Brad Pitt assault claims 'exaggerated’ says friend

Friends of Brad Pitt are rallying behind the actor to deny reports that he lunged at his son Maddox during an alleged argument on a flight last week.

TMZ reports that the altercation between Brad, 52, and Maddox, 15, escalated to the point where he struck him “intentionally or inadvertantly.”

Maddox is said to have jumped in to defend his mum Angelina Jolie at which point Brad reportedly lunged at him, forcing Angelina to step in.

RELATED: 10 of Brad and Angelina's most stylish red carpet moments

But a friend of Brad has now told The Daily Mail that the “claims are exaggerated and fabricated.”

“It’s unfortunate for the whole family that people are insisting on continuing this endless smear campaign against Brad that hurts everyone,” the friend told the publication. “They are a solid family with two caring parents and a normal share of verbal disagreements like major households.

“Hopefully people can move on and leave them all alone to work this out."

Meanwhile, Us Weekly are reporting that the alleged plane incident was captured on video.

According to their report, the actor can be seen on video “looking drunk” and “yelling” but doesn't appear to strike anyone.

"Brad is seen yelling a lot during it, but nothing physical," the source who claims to have seen the footage said.

While TMZ's source further claims Brad hasn't said a bad word about his wife-of-two-years Angelina Jolie at all since she filed for divorce.

“He is focused on the best interests of the kids right now, that is why he has remained silent despite the smears,” the friend said.

Other insiders claim the star has been left devastated by Angelina's decision to file for divorce.

"He is just wrecked by this," a source close to the actor tells PEOPLE. "He got a heads-up [about the filing] two days before, and he was appealing to her to do this quietly – not to save the marriage but to consider the well-being of the children – and it was ignored."

Another source told Us Weekly: "He is completely devastated and beside himself. He is a shattered man."

Meanwhile, the actor is reportedly fighting for joint custody of his children.

Angelina filed for divorce earlier this week and is seeking sole physical custody of their six children - Maddox, 15, Pax, 12, Zahara, 11, Shiloh, 10, and twins Knox and Vivienne, eight - but Brad intends to fight for equal rights.

The actor is set to respond to the divorce petition submitted by Angelina, which seeks to only give him visitation rights, TMZ reports.

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