Photo Credit: Getty Images
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's eldest son, Maddox, has formally requested to remove his father's surname, marking another step in the family's ongoing estrangement.
Legal documents filed on May 28 show the 24-year-old petitioning to change his name from Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt to Maddox Chivan Jolie. The move follows his recent professional credit in Angelina's film Couture, where he was listed simply as "Maddox Jolie" while working as an assistant director.
Maddox is not alone in distancing himself from Pitt's name. His sister Shiloh legally dropped "Pitt" on her 18th birthday in 2024, reportedly hiring her own lawyer and funding the process herself. Zahara has informally gone by "Zahara Marley Jolie," including at her Spelman College graduation, while Vivienne used "Vivienne Jolie" in the playbill for The Outsiders.
The family divide traces back to Brad and Angelina's high-profile split in 2016, which led to years of custody battles and legal disputes. Reports of a plane incident that same year intensified tensions, though investigators found no evidence of abuse. Their divorce was finalized in 2024 after nearly eight years of proceedings.
Sources close to Pitt have described him as devastated by his children's decisions to drop his name, viewing it as symbolic of a deeper estrangement. In past interviews, Pitt acknowledged his struggles as a father, telling GQ in 2017: "I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven't been great at it."
Angelina has spoken about prioritizing her children's privacy and stability, explaining that she remains in Los Angeles until her youngest twins, Vivienne and Knox, reach adulthood. She has also expressed hopes of spending more time abroad once her custody obligations end.
While the court has yet to grant his request, it appears likely to be approved, continuing a pattern among the Jolie children of aligning more closely with their mother.
