Angelina Jolie and Salma Hayek Pinault are giving audiences a rare glimpse into a friendship that has deepened far beyond their first on-screen collaboration. As their new film Without Blood arrives in U.S. theaters on September 18, the two actresses have spoken candidly about the connection they built while working together—one that Jolie describes as unlike anything she has experienced before.
The film, directed and adapted by Jolie from Alessandro Baricco’s 2002 novella, stars Hayek alongside Demián Bichir in a story about war, memory, and the long aftermath of violence. But the conversations that unfolded behind the scenes between director and star became just as significant as the film itself, with both women describing an unusually open and trusting dynamic that developed during production.
Their friendship first took root on the set of Marvel’s Eternals in 2021, where they played Thena and Ajak. That professional relationship evolved over the following years into something more personal—a bond that Jolie says has provided a kind of understanding she has not found elsewhere.
In a joint interview with PEOPLE published on September 18, 2026, Jolie reflected on what makes her friendship with Hayek different. “To appreciate that friendship and that bond and that understanding — I haven’t had that kind of a connection in my life,” Jolie said.
She framed the significance of their bond in the context of timing, noting that they met at a later stage in their lives. “I think it’s so nice we met at this later stage in our life,” Jolie said. “Because we’ve been through so many similar things, experienced different things, and somehow have landed as older women in a very similar place.”
Hayek responded with characteristic humor, quipping, “Even though I’m much older than her, by the way.” Jolie, 51, laughed and replied, “Not that much older!” Hayek is 60.
Jolie’s statement about not having had that kind of connection drew attention because of its directness. She did not elaborate on which relationships she was comparing it to, and she did not rank her friendships. The comment stood out simply as a candid expression of how meaningful the relationship has become to her.
Hayek offered her own perspective on why the friendship works. “I love her mind and I get her,” she said. “So I think when you know somebody gets you, you feel safe and you can be whoever you are in whatever circumstances.”
She also connected their friendship to the film’s themes. “It’s hard to find that connection,” Hayek said. “And I think that’s what part of the movie is also about, how difficult it is to communicate, to connect.”
The two actresses first worked together on Eternals, the Marvel Studios film released in November 2021. Jolie played Thena, an Eternal warrior, while Hayek portrayed Ajak, the group’s leader.
That production planted the seeds of a friendship that continued to develop in the years that followed. By 2023, Hayek was already speaking publicly about the bond, describing their friendship as “very, very enriching” and noting that they connected as mothers and artists.
When Jolie began developing Without Blood, she invited Hayek to star in the film. The project brought them together again professionally, but this time the dynamic was different: Jolie was directing, and Hayek was carrying much of the film’s emotional weight as the lead character, Nina.
Their collaboration on Without Blood deepened the friendship in ways that both women have described as significant. The film’s difficult subject matter—war, trauma, revenge, and the possibility of healing—prompted conversations that went well beyond typical on-set discussions.
Without Blood is based on Alessandro Baricco’s 2002 novella of the same name. The story follows Nina, played by Hayek, who as a young girl witnesses the murder of her father and brother during an unspecified war. Years later, she meets Tito (Demián Bichir), one of the men involved in that violence, now working at a train station newspaper kiosk. The film unfolds largely as a two-hander, with Nina and Tito talking through what happened and what it meant.
Jolie adapted the screenplay and directed the film, which was shot at Rome’s Cinecittà Studios. The setting and era of the conflict are deliberately unspecified, a choice Jolie said was intended to make the story resonate universally. “I wanted it to be that anyone watching it from anywhere could identify with it,” she told Variety.
The emotional demands of the material created a unique environment on set. Hayek has described the experience as both terrifying and liberating. “I was afraid that I couldn’t play this part, and also I was afraid to go so far every day at work and go into this really difficult place,” she said during a joint interview with Jolie.
Jolie acknowledged the weight of the subject matter in a separate conversation with PEOPLE. “It’s a very challenging piece for actors who had to be very brave and emotionally open,” she said. “Knowing her well helped to direct her but there was so much about her as a woman and a performer I was surprised by still and so impressed.”
