop culture moments probably come to mind. Britney Spears and Madonna kissed at the MTV Video Music Awards, Janet Jackson had a wardrobe malfunction at the Super Bowl, and Angelina Jolie's relationship with her brother James Haven was called into question. During her acceptance speech at the 72nd Academy Awards, having just won an Oscar for her incredible performance in "Girl, Interrupted," she exclaimed, "I'm in shock, and I'm so in love with my brother right now." While posing with her award next to her brother after the show, she wrapped her arms around Haven and planted a kiss right on his lips.

The gesture was widely mocked, and incest jokes filled gossip columns and jokes on late-night talk shows. Both siblings were asked repeatedly about the incident, with Haven telling the Daily Mail during his 2007 interview, "I did not give Angie a French kiss, it was something simple and lovely." He explained that there was nothing wrong with kissing his sister, insisting, "I congratulated her on the Oscar win and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. It was snapped and became a big thing around the world." While this might be the case, it's since gone down as an unforgettable moment, and the photo will live on forever.

Growing up in a tight-knit three-person household, it's no wonder that James Haven and Angelina Jolie had an extremely close relationship with their mother Marcheline Bertrand. While their dad may not have been around much, it's clear she was their No. 1 supporter. Tragically, about seven years after her ovarian cancer diagnosis, Bertrand died in January 2007 at the age of 56. "There are no words to express what an amazing woman and mother she was," Jolie and Haven told People in a statement the following month. "She was our best friend."

The siblings were understandably grief-stricken, and Haven went on to remember his mom fondly during his conversation with the Daily Mail several months after her death. "There was very much that home feeling when we came back from school," he said. "Angie and I would walk in and comment on how we could smell things cooking and baking in the kitchen." Haven elaborated on how hands-on Bertrand was with them, saying she was helpful when it came to homework and would use real-life demonstrations to teach them things like cooking.

During this interview, Haven acknowledged that while he was upset about his mother's death, Jolie was taking it especially hard. "Angie has become very thin because she's grieving," he explained. "It's even difficult for her to eat. I keep saying to her, 'Don't forget to eat.'" Fortunately, the siblings had each other to lean on during this difficult time.

Born to two performers and with a stunning bone structure, it seemed only natural that James Haven became involved in acting. While Angelina Jolie started out in the early '90s with appearances in a number of music videos and shorts, her brother took a little longer to break into the industry. His first credited on-screen appearance was a minor role in the 1998 made-for-TV movie "Gia," which starred his sister. Similarly, whereas Jolie has dozens of projects under her belt, Haven has had just 15 credits.

One of these was his second-to-last acting role, 2012's "Deep in the Heart," which also starred John Gries, Elaine Hendrix, and Val Kilmer. Haven had a minor part in the movie, which was based on a true story, and although his father Jon Voight wasn't attached to the project, the two did press circuits together.

"It was an honor because it is the first time I've ever played anybody who's real; I've played a lot of fictional creations," Haven said while speaking with Deseret News in February 2012. "Anytime you have the opportunity to do any kind of story that is based on a true story, I think those are the most inspirational." Since this project, he has had just one other role, in a 2014 short film called "Easy Silence," leading many to eventually wonder what happened to him.

James Haven has been there for much of the tragic circumstances in Angelina Jolie's life, remaining loyal to and protective of his sister. When she and Brad Pitt split in 2016, she reportedly sought the support of her brother to help take care of her six children, along with her nannies. Given how close Haven has been to Jolie over the years, it seemed like the perfect arrangement.

In January 2024, he explained on the "90who10" podcast that being around his nieces and nephews more often seemed ideal. "I think it's natural ... that's where it all started. It started with the protection of [Jolie]," Haven said. He noted how quickly his sister's kids had grown up, adding that he felt very lucky to be a part of their lives. "Anytime I'm blessed to be in their presence, I want to be in their presence," Haven remarked.

Unfortunately, come March 2025, word of a feud between the actor and his sister made gossip column news as a source told Grazia (via Yahoo!) that Jolie had "quietly dismissed" her brother as her nanny. While they purported that the arrangement had been canceled due to Haven's heavy workload, another source revealed to RadarOnline that they were no longer as close as they used to be. "She also blames him for her split from Brad Pitt, and that only makes it more likely she will never mend her ties with James," they said.

A Hollywood wedding is nothing new, but when a loved one isn't in attendance, the rumor mill runs into overdrive. After dating fairly quietly, James Haven married his longtime friend, "The Real L Word" star Romi Imbelli (formerly Romi Klinger) in August 2024. "Our wedding day was intimate, just us and our parents while exchanging vows, with plans to have a larger celebration later," the reality star wrote in an Instagram post (via The New York Post) several months after the ceremony.

Unfortunately, Imbelli added, those future celebration plans hit a snag because she and Haven had an argument the day after they got married and decided to spend several months working on their relationship first. Although it was a quiet ceremony, Haven's father Jon Voight was in attendance — but Angelina Jolie was notably absent. "She felt very strongly that he was making a huge mistake and begged him to wait," a source told RadarOnline in April 2025. Describing the fallout as "ugly," the source alleged that Haven accused Jolie of not supporting him and they had yet to make up.

Shortly after James Haven's marriage began, it was over. Just over two weeks after he tied the knot with Romi Imbelli, she filed to annul the marriage, citing fraud. This may have been related to the big argument the reality star referred to in her Instagram post announcing her marriage to Haven. The two reconciled, and in January 2025, Imbelli told In Touch that she and her husband had worked things out and were planning on having the annulment dismissed.

However, just two months later, the "Real L Word" star told People that she would indeed be moving forward with the annulment after all. "As reflected in public record, the reason cited remains fraud," she said. Haven has yet to speak publicly about his seven-month marriage to the television star nor its lightning-fast end. "This has been a deeply personal and difficult decision but one that I feel is necessary for my own well-being," Imbelli said, adding that she would be revealing more details in her upcoming memoir.