Hollywood stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s divorce dispute, which has been ongoing for 7 years, may have officially ended in 2024, but the controversy continues to simmer. Following their three children who have previously chosen to drop Pitt’s surname publicly and privately, two more children have recently submitted applications to the California court to request a name change, removing the surname “Pitt” and adopting “Jolie.”
According to reports from US media such as CNN, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s 23-year-old eldest son, Maddox, and 21-year-old daughter, Zahara, have recently filed electronic applications with the Los Angeles Superior Court in California. They are seeking to drop their father’s surname “Pitt” from their names and solely adopt their mother’s surname “Jolie.”
In accordance with California law, Maddox and Zahara are required to publish advertisements in the Los Angeles Daily News for four consecutive weeks in June and July, allowing anyone with objections to the name change to express their dissent. If no objections are raised, a California judge may make a ruling on the name change case. It is expected that their applications will be processed in mid to late September.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie first met on the set of the movie “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” in 2005, sparking a romantic connection. They tied the knot in August 2014. The once envied Hollywood power couple share six children, including three adopted children named Maddox, Pax, and Zahara, and three biological children named Shiloh, Knox, and Vivienne.
In September 2016, Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt, accusing him of violent behavior towards her and their children during a private plane flight. The incident was investigated by the FBI and LA’s DCFS. In the divorce application filed in the same month, Jolie cited the day after the incident as the date of their separation. This marked the beginning of a prolonged legal battle over property and custody of their children. Eventually, Jolie was granted primary custody of the minor children, while Pitt was given visitation rights.
After the court finalized the dissolution of their marriage, Jolie legally changed her name back to Jolie from Jolie Pitt. Subsequently, multiple children expressed their desire to remove their father’s surname from their names. Following Shiloh’s public relinquishment of the Pitt surname in 2024, the next year she appeared publicly as “Shi Jolie.” In the credits for the 2024 Broadway musical “The Outsiders,” Vivienne’s name was listed as “Vivienne Jolie,” indicating her involvement as a production assistant alongside her mother Jolie.
With Maddox and Zahara now seeking name changes in court, this means that four out of the six children want to drop the surname ‘Pitt’ from their names.
As for their youngest son, Knox, sources reveal that he has informally stopped using his father’s surname and has a strained relationship with Brad. Pax, the second eldest, remains the only child still using the surname “Pitt,” although he has publicly criticized Brad Pitt in the past, indicating a fractured relationship. The ongoing animosity between Jolie and Pitt significantly impacts the children’s choices.
In addition to the fractured parent-child relationships, the former couple is embroiled in a legal battle over the ownership rights of the $350 million French estate Château Miraval. In 2021, Jolie sold her shares to a Russian wine merchant, leading Pitt to file a lawsuit seeking to nullify the deal. Jolie countersued Pitt, alleging that he tried to silence her with a high confidentiality agreement to restrict her from speaking out about her mistreatment. The court case is scheduled to commence in February 2027.
As for Jolie, she has rarely spoken publicly about the divorce in recent years, only stating that the separation was for “the well-being of the family.” She continues to focus on healing and supporting her children. In a recent interview, she admitted to not having been in a romantic relationship since the divorce a decade ago, choosing to prioritize her children and family above all else.