The director also spoke about the conversations that took place among the cast and crew. “We all ended up spending a lot of time talking about our pain, talking about our losses, our traumas,” Jolie said. “Obviously, community can be very, very healing.”
Hayek has been effusive in her praise for Jolie as a director, but her comments about their working relationship also reveal the depth of their personal connection.
In the PEOPLE interview, Hayek described their conversations on set as “delicious” and “very organic.” She also offered a vivid picture of the emotional range those conversations covered.
“Sometimes we would start passionately screaming at each other,” Hayek recalled. “Then I start crying and she hugs me, then we’re laughing nonstop. And from the outside, I could see people say, ‘What’s going on?'”
She clarified that the tears were not the result of conflict between them. “I can say whatever. She’s never offended because it’s coming from me,” Hayek explained. “And we’re talking about issues, and then we start crying because we’re moved, not because we made each other cry… And then we say something stupid and we start cracking up.”
That sense of safety is central to how Hayek describes the friendship. “When you know somebody gets you, you feel safe and you can be whoever you are in whatever circumstances,” she said.
Hayek also praised Jolie’s directorial abilities in an earlier interview with Deadline, calling her “the best director I’ve ever worked with” and describing her as “a genius.” Those comments came in 2022, shortly after production wrapped, and Hayek’s appreciation for Jolie’s approach has only grown in the years since.
Jolie’s statement that she has not had “that kind of a connection” before was notable for its emotional directness. She did not specify which relationships she was contrasting it with, and she did not suggest that other friendships in her life have been less meaningful.
What she did emphasize was the value of finding someone who understands the particular experiences of her life and career. Speaking about why meeting Hayek at this stage felt significant, Jolie pointed to shared history and a similar vantage point.
“We’ve been through so many similar things, experienced different things, and somehow have landed as older women in a very similar place,” she said.
The comment reflects a theme that runs through their public discussions of the friendship: the idea that understanding born from lived experience can create a different kind of bond than friendships formed earlier in life.
Before Without Blood, Jolie and Hayek shared the screen in Marvel’s Eternals, released in 2021. The film, directed by Chloé Zhao, featured an ensemble cast as the Eternals, a group of immortal beings who have lived on Earth for thousands of years.
Jolie played Thena, a warrior who struggles with a condition called Mahd Wy’ry, while Hayek portrayed Ajak, the Eternals’ leader who communicates with the Celestials. Their characters had a significant amount of screen time together, and the production marked the beginning of their working relationship.
That experience gave them a foundation of professional familiarity that made their later collaboration on Without Blood possible. But by their own accounts, the friendship deepened considerably in the years between the two projects.
Without Blood is an adaptation of Alessandro Baricco’s novella, which was published in 2002. The story is set in the aftermath of an unnamed war, in an unspecified time and place. The lack of specificity is intentional: Jolie has said she wanted the film to feel universal rather than tied to a particular conflict.
The narrative centers on Nina, who as a child witnesses the killing of her father and brother. She hides under the floorboards of her family’s farmhouse and is spotted by one of the attackers, Tito, who chooses not to reveal her location. Decades later, Nina finds Tito, now working at a newspaper kiosk, and the two engage in an extended conversation about what happened, why it happened, and what it means.
The film stars Salma Hayek as Nina and Demián Bichir as Tito, with Juan Minujín in a supporting role. It had its world premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in U.S. theaters on September 18, 2026, distributed by Brainstorm Media.
Jolie has described the film as being about “healing after trauma” and the possibility of finding connection through honest conversation. “The book discusses how we often ‘return to where we break,'” she told PEOPLE. “That’s true for almost anyone.”
The professional dynamic on Without Blood was fundamentally different from Eternals. In the Marvel film, both actresses were performers within an ensemble. On Without Blood, Jolie was the director and co-writer, responsible for the film’s overall vision, while Hayek was the lead actor carrying the emotional arc of the story.
That shift meant their interactions during production were shaped by the director-actor relationship. Jolie has said that knowing Hayek well helped her direct her, but she also discovered new dimensions of her friend’s abilities. “I was surprised by still and so impressed,” Jolie said. “I am excited for people to see her incredible work. To see her in a way she hasn’t been seen before.”
