Salma Hayek Pinault Considers Angelina Jolie ‘Family,’ Says She Always Feels ‘Safe’ Around Her (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

From Left: Salma Hayek Pinault; and Angelina Jolie.Photo:Robin Marchant/Getty; Robin Marchant/Getty

Robin Marchant/Getty; Robin Marchant/Getty

ForSalma Hayek Pinault,Angelina Jolieis more than just the director of her latest movie. She is “a family member,” Hayek Pinault, 58, tells PEOPLE on Sunday, Sept. 8, at theToronto International Film Festivalworld premiere ofWithout Blood.

When asked about her longtime friendship with Jolie, 49, Hayek Pinault quips, “What do you mean friendship?” She then notes that the two are much closer than that — and “do things together as a family.”

From Left: Salma Hayek Pinault, Angelina Jolie, and Demián Bichir at TIFF on Sept. 08. 2024.Monica Schipper/EveryStory2024/Getty

Monica Schipper/EveryStory2024/Getty

Hayek Pinault and Demián Bichir leadWithout Blood, which Jolie adapted from the 2002 Alessandro Baricco book of the same name. The film is “an unforgettable fable set in the aftermath of an unidentified conflict [which] explores universal truths about war, trauma, memory, and healing," per a synopsis from production company Fremantle.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

On the Italian set of the war drama, Jolieemployedher sons,Maddox, 21, andPax, 18. She previously directed 2011’sIn the Land of Blood and Honey, 2014’sUnbrokenand 2015’sBy the Sea, the latter of which featured Jolie costarring alongside then-husbandBrad Pitt.

Without Bloodmarks theMariastar’s first follow-up collaboration with Hayek Pinault after the two starred in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe installmentEternals.

From Left: Patricio José, Jorge Antonio Guerrero, Salma Hayek Pinault, Angelina Jolie, Demián Bichir and Juan Minujín on Sept. 08. 2024.Monica Schipper/EveryStory2024/Getty

She added at the time, “I’ve worked with great directors that are really focused, but maybe because she’s also an actress. Everything that maybe she wished somebody would’ve done for her, she did for us.”

source: people.com