Angelina Jolie, 49, has 'grown close' to a new actor, 21, as she raves about his 'musical artistry'

Angelina Jolie has been getting close to a number of men this year - think rapper Akala who has been traveling the world with the icon as she promotes her new film Maria.

Now there is another man that is 'special' to the 49-year-old humanitarian, a source has told DailyMail.com.

This new guy in her life is 21-year-old actor Jason Schmidt, who was in the Broadway run of her musical version of The Outsiders. 

Though they do not appear to be romantic, the two have formed a 'strong bond' as she 'appreciates how talented and keen he is about the arts.'

Not only has Jolie been hanging out with Jason, but earlier this month the Oscar-winning actress featured him at Atelier Jolie, her New York City craft shop.

And he was thrilled with the attention; on Instagram he said it was a 'beautiful night.' 

At age 21, Jason is younger than Angie's son Maddox, who is 23-years-old.

Jason was at Angelina's AJ shop earlier this month as he gave a 'private concert' for  his pals. 

Schmidt wore red as he sang for the crowd during an 'intimate' evening; Jolie watched his performance as she stood next to son Pax. 

She also showed him off on her Atelier Jolie Instagram page.

'Atelier Jolie welcomed Jason Schmidt, known for his role in Broadway's The Outsiders, for an intimate private concert with close friends and family,' the caption said.

'The actor and singer-songwriter debuted his latest single, Growing Up in a heartfelt set that showcased his musical artistry. 

'Best known for bringing depth and warmth to his characters, Jason is now embarking on a new chapter, carving out a path with his music.

'Join us in congratulating Jason and give his new single a listen via link in bio. Cover Photography: @gilesduley Event Photography: @kaitlynclev.'

The Outsiders musical is based on the 1967 novel by S. E. Hinton. 

The story follows 14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis (played by Brody Grant in the Broadway original musical) and his experiences with rival gangs in 1960s Oklahoma. 

Schmidt plays Sodapop Curtis, Ponyboy's second oldest brother.

Its 1983 film adaptation was written by Kathleen Rowell, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, and led by a star-studded cast that included C. Thomas Howell, Patrick Swayze, Tom Cruise, and Sofia Coppola.

The musical originally premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in California before it got picked up and taken to New York City to join the official Broadway lineup. 

It has won four Tony Awards, including the coveted Best Musical. 

Jason was thrilled to work with Jolie.

'It's been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,' Schmidt told Teen Vogue.

'Hopefully, I'll get to be a part of continuously cool things. But for a musical to have a fan base like this and a reach like this, I do think it's very unique. 

'Even some of the best, most successful musicals don't have this type of fan base — and that's been beautiful to experience. I think we all felt it, even in La Jolla when it was a different show. I still was like, 'Oh yeah, this has the potential to do great things.'

'I'm trying to take it in as much as I can and ground myself,' he says about the growing popularity of the show and his rising fan base. 'Individually, it's weird. I'm not going to lie. I think it's so fun and lovely to have the fans be affected the way they are by the show and by my portrayal of this beautiful character. But I also don't always know how to handle it.'

Schmidt grew up in the suburbs of Illinois. 

His first theater performance was for the local community theater at nine years old.

'The community theater was doing Les Mis,' Schmidt recalled. 'My mom was like, 'You've got to do this one last show and then you can quit.' And I was like, 'no, I'm quitting, I'm really done with it.' I was tired of it. As an athlete, you get made fun of for it. And I remember the first time I saw this guy come late to practice in middle school from choir and he just got ripped on by all the other dudes. I remember being like, 'Well, I'm going to keep it a secret that I do freaking theater then.' And I did for a little bit. I really loved basketball. And at the time, up until that point, theater had just been for fun and for friends.'

He then went to Carnegie Mellon for theater, but left halfway through his junior year to play Buddy Aldridge in the Paramount+ original Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. 

The series premiered in April 2023.

'Grease gave me perspective 'cause a lot of people were giving us the talk saying, 'This is going to be huge, get ready for your life to change,' that type of thing,' he says. 'So, I think from the perspective of that and then moving into Outsiders, people were saying the same thing and I kept being like, 'Well, I'll believe it when I see it.' I had the utmost confidence in it but you never know.'

He is also focused on his music career. His latest single is Growing Up.

'Matt used to tell me this phrase a lot: 'Growing up is missing someone everywhere you go,' he continues. 'In each of these things that I'm doing, Grease, Outsiders, music, and moving to these different cities, I meet all these beautiful people, I fall in love with them, and then I move on to the next thing. 

'The moving itself, I'm figuring it out — How do I stay connected to people? I think it honestly has a lot to do with choosing the right people because, with my best friends, I don't necessarily call them or text them a lot. I think I struggle with being a little lonely but I've learned to invest in the people that are here and trust the journey that I'm on.'