Hayek, for her part, has said that Jolie’s approach as a director made the difficult material feel safe to explore. “She’s never offended because it’s coming from me,” Hayek said of their conversations.
The film also represented a creative partnership in a broader sense. Jolie produced the film through her production company, and Hayek has spoken about how the experience strengthened their professional trust in each other.
The relationship between Jolie and Hayek has extended well beyond their work together. In interviews, both women have described conversations that touched on life experiences, creativity, and the challenges of navigating their careers and personal lives.
Hayek has said that part of what makes the friendship work is the ability to be fully herself without fear of judgment. “I can say whatever,” she told PEOPLE, describing how Jolie responds to her without taking offense.
The two have also supported each other’s creative endeavors outside of Without Blood. Hayek has been developing her directorial debut, Arena, an epic romantic adventure that she wrote. Jolie will serve as a producer on the project, marking another collaboration between them.
In a joint interview with Variety, Hayek described their working relationship as “really good, enriching and artistic.” She added, “That is hard to find. It’s such a gift.”
Jolie has also spoken about the value of having a friend who understands the particular pressures and experiences of their shared profession. The connection they have built, she said, is one she does not take for granted.
The theatrical release of Without Blood on September 18, 2026, has brought the friendship back into public attention. The film’s long journey to theaters—it premiered at TIFF in 2024—means that the conversations Jolie and Hayek had during production are only now reaching a wider audience.
In the weeks leading up to the release, both actresses have participated in interviews that have focused as much on their relationship as on the film itself. That attention reflects genuine interest in a friendship that has developed visibly over the past five years, from co-stars on a Marvel blockbuster to collaborators on an intimate independent drama.
Their public comments have also highlighted how the film’s themes of trauma and healing connect to their own lives. Jolie has said she began adapting the book during a difficult period and initially wrote the screenplay as part of her “private healing.” Working with Hayek, she said, gave her someone she trusted with that material.
Beyond Without Blood, the two have another project in development. Hayek is set to direct Arena, which she also wrote, and Jolie will serve as a producer. The film is described as an epic romantic adventure and is expected to star Yura Borisov and Cara Delevingne. Production is planned for locations in Mexico, including Quintana Roo and Veracruz.
Hayek has spoken about the significance of having Jolie’s support on her directorial debut. “In a way, she’s my partner,” Hayek said. “I’ve written two different scripts with two different pens that she gave me. It’s a really good, enriching and artistic relationship. That is hard to find. It’s such a gift.”
Jolie, meanwhile, continues to work as a director and producer. Her previous directorial credits include In the Land of Blood and Honey, Unbroken, and First They Killed My Father.
The two have also joked about collaborating on a comedy, though Jolie has expressed uncertainty about her abilities in that genre. “My comedies tend to be a bit dark,” she said with a laugh.
Yes. They first worked together on Eternals in 2021 and have since developed a close friendship. Jolie has described their connection as unlike any she has had before, and Hayek has said she feels safe and understood around Jolie.
They met while filming Eternals and their relationship deepened over the following years. When Jolie began developing Without Blood, she invited Hayek to star in the film, and the experience of working together as director and actor strengthened their bond.
Yes. They co-starred in Marvel’s Eternals in 2021, with Jolie playing Thena and Hayek playing Ajak.
Without Blood is based on Alessandro Baricco’s novella and follows Nina (Hayek), who as a child witnesses the murder of her father and brother during an unspecified war. Years later, she confronts one of the men involved, Tito (Demián Bichir), and the two engage in an extended conversation about what happened and why.
Angelina Jolie directed the film and adapted the screenplay from Baricco’s novella. She also produced the project through her production company.
Salma Hayek Pinault stars as Nina, alongside Demián Bichir as Tito and Juan Minujín in a supporting role.
Jolie said she has not had the kind of connection she shares with Hayek elsewhere in her life. She also praised Hayek’s performance, saying she was excited for people to see her “incredible work.”
Hayek described their on-set dynamic as “delicious” and “very organic,” and said she feels safe and understood around Jolie. She has also called Jolie “the best director I’ve ever worked with.”
Without Blood was released in U.S. theaters on September 18, 2026. It had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024.