Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's Son Maddox Files to Drop 'Pitt' from His Last Name
Maddox Jolie-Pitt has filed legal paperwork to officially drop "Pitt" from his last name, becoming the latest of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's children to formally distance himself from his father's surname.
TMZ first reported the filing Thursday. According to the outlet, Maddox, 24, filed a petition requesting his name be changed to Maddox Chivan Jolie. The request has not yet been granted by a court.
The legal move follows what had already been a visible professional shift. When Maddox served as assistant director on his mother's film Couture — which debuted in French theaters in February 2026 — he was credited simply as "Maddox Jolie." It was the first time he had dropped the Pitt name in a professional context. As recently as 2024, when he worked as a production assistant on Jolie's Netflix film Maria, he was credited as Maddox Jolie-Pitt.
A Pattern Across the Family
Maddox is now the fourth of Pitt and Jolie's six children to publicly distance themselves from the Pitt name — and the first to file a formal legal petition.
Shiloh, 19, was the first. She filed a legal petition to drop "Pitt" from her last name on her 18th birthday in May 2024 — a gesture that was widely noted for its timing. A judge granted the request in August of that year.
Zahara, 21, dropped the name informally when she introduced herself as Zahara Marley Jolie upon joining her sorority at Spelman College in Georgia. Vivienne, 17, removed "Pitt" from the playbill for a Broadway production she worked on.
Of the six children — Maddox, Pax, 22, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne, both 17 — Pax and Knox are the only two who have not made any public moves regarding the Pitt name. They are also the least publicly visible of the six.
The Background
Jolie and Pitt met on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith in 2004 and were together for roughly 12 years before Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016 following an incident on a private plane that resulted in an FBI investigation into Pitt. No charges were filed. The divorce was finalized in 2024 after years of legal battles, primarily centered on the custody of their minor children and the disputed sale of Château Miraval, their French winery.
Reports have circulated for years that most of the children have limited or no relationship with their father. Brad Pitt's representative did not respond to requests for comment. Angelina Jolie's team has also not publicly commented on Maddox's name change filing.
In California, where the petition was filed, a legal name change requires filing a court petition, paying a filing fee, and publishing a public notice in a newspaper to allow for any objections. A hearing may or may not be required.
Maddox was adopted by Jolie from Cambodia in 2002, before her relationship with Pitt began. Pitt later adopted him. He is the eldest of the six children.
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