American actress Angelina Jolie was in Shanghai yesterday along with Brad Pitt to promote her latest movie, Maleficent. Jolie’s Shanghai stop marked her first trip to mainland China (because forget Beijing).
According to SinaEnglish:
Jolie, who celebrates her 39th birthday on June 4, was cast in the title role of the not-so-wicked witch in Disney’s new take on its 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty.
“I never get cast as normal,” Jolie says during a press conference at the Peninsula Shanghai near the Bund. “Maleficent may be the most emotional female villain ever on film.”
She describes it as her favorite role to date, beating Lara Croft and a host of hard-nosed female archetypes.

Brangelina check out some artwork at the Long Museum
Jolie and Pitt brought along three out of six of their kids. Unfortunately for female oglers, Pitt only appeared next to his wife in a shop. The punch he received last week while signing autographs at the movie’s Hollywood premier may or may not be the source of his new agoraphobia.
Pitt’s visit to China seemed to effectively put an end his unspoken ban from the country after he pissed off communist authorities by appearing in the 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet.
Although Jolie and brood are flying back to the US later tonight, Maleficent will be screened for the first time in China on June 20. Ecns.cn said she described Shanghai as “elegant.” She obviously didn’t spend any time at M1NT.
By Aliaume Leroy
[Images via China.org.cn]