08/28/2014 AT 05:05 PM EDT
But kids can be persistent. And over the years, their children repeatedly asked about if – which later became when – Mom and Dad would tie the knot. (And to be fair, Pitt and Jolie were both romantically drawn to the idea, too.)
On Saturday, of course, they finally wed – with “I do” replacing “I won’t,” “I might” and “I will someday.”
It was a long road to that joyful day, though. Below, check out the couple’s evolving views on the topic, in their own words, dating back to 2006.
October 2006
“Angie and I will consider tying the knot when everyone else in the country who wants to be married is legally able.”
• Pitt explains to Esquire why he and Jolie are not ready to wed
July 2007
“We’re not against it. It just doesn’t seem necessary. He and I have never discussed it in detail, but I would assume – because we [both] went down that road before – it’s not that contract or that ceremony that makes you feel solid. We’ve gone the back way around, and maybe there is something to that – that it’s the hard work and the exhaustion and the children that really do make you solid.”
• Jolie to Marie Claire
June 2008
“People have made a lot out of it that we’re not, but we both have been married before, and it’s very easy to get married, but it’s not easy to build a family and be parents together. And maybe we’ve done it backwards, but we certainly feel married.”
• Jolie to Vanity Fair
August 2008
“When someone asked me why Angie and I don’t get married, I replied, ‘Maybe we’ll get married when it’s legal for everyone else.’ I stand by that, although I took a lot of flak for saying it – hate mail from religious groups. I believe everyone should have the same rights. They say gay marriage ruins families and hurts kids. Well, I’ve had the privilege of seeing my gay friends being parents and watching their kids grow up in a loving environment.”
• Pitt to Parade
June 2010
“[We’re not] against getting married. … It’s just like we already are. Children are clearly a commitment, a bigger commitment [than marriage]. It’s for life.”
• Jolie opens up to Vanity Fair
May 2011
“The kids ask about marriage. … It’s meaning more and more to them. So it’s something we’ve got to look at.”
• Pitt tells USA Weekend
August 2011
“[There’s no] secret wedding.”
• Jolie denies in a Vanity Fair interview that she’s pregnant, adopting and tying the knot
September 2011
“The kids are putting on the heat. They really are. They are putting on the heat. … How do you I get out of this one? Somebody help me. I don’t know what the future holds.”
• Pitt to Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show
December 2011
“The kids asked me the other day, and I asked them if it was just because they wanted to have a big cake. They see movies that have the people getting married in the movies or somebody’s, you know, the happily ever after. Shrek and Fiona are married. … We’ve explained to them that our commitment when we decided to start a family was the greatest commitment you could possibly have. Once you have six children … you’re committed.”
• Jolie to Christiane Amanpour in interviews that aired on Good Morning America and Nightline
January 2012
“We’d actually like to [get married] And it seems to mean more and more to our kids. … We made this declaration some time ago that we weren’t going to do it till everyone can. But I don’t think we’ll be able to hold out. … I’m not going to go any further. [But] it means so much to my kids, and they ask a lot. And it means something to me, too, to make that kind of commitment.”
• Pitt to the Hollywood Reporter about his changing stance on marriage
January 2012
“We’re getting a lot of pressure from the kids. … It means something to them and they’re, you know, they have questions when their friends’ parents are married and why is that? … We will someday. We will. … [But the kids say], ‘Get mommy a ring!’ Okay, I will, I will.”
• Pitt in an interview with CBS News
“I think anything said tends to be blown out of proportion.”
• Jolie to PEOPLE on the red carpet at the Screen Actors Guild Awards when asked about the recent flurry of “ring talk,” which Pitt says was “his fault”
November 2012
“I am getting more pressure from my kids, and it is something I want to do within their lifetime. … The time is nigh. It’s soon. I got a good feeling about it.”
• Pitt to PEOPLE at the Killing Them Softly film premiere in New York
May 2014
“We will get married, and we’re not really in a rush, so we’re just waiting for it to be the right time with the kids, with work, when it feels right. We talk about it occasionally, and the kids talk about it with us. … Which is verging on hysterical, how kids envision a wedding. They will in a way be the wedding planners. It’s going to be Disney or paintball – one or the other! We’ve got a lot of different personalities in the house. They’ve got some strong opinions. It will be fun. That’s the important thing. When we do it, it will feel like a great day for our family.”
• Jolie in a PEOPLE cover story
